An Empathetic Understanding

I had the opportunity through the generosity of a cousin of mine to travel back to my home away from home last week.  I wasn't there long - just 4 days, but this brief visit to Dublin lifted my spirits and gave me renewed energy to tackle the remaining days of 2018.

While in Dublin, I had the privilege of enjoying countless conversations with my Irish friends over cups of coffee and tea, as well as a pint or two.  I was reminded that though separated by 6 time zones and thousands of miles of land and sea, we share so much in common.  We share a common language, though of course we use that language in remarkably distinct ways.  We share a broadly similar historical and cultural background, rooted in what's come to be known as the West.  And we are all connected through that remarkable little devise, the smart phone.  Though, in some ways, this devise has served to sever our connections rather than strengthen them.  But that's a story for another time.

Of course, there are also many things that Americans don't share in common with the Irish.  And that's a good thing.  It's refreshing to have the opportunity to discover that there is more than one way to organize a society and run a country.  In fact, there's much that Americans can learn from our European neighbors, one of the most obvious being that work provides one with a means to live life, rather than life being the means by which one is afforded the opportunity to work.

In my experience, people who travel abroad with a curious mind and an open heart, normally are able to build bridges with those they encounter and discover more about the world at large and themselves as well.  Their lives are all the more rich as a result.  Those who rigidly believe that their home culture and their way of life is superior to all others, miss out on the chance to enrich their lives and to affect a positive change back home.

The open minded traveler also discovers that other places are full of diverse people with differing views.  Stereotypes do exist, but they only tell part of the story.  Like Americans, not all Irish people see things alike.  By learning why different people have developed their differing views, it allows us to reflect on how we came to see things the way we see them.  By critically analyzing our own worldview, we can hopefully discover blind spots and blurry vision.  We might discover that our friends abroad have developed better bifocals, metaphorically speaking.  We can refuse to give their glasses a try, but then of course, we'll miss out on so much beauty that God has provided for us to enjoy.

It's obvious to anyone who's been paying attention that there's been an increasing gulf between the US and much of the rest of the world over the past few years.  But, also increasingly, even within the United States, we don't seem to be quite so united anymore.  I believe one of the leading causes of our division comes from the fact that like the closed minded traveler, or the closed minded non-traveler, many in our nation do not have the capability or the imagination to see the world from the perspective of another person.  Many of our citizens hold to the faulty notion that their way of doing things is the right way, for all times, places, and people.  Not only have they failed to walk a mile in another person's shoes, sandals, boots, or moccasins, they have failed to even consider what it might be like to do so.  Sadly, we are beginning to lose one of the key traits which makes us human - empathy.  To restore this key component we are in need of humility.  Until we regain a more empathetic understanding of our own neighborhoods and the wide world at large, and until we choose to embrace humility, we will also fail to embrace humanity.  We will continue to remain divided, and we all suffer as a result. - Shay 



          

Get Lost and then Find Yourself

Blue skies, the fresh aroma of pine, and the crunch of twigs and rocks on the trails of the rugged peaks are all sights, smells, and sounds that fill up my senses as I reminisce about the Sangre de Cristo range in northern New Mexico.  I spent weeks of my summers in the area as a boy at Camp Blue Haven near Las Vegas.  As I grew older, my parents built a cabin in the Blue Canyon, just up the road from the camp.  This allowed me to spend several weeks there at different times of the year.  Eventually, my mom and dad built another home (they sold their cabin) up on a ridge above the canyon and I've been blessed to spend many moons at my folks place.  It's not close to town - about 20 miles in the middle of nowhere - but it's a sanctuary, away from the hustle & bustle of our modern world.  It's a place to get lost, and then, maybe find yourself in the process.

As more and more people become glued to the various forms of technology we've allowed to creep into every part of our lives, finding a place where cell service is spotty and where there's something to look at other than a screen is increasingly important.  We need to be reminded that the physical world around us is far more interesting than the virtual world our technology provides.  Whether through hiking, camping, chatting with friends and family, reading a book on a porch, or just sitting and being still, there's much to be commended in taking time to get a way from it all.  

Jesus was known to spend time alone from others, in prayer and reflection.  Sometimes, he would take his disciples on "retreats" to far flung places, away from the crowds, or from those who simply wished to oppose him.  Balance was certainly not lacking from Jesus' life rhythms.  But it's easy in our modern world to become unbalanced and then unhinged in the process.  More is often less, and less is often more, but still we seek more, more, more, and then we wonder why it feels like less, less, less.

In a couple of days I'm heading back to the Sangre de Cristo - the Blood of Christ Mountains - with a few friends.  We'll spend a couple of days hiking out in God's stunning creation and we'll enjoy some time to get to know one another a little better.  In the process, maybe we'll come to know our Savior and even ourselves a little bit better too.  Sometimes you need to get lost to find yourself. - Shay 

Jews Make the Best Storytellers

When I found out Paul Simon's latest tour will be his last, I was relieved to see that Dallas was on the itinerary.  I joined Juli, her mom Donna, her sister Kristi, and Kristi's husband Shane for the show at the American Airlines Center last Friday night.  A few minutes past 8 and the crowd applauded as more than a dozen world class musicians took the stage.  A few moments later, the man joined them and the crowd erupted.  He strummed his guitar and then these words echoed around the arena.

Let us be lovers, we’ll marry our fortunes together
I’ve got some real estate here in my bag”
So we bought a pack of cigarettes and Mrs. Wagner’s pies
And walked off to look for America.

So the journey began.  A journey that began a long time ago in New York City.  The first leg with his High School pal Art, didn't last as long as many might have hoped, but the later legs were just as powerful.  And the journey took him not only across America, but around the world.

A man walks down the street
It’s a street in a strange world
Maybe it’s the third world
Maybe it’s his first time around
He doesn’t speak the language
He holds no currency
He is a foreign man
He is surrounded by the sound, the sound
Cattle in the marketplace
Scatterlings and orphanages

He looks around, around
He sees angels in the architecture
Spinning in infinity

He says, “Amen!” and “Hallelujah!”

From Austin, TX to South Africa, Paul's hired guns made it obvious that his is a humble genius.  He surrounds himself with singers and players who could hold their own on their own, but together and  with him leading the line, the music made is truly magical.  Though he wrote a song about being an island and shielding himself from others, this clearly is not how he's lived his life.

I have my books 
And my poetry to protect me
I am shielded in my armor
Hiding in my room
Safe within my womb
I touch no one and no one touches me
I am a rock
I am an island

And a rock feels no pain
And an island never cries

There are singers and songwriters who paint a canvas with their words and music.  Others are great at telling stories through their songs.  Paul Simon does both.  And why not?  Jews make the best storytellers.

One and one half wandering Jews 

Free to wander wherever they choose

Are traveling together

In the Sangre de Christo

The Blood of Christ Mountains

Of New Mexico

On the last leg of a journey

They started a long time ago

The arc of a love affair

Rainbows in the high desert air

Mountain passes slipping into stone

Hearts and bones

And Jews aren't half-bad at writing poetry.  Have you ever read the Psalms?  

And you read your Emily Dickinson
And I my Robert Frost
And we note our places with bookmarkers
That measure what we’ve lost
Like a poem poorly written
We are verses out of rhythm
Couplets out of rhyme
In syncopated time
And the dangling conversation
And the superficial sighs
Are the borders of our lives

Some of the stories Simon tells are "epic" in nature.

In the clearing stands a boxer
And a fighter by his trade
And he carries the remainders
Of every glove that laid him down
And cut him till he cried out
In his anger and his shame
“I am leaving, I am leaving”
But the fighter still remains

And some of the stories are ones that we all relate to.

Sonny sits by the window and thinks to himself
How it’s strange that some roots are like cages
Sonny’s yearbook from high school
Is down on the shelf
And he idle thumbs through the pages
Some have died
Some have fled from themselves
Or struggled from here to get there
Sonny wanders beyond his interior walls
Runs his hands through his thinning brown hair

I have never read an article or heard an interview about Paul Simon's religious beliefs (or lack-there-of).  But, in the very least, many of his songs explore spirituality.  

And so you see, I have come to doubt
All that I once held as true
I stand alone without beliefs
The only truth I know is you

And as I watch the drops of rain
Weave their weary paths and die
I know that I am like the rain
There but for the grace of you go I

For over two hours, Paul Simon and his eclectic and embarrassingly talented band captivated the AAC audience.  But after playing over 25 songs, he brought his farewell show in Dallas to an end.  And he ended it, like he began it, by playing a Simon and Garfunkel tune.  

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said “The words of the prophets
Are written on subway walls
And tenement halls
And whispered in the sounds of silence

As he stood alone on stage, strumming his guitar, the words rang out and echoed into the night...until there was only applause, and then...silence. - Shay 

Citizenship and Identity

Our friends and former teammates, Craig and Merschon Hutson officially became Irish citizens today.  Less than 8 years ago, the Hutsons moved to Dublin as aliens, but today, they have made the Republic of Ireland not only their residence, but their home.  I am thrilled that they've taken this step and I know that it means so much to them and to the North Dublin Christian Community for whom they labor.  There are many Irish Americans in the world, but not nearly as many American Irish.  The Hutsons have joined the few and the proud.

Several decades ago, my grandmother Augusta and her Danish family became Americans.  I'm sure it must have been a meaningful moment for her family to not only embrace their new home, but to be embraced back through the naturalization process.  Immigrants around the world can empathize with the feeling.

Ever since I first moved overseas 19 years ago, I've spent a lot of time thinking about citizenship and identity.  Though I'm proud to be an American, I am more and more convicted that this is only one small part of my identity.  Don't get me wrong, I realize that so much of my world-view and even personality has been shaped by growing up in the United States.  And I have received many blessings as an American.  But more and more, I've come to view myself as a citizen of the world, rather than just one nation on this terrestrial ball.  In fact, though the US is a republic, I have become evermore convinced that monarchy is the way forward.  But not just any old monarchy.  I am convicted that the only kingdom worth living for, and even dying for, is the Kingdom of God.  But it's a kingdom that I will never kill for (our founder has outlawed this).

Thanks to dual nationality, the Hutsons were not forced to renounce their US citizenship today.  They don't have to choose between being Irish or American.  But citizens of the Kingdom of God don't have the option of dual nationality.  Sure, we live and function as Americans, Irish, Venezuelan, Nigerian, Chinese, or Iranian.  We pray for our leaders, as well as other world leaders, we pay our taxes, send our kids to school (or home school them), and try to obey the laws of the land (so long as they don't violate the constitution of Christ's Kingdom).  But our ultimate allegiance must always be given to our only sovereign, King Jesus.  And we have faith that one day, whether soon, or in the distant future, the kingdoms of this world, will become the one and only kingdom of our Lord, and he will reign forever and ever.

Though Craig and Merschon are citizens of two great republics, their most prized possession is their citizenship in a monarchy.  And knowing them both well, I can say without a doubt that the most important "passport" they hold is the one they received years ago when they were baptized into Christ and became a part of his people, being marked and sealed by his Holy Spirit.  Like me, they long for the day when passports will no longer be needed as the nations will bring their glory into the new Jerusalem in God's renewed creation and all of earth's people will be made one.  Come King Jesus! - Shay    

Loving God with Our Minds

During the final week before his passion, Jesus found himself involved in several confrontations with the Jewish religious and political leaders.  A scribe overheard Jesus disputing with the Sadducees about the future hope of the resurrection of the dead and came near to ask Jesus a question.  Mark records it like this: "Which commandment is the first of all?'  Jesus answered, 'The first is, 'Hear O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.'"  

Like everything in the universe, it all begins with the God of Israel.  Not just any god, but the one and only God - the God that is one.  He created all things and by his powerful word, he holds together all things.  And he is the one who will bring all things to completion.  There's nothing that we have that we have not received.  There's nothing we can do to deserve life - we didn't choose to be born - it is simply given to us as a gift.  And our first response to the good gift of life is to love the giver of the gift.  

How are we to love him?  With everything we have and with everything we are.  We are to love God with our emotions and our will.  We are to love him when we feel like it, and maybe even more so when we don't feel like it.  We are to love him on the outside and we are to love him on the inside.  We are to love him through what we say, what we do, and even through what we think.  And we are to love him with every bit of energy and strength that he supplies.  Our love for God cannot be passive, it must be active.  It is something we choose to do.  

The greatest obstacles to our loving God comes from idolatry and selfishness.  The two are linked together.  Humanity's first sin was to love the creation rather than the creator.  We pursued the gift, rather than the giver of the gift, and we did so with selfish motives. 

But just as God has graced us with the breath of life, so he has provided the gift of his Spirit to those who respond in faith to the gift of his Son.  Through the Spirit and the Son, over time, we can learn to love God with everything we have and with everything we are, including our minds.  And of the four ways which Jesus claims we must love God,  I believe that loving the Lord with our minds may be the most important.     

Sadly, I think it is often the most neglected.  The human mind is incredible.  God has blessed this planet with minds that have unlocked the scientific structure of much of the universe (though there's still much that will probably always remain a mystery).  He has given humanity minds that have learned how to treat all manner of illness and disease through modern medicine (though there's still much research to be done).  The engineering marvels of the ancient world blow me away and 21st century mechanics and technology boggle my mind.  Not to mention, philosophy, poetry, music, art, story telling, and creativity of all kinds points us towards the initial creative act of the Creator.  The human capacity to discover and create has made the world an exciting place!  And yet, so many believers, who are otherwise brilliant, choose to use sloppy and shallow thinking when faced with the question of God.  

The single most important question that will ever confront humanity is sometimes not even pondered.  And when it is, more energy and reflection is often given to work, hobbies, partisan political debate, and silly, time wasting distractions, than to faith.  It's not that people are incapable of thinking deeply about such things, it's that they've chosen to put their time and energy elsewhere.  I believe it's also down to the fact that rigorous theological reflection takes time and a healthy attention span.  Many in our world have grown tired of waiting and lack the patience to think critically.  

The result of failing to love God with our minds is that many within the church remain on a perpetual diet of milk - baby food!  They are clueless about some of the basic teachings regarding the life and work of Christ, and have grossly misunderstood such rudimentary teachings as faith, repentance, baptism, and the resurrection of the dead (Hebrews 5:11-6:2).  Isn't it time to move on!

Please, don't misunderstand me.  I do not wish to imply that the legitimacy of our relationship with Jesus is primarily down to our knowledge and understanding of the Bible and theology.  I am simply lamenting the fact that so many of the gifted, talented, and smart people in Christ's church haven't devoted their God given gifts to be used in the service of a more mature and robust faith.  They have not taken the time to think critically about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.  As Anselm of Canterbury said, theology defined is faith seeking understanding.  It only stands to reason that the better we understand our faith, the more likely we are to allow it to penetrate the nooks and crannies of our lives.  Knowing what we believe is important, but knowing why we believe it, is even more important.  Don't forget to love God with all of your heart and soul.  But don't forget to love him with all of your mind and strength as well! - Shay 

Experience and Innocence

When I was a kid, I was exposed to the music of Simon & Garfunkel, Willie Nelson, and Neil Diamond while on road trips with my parents.  Of the three, I'm still a fan of Willie and Simon & Garfunkel, and though I don't listen to Neil Diamond, I respect him as a song writer and singer.  However, I've never seen any of them perform live.  I really need to catch Mr. Nelson soon, as he recently turned 85.  I have no idea how long he'll be around (the herbal remedies seemed to have worked in his case, though I don't think I'd recommend that to anyone else looking to live a long life), but I can't imagine he'll be touring a decade from now.  Paul Simon is about to embark on his farewell tour, so I better catch him while I can too.  My parents have seen Neil Diamond live a couple of times, but I wasn't present and I don't think I've ever attended a major concert with them.  But I am thankful that we hold some musical preferences in common.

For better or worse, I've exposed Ashlyn to quite a bit of my music catalogue.  She's taken a liking to everything from George Ezra, Roddy Woomble, and Idlewild, to Dropkick Murphys and Rend Collective.  But my happiest moment came when Ashlyn told me that U2's new album, "Songs of Experience" is her favorite record of all time.  She claims that she'll never quit loving it (that's up in the air), but I'm just happy she's enjoying it in the present.  And though she's young to attend her first rock concert, she'll join me to see Dublin's finest launch their new tour tomorrow night in Tulsa, OK.  Juli will also be present, so it will be a family affair.  And since this is the Experience + Innocence tour, we'll all be aptly represented.  Don't worry, we'll make sure Ashlyn's wearing earplugs and gets to bed early later in the week! - Shay      

Unfinished

I took a trip to Germany and Ireland at the end of February.  I wrote about the first day of the Germany leg back on March 5.  I had intended to write several blog posts detailing various portions of my adventure within a few days of my initial post.  Here it is, the last day in April, and I'm just now getting back to it.  In one sense, I'd like to pick up where I left off.  But, as it's been so long, I really don't feel like going back down that path.  I've slept nearly 60 nights since then, and already some of the details of the trip are a little hazy.

But this also reminds me that in a variety of ways and at various times, I leave things undone.  I have good intentions -  I start off in a direction, but then one thing or another gets in the way, and I abandon my previous plans.  I would love things to be much more neat and tidy.  I would like to have a beginning, a middle, and an end, that at least makes sense, even if it doesn't always end up "happily ever after."  Sometimes things just end up unfinished.

Towards the end of his letter to the Romans, in what we call chapter 15, the Apostle Paul explains to the houses churches of the Imperial Capital that he hopes to join them soon and use Rome as a base for further mission work, in places like Spain.  But before he can journey to them, he needed to deliver a monetary gift from Gentile churches in the Eastern part of the Empire to the Judean believers in Jerusalem.  Paul did indeed deliver the gift to the Jerusalem church, but while there he was taken into custody and was eventually transferred to Caesarea where he remained for over two years.  Out of desperation, Paul, being a Roman citizen, appealed to the Emperor's court in Rome.  After a lengthy and dangerous sea voyage, Paul finally arrived in the eternal city.  But how the apostle to the Gentiles wound up at the city of seven hills was completely unexpected.  It's unlikely Paul ever made it to Spain.  So, in a sense, Paul's mission was left unfinished.  And this wasn't the first time in his life where Paul's plans where altered in some capacity (see Acts 16:6-10).

Often, when I get to the end of the day, I didn't quite accomplish all that I had set out to do.  It's the same when I reach the end of the week, the month, or the year.  But, each day has only 24 hours, each week has only 7 days, each month has only 4 weeks, and each year has only 12 months.  And each person has only one life to live.  And when we come to the end of our lives, whether long or short, undoubtedly, we will have left many things undone.  Life is a series of loose ends.    But that doesn't mean that our lives will have been necessarily unfinished.

Paul learned to live with the tension of loose ends and unfinished business.  He was faithful in the tasks that his Lord placed before him, but he was consistently reminded that God's Kingdom was finally God's work and God's business.  Though its hard to imagine any other person having as much of an impact on the work of the Kingdom, even Paul's work was only a very small tile in God's large mosaic.  And Paul trusted Jesus to bring it to completion in his own time and in his own way.  Whatever work Paul would have completed in Spain, he entrusted to his Savior.  We must learn to do the same.  

So, though I had intended to share the details of the remainder of my recent Euro journey, those stories will for now remain untold.  And even if they never make their way into narrative form, I have no doubt that they'll be told and re-told in the age to come.  And like all of our lives, they'll make much more sense when seen, read, and heard from the perspective of eternity.  Until then, we press on. - Shay

German - Irish Trip, Day One

I landed in Frankfurt, Germany at 5 AM local time on February 20, 2018.  I had traveled to Germany to attend the ABSS (Advanced Bible Study Series).  Having been to Germany multiple times in the past, I felt fairly comfortable hopping on a train and then eventually a bus to make my way to Gemunden, where the ABSS is held annually.  However, once I arrived in the tiny village, I realized that I had no idea where the retreat center was actually located.  There weren't many people out on the street, and the three or four folks that I spoke to didn't speak a lick of English.  And since I don't speak a lick of German, communication wasn't happening.  One local eventually pointed me in the direction of a hotel and so I made my way over to the quaint little place where a kind woman gave me instructions on how to reach my destination.  She told me to walk back out to the outskirts of the village and then head up a side road to the top of the mountain and there the place would be on the right.  Thankfully, it was only a small mountain, really more of a hill.

A few minutes later, I arrived at the retreat facility, having missed the first 15 minutes of the first presentation.  John Galloway, based out of East Kilbride, Scotland had recently completed a multi-day trip to Israel, and was sharing pictures and background information on a number of sites from the Holy Land.  Following John's presentation, Daryl Tippens, professor of literature at Abilene Christian University began the first of his six lectures on the theme of faith and culture.  Robert Limb, originally from the East Midlands of England, but based out of Paris, France for the better part of 40 years, began his lecture on Hope in the 21st Century.

After lunch, Daryl and I caught a lift from Jordan Arnold, an American missionary located in Slovakia, to the local Lidl (a German discount store, similar to Aldi).  Daryl and I both needed to pick up some toiletries and I needed to get some cash from an ATM.  After swinging by the Lidl and a local bank in Usingen, we took a jaunt out to the Kransberg Castle, which sits high above the surrounding countryside in the village of Kransberg (population 800).  We shared a cup of tea in local café before heading back to Gemunden.

After a short nap, and dinner, the nearly 30 of us in attendance, had the privilege of listening to Jordan speak on the word of the cross from 1 Corinthians.  Following Jordan's presentation and a quick coffee break, we all settled in to watch Babette's Feast.  I had heard of the story and the film, but had never had the chance to see the movie.  But, I was also seriously jet-lagged, so I can't really say that I've seen the film now.  What I can say is that I've seen parts of the film.  Babette's feast is about the transforming power of grace and how a sacramental understanding of creation can radically change the way we interact with the world.  I look forward to going back and re-watching the film when I'm more alert.

After the movie, I grabbed a hot shower and then hit my bunk for a much needed snooze. - Shay