Dr. Boyd Does it Again!

I think Greg Boyd’s explanation of tornadoes and homosexuality honor God and make way more sense.

Calling: Ezekiel

Lack.

Ezekiel is one of the more bizarre prophets in the Scriptures.  He had all these wild visions and an enacted street theater from time to time.  He was out there.  But the most “out there” part of it all is that all of the things he did were in obedience to God.  Ezekiel lacked the words.

“You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious.  But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you.  Do not rebel like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you…” (Ezek 2:7-8, NIV)

And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel.” (3:1)

He then said to me: “Son of man, go now to the house of Israel and speak my words to them.” (3:4)

God did not call Ezekiel and then leave him to his own devices.  He literally fed Ezekiel the words he wanted him to say. That God supplied what was lacking ought to be a comfort for all of us in our own callings.  It is humbling too.  God can make it hard for us to get the glory!  But we can be confident that if He calls us, and we respond in obedience, He will give us exactly what we need to fulfill that calling.

Calling: Jeremiah

Doubt.

The word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”  
“Ah Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.” (Jeremiah 1:4-6, NIV)

God frequently calls unlikely candidates. In the case of Jeremiah, he calls a boy to do a man’s job.  And we catch a glimpse of Jeremiah’s doubt.  The doubt is two-fold.  First, there is the doubt about his own abilities.  This is legitimate doubt.  Who of us is perfectly equipped for whatever God has called us to do?  There is no glory for Him in that.  Our doubts about ourselves are legit.  This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have confidence and live in victory.  BUT…were we to take an honest and sober inventory of ourselves, we will find we come up short.  Second, there is the doubt about God’s abilities.  This doubt is a little more subtle.  When doubt is our response to God’s calling, what we are really saying is, “God, this won’t work.”  But God is able and our “rational” responses reveal our lack of faith in His ability to do exactly what He said, even when it seems unlikely or outrageous. 

Jeremiah’s starting point for understanding the call is himself.  God’s starting point for understanding Jeremiah’s call is Himself.  The call has so little to do with Jeremiah’s evaluation of himself and so much more to do with God’s sovereign plan, which was in place before Jeremiah was even born!

I think it is natural to doubt our calling (Jeremiah was not the only one in Scripture to respond this way).  In fact, I think if we have a right view of ourselves, we will experience some amount of doubt, because we realize that God is calling us to something bigger than ourselves.  But God is perfectly able and perfectly faithful…which makes our doubts about ourselves marvelously irrelevant.

Cold Kung Pao Chicken

Livin’ the dream, baby. I had cold, leftover Chinese food for lunch. Why? Well, I don’t have a microwave. Or groceries for that matter. It’s been a crazy weekend. I have moved into my new apartment and in between doing that, I’ve been attempting (to no avail) to work on my three mega projects that are due this week. My friends have been amazing, helping me out. But this is one of those times where being married would probably be helpful. Just someone to "do life" with, especially on really demanding weekends like this. It occurred to me today that the only people I’ve ever really done life with (since leaving home) have been my friends. Thank the Lord for them. But I haven’t had a mentor or a mentee or a serious boyfriend. Perhaps my life would be enriched by any or all of those. In fact, I’m certain it would. But I’m also finding that life is possible without those. Being a single, working grad student, living far from any family inevitably has forced me to become a different kind of person and to rely on the people I do have.

This morning, I skipped church to go clean my old apartment. After a few hours of deep cleaning, I am satisfied to say goodbye and I have high hopes of getting my security deposit back. I’m glad to get out of that place. My new place isn’t perfect, but it’s better in many ways. And I think I’ll be happy here.

Well, the plan for today is to spend some much-needed time with the Lord and then some much-needed time doing homework.

Thank you, Jesus, for your provision and faithfulness. May He be glorified in all my MESS…literally.

August Update

It’s been forever since I’ve written anything here.  I’ve had the ideas but not the time.

Summer school is winding down.  One more week.  One more crazy week.  I have 3 major projects all due next week.  Then there’s my teaching load.  Oh, and I’m moving this weekend.  Kind of inopportune time to upheave my life.  We have a motto in this department that says, “It all gets done.  And done is good.”  So, despite the fact that I can’t seem to find enough hours in a day to accomplish everything, I’m holding out hope that once again it will all get done.

Other than that, not a whole lot is going on.  My next blog posts will be a series entitled “Calling” in which I will look with some depth at the callings of a handful of Biblical characters, including some of the prophets.  I’m excited to write about that when I finally find the time.

In the meantime, eat, drink, and be merry.  And love God.  Over and out!

Wait for Me

I’m sitting in my office with stuff all over my desk, frantically trying to finish my reading before class. Such is my life. I feel the need to steal away though. To rest. To sit in peace. To hear from God. And right at this moment, I don’t care if I don’t finish my reading. My soul has needs that trump school–needs that scholarly journal articles can’t meet. Ha.

But I will continue reading, and then go sit in class for two hours, and then go home and have a long to-do list…and hope that God will wait for me.

Pull

It is something like gravity.  

I wander from God–maybe intentionally, maybe not.  I have not left a trail of M&Ms.  I am certainly lost!  But just when I feel too far gone, I feel the pull.  I start to find my way.  I start to find The Way.

I wander from people (or at least desire to)–often intentionally, but sometimes not.  I resist.  I am frustrated by my own need for other people.  And just when I get ready to run, I feel the pull.  I give in.  I allow myself to be human.

It’s a damn good thing it works this way.  I don’t know where I’d be without The Pull.

Beauty Mark

I was laying in bed the other night talking to God, and it occurred to me that my talking to God might be a clue as to what is unique about Christianity.  Christianity is based on a relationship.  I know!  How terribly cliche!  But it’s true. All of my spiritual activity is based on a relationship with God.  And I think, for adherents to other religions, spiritual activity is based on a relationship with ideas.  For the Christian, spirituality is centered on a person, a living being, whom we love and trust and desire to honor.  For the non-Christian, spirituality is often centered on ideas about how to become a better person or a more enlightened, actualized individual.  What a world of difference!

Now I must say, the Christian is not immune to an idea-centered spirituality.  And likewise, I am certain that many non-Christians talk to God in a relational way.  I have painted these simplistic categories with broad strokes.  The truth is, every person has a relationship with God.  It’s just a matter of the nature of that relationship.  But a real, living, dynamic relationship with God is the distinguishing beauty mark on the face of Christianity.  And if we would behold and indulge this beautiful privilege, maybe we would find ourselves captivated anew!

The Importance of a Church Website

I have a love/hate relationship with technology.  Lest I start ranting, let me get straight to the point.  I believe every church should have a website. At least half of the churches I’ve attended in the past several years I initially discovered via internet.  Of course, if I want to find churches, I can go to the phonebook or drive around town.  BUT…having a website allows potential visitors to get acquainted with a church in a way that phonebooks and outdoor marquees simply can’t match.  There’s a theory we talk about in the Communication Studies field called Uncertainty Reduction Theory.  The theory seeks to explain that strangers behave in certain ways during initial stages of interaction in an effort to reduce the uncertainty they have about one another and the relationship.  When applied to churches, it’s not hard to see how having a website aids in the reduction of uncertainty between the church and potential visitors.

I admit, as I’ve looked for a home church, there have been places I didn’t visit because they didn’t have a website. Sounds terrible, I know.  But I like to know what to expect.  I like to know the doctrine of a church beforehand.  I like to know what their services are like.  I just like to know.  Attending or visiting a new church always involves risk, website or no website.  But I think a church that provides a website is taking the extra step to make itself known and show its cards, and that is of great service to people (like myself) who are searching.  I realize that not every church has the funds or resources to have a website.  But if the body of Christ would step forward with its resources and talents, even that lack would be a non-issue.

Defending Myself (But Not Really)

A strange thing happened.  My last blog entry and a link to my blog were posted by someone on a message board for a Christian college. So, of course, I read through the thread to see what these strangers who stumbled upon my blog had to say about me and my blog entry.  I was a little taken aback by some of the responses.  And I felt that all-too-human urge rise up inside of me to register, log in, and comment in defense of myself.  To these strangers.  Who cares what they think?!  Very odd.

Some said I missed the point of MacArthur’s article. Ironically, it seems they missed the point of my blog entry.  My comments were concerned with the use of language, not MacArthur’s exegesis.  (Of course, these strangers have no idea that I study and teach language for a living.)

But I re-realized something through this strange, unexpected occurrence.  Because of my academic pursuits and personal experience, I occupy a unique position from which I am able to speak to the interplay of multiple social realities: race, religion, and language.  And at the end of the day, not everyone will be willing and able to stand at those intersections with me and look in all directions.  May God be glorified and humanity edified as each of us use our gifts by the grace of God.