Times are Changing

I have been monitoring the news coming out of Japan, as they begin to recover from a lethal combination of disasters. The situation reminds me of the movie Jurassic Park. Man has created something amazing and dangerous, believing that he can manage all the possibilities. At this point, no one really knows how the disaster will end.

Sorting through rubble and shoveling mud will eventually bring relief from the earthquake and tsunami. Geophysicists, according to missionary Carlton Walker, say that the force of the quake was so great that it moved the main Japanese island of Honshu 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) to the east. With a 9.0 reading on the Richter scale, the quake was the largest ever measured in Japan.

The damage from the shaking and deluge will take years to recover from, but their devastation has stopped. The fallout from the nuke plants may have only begun. No one knows when the radiation will be contained. No one knows what will really happen if a total meltdown occurs. We are dealing with forces that we don’t completely understand.

This crisis is sending other shockwaves through the world as well. Stock exchanges are jittery. Flights are cancelled. Energy policies are being reviewed. Even the friendly relationship between the U.S. and Japan is strained.

We look at this disaster in light of major changes in the Middle East, another key part of the world energy puzzle. While the fighting in Libya seems to be leaning toward stricter totalitarianism, in Yemen, Bahrain, Egypt and other countries, freedom may be taking hold.

There is even political unrest in the United States, as citizens clamor for an end to deficit spending and big government. The stakes are also high in political battles at the state level.

As all these changes come, we have to wonder what we can count on. What is our point of reference? It is easy to say that God never changes and we can always count on him. Yes, that’s true. But the bigger question is how well we build our lives on him.

For most of history, there has been constant political upheaval. And for most of history, standards of living and ways of life have changed very little from generation to generation. Today, the situation is reversed. We are accustomed to epic changes in living standards and stable civil life. I wonder if we are ready for that to change.

If our lives are really built on a relationship with Jesus, we can weather any storm, or earthquake, or tsunami, or war, or even nuclear fallout.

Reality Check

Last week as I tried to pull up my gmail account, Google informed me that they had suspended my account because of suspicious activity.  I could not access my email.  Not good.  I quickly found my heart rate escalating. I had a sense of impending doom.  My android phone is also driven by Google's software.  That means that all my contacts are hosted by Google.  They could deny me access to my own lists of phone numbers and email addresses.

Now, I'm glad that they noticed any unusual activity on my account.  I'm glad that they promptly shut down any scammer who may have hijacked my account.  I don't know how a hacker could have accessed my account -- although a couple of days before I had logged on at Panera Bread and checked email.

I was able to get back into my account after a couple of hours of considerable angst. 

But this lock-down has made me do some serious thinking.  These Google folks are trying to help me by keeping other people off of my account.  If the people who are on my side (I hope they really are...) can shut down my cyber life, I wonder what could happen if someone with evil intent got control.

They could mine my contacts for all kinds of info (maybe about you).  They could deny me access to all my Google accounts.  They could intercept my email.  They could disable my cell phone.  They could shut down my main lines of communication entirely.  This is not a comforting thought.

In the aftermath of my great panic, I set up a Yahoo account.  At least now I will have some means of emailing without the permission of Google.  I'm still dependent on the internet -- no way around that for email.  But when I used Outlook, my contacts were stored only on my very own computer.

Is it smart to avoid being so dependent on someone else holding my vital info?  Yeah, I think it is.  I'm just not sure how to do it. 

I also believe that we have become far too dependent on computers in general.  We live in a world where virtual reality can be confused with actual reality.  That brings me to my knees as I worship the One who never changes.  I know I can always count on God.  I don't have to worry about him shutting me out or suspending my account.  I have to remember that my real life is not on my computer anyway.

I know this blog is on Blogger, courtesy of Google. 

Doing Nothing

I tried it.  On Sunday afternoon, for a little while, I actually did nothing.  There were no meetings that afternoon, so I had the chance to chill.  As an added bonus, it was 70 degrees on the back porch with the sun occasionally peeking through.

My wife and I sat in the Adirondack chairs.  She snoozed, but strangely I was not sleepy.  That rarely happens.  Having preached that morning on Sabbath and taking time to be still, I had the opportunity to practice what I preached.  But I had the urge to go get a book or my journal.  I thought about composing a blog.  I thought about reading my Bible.  I thought about getting my prayer list.

But instead, I did nothing.  I sat there looking at the yard, thinking, praying.  It was oddly disconcerting.  That shows how twisted my system has become with adrenaline and the need to be productive.  Heaven forbid that I should allow a minute to go by without doing something.  But that's what I did.

Forgive me for my pride at doing nothing. 

Supernatural Valentine

Listening to the radio today, I have heard lots of Valentine's wishes.  It is fun to have a day dedicated to sharing our love with the important people in our lives.

Today it dawned on me that we could also express our love for God on Valentine's Day.  He has certainly shared his love with us.  It might cheapen the work of Jesus on the cross to describe his Passion as God's Valentine to us.  How can you compare the sacrifice of the Son of God to a dozen roses and a box of chocolates?

But if we wanted to give a Valentine to Jesus, how would we do that?  Talk about the man who has everything...

We could show a kindness to a stranger or a needy person.
We could stand against injustice.
We could write him a love letter.
We could take an hour to spend with him, listening and opening our hearts to him.
We could commit to start a new habit (and ask him to help us follow through).
We could get naked spiritually before him, risking the shame, but knowing that he loves us just as we are.
We could enjoy him, staring into his eyes, melting in his arms.

Happy Valentine's Day, Jesus.

Prayers for Egypt

I remember when Anwar Sadat was assassinated and Hosni Mubarak took over to lead Egypt.  He's still the president of the nation 30 years later.  That is about to change.

Who knows what the changes will be?  I believe that the outcome of Egypt's upheaval will have significant impact for at least a generation.  I believe that there is a spirital battle going on for the future of Egypt.

I'm praying for forces of good to prevail, for freedom to win the day. 

Adoption Thoughts

I saw in the news that a mother in Alaska is in trouble for the way she has treated her adopted son, who was born in Russia.  She used cruel means of punishing him, including squirting hot sauce in his mouth and putting him in a cold shower.  He's 7.

A video of the punishments was shown on Dr. Phil's show in November, and Russian viewers are incensed over it.  Some are even calling for the boy to be returned to his homeland.  Here's the article.

I have a couple of thoughts about this situation.  First, what about the American children adopted by Russians?  I wonder if there are any such children.  I wonder if any American children are adopted by families in any foreign countries.  My guess is that such adoptions are very rare.  It looks like Americans are very interested in taking in orphans from all around the world.  I know families who have adopted from Uganda, Ethiopia, Russia, Ecuador, and Paraguay.  These are just people that I know personally who have done international adoptions.  My guess is that there are thousands of US citizens who adopt from other countries every year.

Secondly, I wonder about the state of Russian orphanages.  A friend of mine adopted a boy from Russia and later adopted a boy from Ethiopia.  He says that there is a marked difference in the care given in the orphanages in those two countries.  In Ethiopia, the children are loved and cared for.  In Russia, the children's needs are met, but the children are not loved.

Lacking adequate love in their earliest years, these children grow up with a host of developmental and behavioral problems.  Parents who adopt these children become understandably frustrated.  Some, obviously, use unhelpful forms of discipline in a desperate effort to get through to these children who never learned to receive love.

Now, looking forward, I wonder if the Russians who are disturbed by the unwise discipline of the Alaskan mother will also look to reform the care given in Russian orphanages.  Maybe they will even step up to adopt children themselves.

I also wonder what Americans can do to improve the lot of orphans all around the world.  These young lives need love, whether they are in Russia, Africa or North America. 

The fatherless and widows have a special place in God's heart.  May they have a special place in the hearts of his followers.  Beginning with me.

Leading a People, Leading a Movement

We turn to the scriptures to learn about leadership, and two of the most successful leaders were Moses and Paul.  In the Old Testament, Moses led the people of Israel out of Egypt into the Promised Land.  After the resurrection of Jesus, Paul led a small band of missionaries from city to city around the Eastern Mediterranean region.

Both men changed the world because of their life's work, but their roles of leadership were much different.  Moses led a group of a million plus through the desert for 40 years, as they toggled between rebellion and repentance repeatedly.  Moses dealt with the gripes, complaints and mutinies that all leaders face.  He followed his father-in-law's suggestion of delegating responsibilities so that he could focus on listening to God and leading.

Many church leaders today face the same kinds of pressures and challenges, especially in large churches.  There is trouble from within and without, just as in the days of the Exodus.

Paul, on the other hand, was a different kind of leader.  He did not lead a people but a movement.  Although he started as part of the Jewish religious establishment, after Christ appeared to him, he had a new mission.  His mission was not to lead a large assembly, but to make disciples.  On his missionary journeys he went by land and sea to share Christ with Jews and Gentiles from Palestine to Rome.

Paul never led masses of people across the desert or across the street.  He challenged the lost to come to Christ and believers to take Jesus seriously.  He knew that, unlike Moses, he could rely on the Spirit of God to lead the new disciples.  The Holy Spirit would inspire these believers to change the world.  And they did.

Paul was not just leading a group of people, but a movement of God.  He cooperated with the Spirit of God, going where Jesus led him to go, sharing the truth of the Kingdom of God.  As he traveled about, he revisited cities where he had seen churches start.  He encouraged, he challenged, he warned, he rebuked, he rejoiced.  He also faced challenges to his leadership, threats from within and without. 

Moses' task was preservation, transportation and instruction of a people.  A few people came to believe in Yahweh because of the influence of the Jews.  But the emphasis was on getting the Jews out of Egypt and into Canaan.  Moses led them to the cusp of the new land and Joshua led them to conquer it.  Moses was a great leader.

Paul's ministry was to release the power of the Holy Spirit in lives and communities around the Mediterranean world.  God would lead the work.  It would be decentralized and viral.  It would spread just like Jesus described in the parable of the yeast.  Paul was a great leader.

As I learn lessons from these great men, I resonate with the model of leading a movement.  I want to be part of a movement of God.