Hi there - I'm still alive...

So, its been a while since I posted something.  I actually have a few thoughts that I'd like to post at some point, but feel that I put enough 'heavy' stuff up lately that I'd like to put up something light-hearted and funny.  The only problem is that I've been waiting for the kids to do something 'million-dollar funny' that I could write up (and then somebody will come and buy the story and make a movie and I'll get millions for it...), but obviously that hasn't happened...  Oh well, guess I'll just have to keep working a little longer, before the kids will be able to support me.

I did go camping with Kyle over this weekend - Friday night.  This was an orientation program that the local Boy Scout council puts on to help introduce aspects of cub-scouting to the boys.  While Kyle started last year, we couldn't make it to the overnight because of scheduling conflicts so we went this year.  (Kyle really wanted to go - this is one of the few opportunities to get the Archery and BB-gun belt-loop requirements satisfied, since these have to be performed by trained instructors...)  We did have a lot of fun, and got really tired.  We were able to setup before a dust storm moved through the area - I'm glad that I wasn't trying to setup the tent in the 30 mph+ wind gusts.  I had brought the 'good' tent stakes, and the tent didn't go anywhere - it didn't even really show any evidence of the wind blowing, unlike some other tents around us where the tent was basically being blown flat (the poles couldn't stand up to the wind).  I'm glad that we only had wind - there was a good layer of dust on everything in the tent, but we didn't have to deal with mud.

We were warned about active rattle-snakes in the area, and to stay off the rocks - after Kyle and some other boys had already been climbing on the rocks.  We didn't see or hear any snakes while we were there, so no real problems.  Happily the temperature is down into the 90's now, so it is comfortable enough to camp near Phoenix.

The best part, for Kyle, was the Archery - the boys learned to shoot a bow-and-arrow, how to hold the bow, nock an arrow, draw and release.  This is what he was asking about (when do we do Archery?) and what he wants to do more of.  Maybe after Baseball is done we'll look into archery until spring baseball starts up (in February....).

That's about it for now, its still just barely warm enough to think about getting in the pool (89 degrees right now, water is 86), so we might go do that.

Remembering Al

The oldest living Overtoom (that I know of and certainly that I'm related to) pass away last Saturday, at the age of 99.  I had been planning to travel up to Wisconsin for a big birthday party, but will now be traveling to be with family for a different reason.  I have to confess that I didn't get to spend as much time with Grandpa Overtoom as much as I would have liked (and not as much as I should have) in my adult years, but have some vivid memories of him from my childhood.  A few things in particular that come to mind:

- Grandpa didn't seem to be able to actually stay still - he was always doing something, whether getting drinks for people, fixing things or working around the house.  The closest might have been at some of the big family gatherings, he could be found at the bar making drinks, or grilling - talking to everybody around him.  This is a trait that I share - I don't like sitting around doing nothing, I prefer to be active.

- I remember many gatherings at their house in Berwyn, IL.  The house was a two story bungalow with a basement, next to the elementary school.  We could go play in the school yard (throw balls or fly model airplanes).  The best part was the basement - there was a full bar down there, and Grandpa made a great Kiddie Cocktail (they moved from that house before I was old enough to drink anything more serious).  There were colored lights that could be switched on and off - the cousins would sit on the stairs and change from red to blue to green like it was a disco dance (this was in the '70s after all). 

- I remember fishing and boat rides at the lake cabin in central Wisconsin.  He was a great fisherman, probably the only time that I can remember him sitting fairly still.  I especially remember riding around Lake Camelot in the boat, whether to get to a fishing spot or just to go fast.

- Both houses had a lot of hunting and fishing trophies - deer heads and antlers, pheasants, and big scary looking fish with lots of teeth.

- Watching movies in the basement was a highlight of any visit for the kids.  Both to see the family movies, but also to watch Abbot & Costello and some silent cartoons.  Grandpa was an avid documentor of the family, with his trusty movie camera out to get all the action (or at least the action when he wasn't managing the bar...)

I do admire his work ethic, he worked hard to provide, but also cared for his family and kept the two separate.  He always took responsibility for what happened, didn't try to weasel out of things.  He gave much in his community.  He was a great man, in my eyes.  I hear that he died laughing - good natured to the end.

I am that blog writer

It popped into my mind today that I seem to be often writing the kinds of blog entries that I don't like to read.  Most of my entries get into some basic theology, describing what I've been learning about God as I study His Word.  When I hit those kinds of entries in other peoples blogs, I tend to skim or skip over them - they are a little dry and uninteresting to me.

I find it interesting that for whatever reason I am doing the thing that I don't like.   What I am doing isn't bad - probably my skimming over these sorts of entries is bad - but I don't like other people doing it.  Does that make me a hypocrite?

If God is sovereign...

I'm starting to work through a study on the sovereignty of God, and the what is true because He is sovereign.  I thought I'd share things as I discover them, maybe a kind of irregular series on my irregular blog...

One thing that pops up when thinking for very long about God being truly sovereign is that there are tensions that pop up with things that happen in the world.  If God is really in control why did xxx happen (fill in your favorite recent earthquake, tsunami, senseless death, disaster)?  (I don't hear (or think much) about why doesn't YYY happen...)  I'm going to start from the assumption that God is Sovereign - ruler of the universe, creator, almighty, all knowing, eternal.  Just read the last chapters of Job for examples of the power that God has over this world - start at Job 38, and see if you can do any of those things...

Lets start off easy - with something that seems like it points to God needing people in order to accomplish His goals...  If God is really in charge, able to do all, control all - then what does He need Us for?  (another interesting topic for another day.)

In my short time walking with Jesus, I've heard several stories of people who were awakened at night, or tickled by God in other ways, to pray for specific people.  Usually these stories come in two parts, from two people:

Jane - I was awakened by the holy spirit about 3:15 in the morning, and felt a leading from the holy spirit - an Urge even - to pray for John, who was traveling in another city.  I just felt that his life was in danger, and that I needed to pray for God to intercede...  I prayed for 30 minutes, and went back to sleep.

John - About 3:15 in the morning my car broke down in the middle of a gang-infested part of BigTownImTravelingThrough - I could see graffiti and mean looking guys with knives all around - when the car stopped they all started heading over towards me - I could see they were sizing up how much money they could get from me and the car.  I was really scared - I started to pray and suddenly a police car pulled up.  The thugs scattered and the police were able to get a tow truck to me.

In these kinds of stories it seems that God is not able to save 'John' without some request or prayer assistance from 'Jane'.  Sometimes there are other people who also get the urge to pray for John at the same time, in different parts of the country (or the world).  Why is God asking people to pray to protect and save John when He is all powerful and in control of everything?  Even evil (the gangsters) can't touch God's people without His say so (Job 1:12).  Why this apparent contradiction between the testimony of the people and God's word (the Bible)?

When we're presented with a situation like this, where my understanding of the situation doesn't mesh with what we can see and understand we have two choices - either our understanding is wrong or the Bible is wrong.  We can ask God to reveal where our limited understanding needs to be adjusted, or we can push God aside and seek the wisdom of man.

Here, I can see people doing God's work - something that we are called to do, to worship the Lord and serve Him.  The core question is whether God needs to have anybody else involved in this work.  Being human, we tend to put our own motives onto other peoples actions.  I ask for help when I can't do something on my own.  I see somebody (Jane) awakened to pray, and assume that that person has some special ability or need which is being called on to do the work - I that situation through my own limitations, imparting my need for help onto Gods request.  I like it when people ask me to help them do something they have trouble with - it boosts my pride.  I see God boosting the pride of Jane in this situation - she would be proud to have been called to help.  We have trouble seeing the situation and the motives of God through our own human motives - and create a tension between a sovereign God and a God who seems to need our intercessory help.

This situation exists so that God can be glorified.  How can Jane and John both clearly see that God is sovereign, cares about and loves them, and can orchestrate things?  By putting them into a situation where, dependent on Him they both are part of the situation - without being aware of what is happening.  John is not aware that Jane is praying for him, he is only aware of His own prayers being answered.  Jane is not aware of what she is praying for - but after talking to John in the morning and learning what went on Jane can be awed to have seen God at work.  Whether Jane feels any pride from 'helping' in this situation, she gets to see that (a) God loves John, (b) God loves Jane and knows how important John is to her, (c) God lets her see that He is in control.  John gets reinforcement that God was there and He cares - not only was he delivered from the danger, but after talking with Jane he is aware that God shared the situation with another, in a way that only God could do.

Jane was awakened to pray not because God needed help, but so that she would be aware of God at work.  If Jane slept through the night, then heard from John that his car broke down and was saved only because of the timely arrival of the police car, she might see this as God responding to Johns prayer, but it might just be a coincidence -God could be excluded from consideration.  The hand of God isn't as real for Jane just hearing about Johns answer to prayer.  By awakening her at the time that John was in trouble, Jane can see the hand of God at work - He reached to her because of John's situation.  God gets the glory in this - neither John nor Jane, after comparing notes, can reasonably claim this as a coincidence.  God gets the glory.  As John and Jane tell the story, God gets the glory - others can see the work of God in the situation, in a way that is unmistakably God.  God wants the glory.

Romans 8:28 - And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Something to think about - when something happens that doesn't seem to have God involved in it, how can that event, or the outcome of that event, bring glory to God? Maybe you can't see His Glory in the event, or immediately afterwards.  Sometimes it takes time and the work of the Holy Spirit for you to see how He gets glory.  The good we receive may not come until we are with Him.

Modern Parables

What might be some parables that Jesus would use today? How can
spiritual truths be explained in the 21st century?

On wanting to be first into the kingdom
Consider the underwear - the clothing worn first and closest to the
skin (unless you are Madonna). Is being first to be put on desirable?
Is not the underwear the grottiest clothing at the end of the day,
reserved for cleansing in scalding hot water and harsh chemicals?
Instead seek to be a cardigan sweater, able to be worn several times
before receiving a gentle cleansing (unless worn by a messy eater).
Though it is the last to be put on, it truly has the higher place of
honor.

Well, maybe that isn't a parable that Jesus would use...

The dreaded invasion from another dimension

A quick, light thought.

Reading about the horrible things that are supposed to happen when the Large Hadron Collider is fully switched on, one of the scenarios is that we open a hole to another dimension, and invading aliens proceed to come in and conquer all the Earth, sending humanity into slavery.

Thinking back over the various Sci-Fi movies I've seen, and books that I've read, I find it interesting that anytime a hole is opened into another dimension we always seem to promptly have an invasion force streaming through it which humanity has to fight off.  Its almost like the other dimensions all either direct these tears in the space-time fabric to always-ready invasion forces, or they have invasion forces ready all over the place - just in case there is a dimension hole opened.

Is this really likely?  Isn't it more likely that the dimension hole will open into some totally random place - maybe a living room where the beings are casually watching their equivalent to 'The Love Boat', when this tear opens and ruins the ending of the show?  I'd expect that we're more likely to have beer cans thrown at us than a prompt invasion from highly trained armed forces.  Maybe we'd have the bad luck to open a dimension hole into their garbage dump...

Why not think of some great outcomes - we open a hole to an alternate dimension where Carbon Dioxide is the breath of life, and they are having trouble with global warming caused by Oxygen?  We could start up a great trade in gas swaps - send them the excess CO2 that we have, pick up the O2 that we need.  Maybe their garbage is pure energy which we can easily harness to provide electricity within this dimension - solving our looming energy crisis.

I say, let the collisions happen - we're much more likely to find the salvation of mankind in the other dimenstions that the LHC opens to us than our own doom.  (And, just in case we do happen to open into the middle of a highly trained and prepared group of alien commandos - I was all for opening the dimension gateway, I appreciate your mercy...)

Judging the sheep and the goats

One of the passages in the Gospel that has bothered me a little bit has always been Matthew 25:31-46.  All people are separated into those who served Christ and those who did not - with eternal rest for those who served and torment for those who did not.  The part that is a little troubling has been that for those who served, it is one small act which receives praise and rest - 'Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me', while for the others it is one small act not performed - 'Whatever you did not do for the least of these...'.  The troubling thing is that as a Christian, if I fail to provide for somebody hungry and homeless on the street - if I pass him by, is my salvation lost or tarnished?  (Even though there are many passages that teach that salvation cannot be lost - the thought is whether I have deceived myself into thinking that I know Jesus and am saved.)  I sometimes don't feel that I'm in the group of sheep on the right which will enter into rest.

I've thought of these two groups as the people who are doing things, whether they know of the act or not, out of the work of the Holy Spirit in their hears - they are following Christ and doing His work as they are led (the sheep).  The other group (the goats) are the people who are trying to do works to earn the favor of the judge (God), working out of their own motives to gain salvation.  The difference is whether I do good acts to the Body of Christ because I am saved, or whether I do good acts to become saved.  Most of the New Testament teaches that the former is correct - I cannot earn salvation.  This passage can be interpreted that the goats are condemned because they were not absolutely perfect - if they try to earn salvation than a single failure causes them to lose it.  (Paul spends much of the first 4 chapters of Romans teaching the same thing - that it isn't possible to earn salvation, it is a gift given by God through Jesus).  The sheep are praised for having faith in Jesus' work, and showing the fruit of that through a single good act.  One good act done in faith shows salvation, one good act not done in our own will earns condemnation.

In thinking about this in this season of thanksgiving, a new thought was revealed to me - many of the acts that we do are not known to us - how wonderful it will be to meet the people whose lives were changed through some seemingly insignificant act of Gods love done through us.  How many people are going to be thankful for your allowing God to work through you when you are gathered at the throne?  Are you letting Him use you, or are you doing good acts to earn your place?  I think it will be awesome to see fully all the ways that God has worked - I can see some of the work that He did to bring me to Him, how other people and chance encounters worked to place me on the narrow path.  I look forward to meeting those who I have help direct to Jesus even if I don't know it.