So we are now almost 4 months into the presidency of Donald Trump. Daily there's something new that comes out that should have shipwrecked almost any other president, and daily the outrage and disbelief that we elected this man continues to grow. But what's amazing to me is not that these things are happening, but that so many are so surprised that this could happen. I mean, electing a thin-skinned reality TV star whose personal life has so often been a shambles to the most powerful office in the land, who could have predicted this?
-Nepotism and conflicts of interests with his family retaining business controls while having high-profile assignments within his administration: check.
-Charges that the election was stolen through Russian hacking, even as Trump continues to maintain many personal relationships and praise for Russian leaders: check.
-Trips on the government dime to Florida almost every weekend so that he can play golf, even though he routinely mocked his predecessor for playing golf: check.
-Firing subordinate government officials who have contradicted his 'facts', stood up to him, or even been investigating him or his cronies: check.
-Administrative incompetence and chaos after his signing of countless executive orders, many of which are quickly turned over for their sloppiness or being unconstitutional: check.
-Pointlessly bombing a foreign nation with cruise missiles, even while stating he has no intention of getting further involved, because his approval rating will tick up slightly after doing so: check.
-Petty late-night Twitter feuds with his 'enemies', to the point of threatening people and abusing the powers of his office: check.
And on and on it goes. There's not a thing that has happened in his administration that has surprised me, except that his approval rating still hovers at around 40%, even amongst people (usually poor, uneducated whites) who are going to be most screwed over by his policies. But then the other day I read a report that even Richard Nixon, who had done many things competently in his presidency, still maintained about a 25% approval rating in the last days before resigning in August of 1974. It made me realize that while Mr. Trump's approval rating will continue to drop, there will always be people who think he's doing a great job. Why am I surprised at this?
Friday, May 12, 2017
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
The Circuit
Way back in my grad school days my aspiring preacher friends and I wondered who among our classmates was going to eventually be on 'The Circuit'. 'The Circuit' was slang for those preachers who seemed to be headlining every church lectureship program, who preached gospel meetings at all the big churches, and who seemed to be front and center on a who's-who list of Church of Christ preachers.
Almost a quarter-century later, The Circuit may well be dead. Few churches except the small and traditional do gospel meetings (having replaced them with parenting seminars or the like), lectureships are fading (sadly replaced by more independent programs like Polishing the Pulpit or Affirming the Faith seminars, which usually have taken a much more 'conservative' road than I have), and the famous speakers in our fellowship are now either evangelical authors (Max Lucado) or not even preachers (think of the Duck Dynasty clan).
I never really thought that I'd be one of those preachers to begin with, but after all these years I have come to realize that no way will I ever be famous outside of my small group of intimates. I almost never get invited to preach outside my home congregation, and when I do I never get asked back a second time. Sometimes I think about this, and while a part of me is slightly sad about it, I also am grateful for where I do preach and the ability to be home with my family as much as I am.
But again, why am I not one of Those Guys? All the time I see some churches still hold certain people up on pedestals, such as those churches who still have gospel meetings and invite people either a)I've never heard of or b)I don't really respect. Why not me? I mean, aren't I a solid preacher who knows what is true and has over the course of thousands of sermons somewhat honed his craft? I mean, I gotta be well past the 10,000 hour rule for having mastery over a craft (though, of course, preaching masters the preacher rather than vice versa...God is funny that way).
I suppose there are two ways to look at this. The first way would be the voice of arrogance...too many churches want the smiling white teeth, the well-groomed, the deep-voiced preacher...they're looking for all the wrong things! Or they want to be told what they want to hear, to hear the same sermons that they've always heard, to have the same affirmation of "we're right, and everybody else isn't" that seems to have characterized our movement. If that's the case, I tell myself, then I'm glad that I'm not on that circuit.
But the second way is probably a bit more honest. I am not much of a self-promoter...this isn't something I've ever really wanted to do, but it's likely important for building that resume. I'm introverted, have a hard time looking people in the eye, and my voice is irritating not only to me (it is!) but likely others. Sometimes my sermons aren't traditionally evangelistic but more of a Qoheleth-type search for truth (not this, not this, not this, but this), and while this is good for a long tenure at a church it's not a quick-and-to-the-point way that many like. And probably my greatest problem is that maybe I'm just not as good as I think I am. It takes a certain amount of smug arrogance to think that one is good enough to preach in the first place, and I have that...but likely it's a little bit misplaced. Maybe I'm at the right level, and God knows enough to keep me humble.
This summer I will have finished 22 years in full-time ministry, and 18 years preaching. I've loved this life, and will always be grateful to do this. It was not in my plans to do this back in the days we talked about The Circuit, but I'm still chugging along while a lot of those guys are now selling insurance or teaching middle school. I suppose God has a plan for me after all, and he can use me, even if my name will never be in lights.
Almost a quarter-century later, The Circuit may well be dead. Few churches except the small and traditional do gospel meetings (having replaced them with parenting seminars or the like), lectureships are fading (sadly replaced by more independent programs like Polishing the Pulpit or Affirming the Faith seminars, which usually have taken a much more 'conservative' road than I have), and the famous speakers in our fellowship are now either evangelical authors (Max Lucado) or not even preachers (think of the Duck Dynasty clan).
I never really thought that I'd be one of those preachers to begin with, but after all these years I have come to realize that no way will I ever be famous outside of my small group of intimates. I almost never get invited to preach outside my home congregation, and when I do I never get asked back a second time. Sometimes I think about this, and while a part of me is slightly sad about it, I also am grateful for where I do preach and the ability to be home with my family as much as I am.
But again, why am I not one of Those Guys? All the time I see some churches still hold certain people up on pedestals, such as those churches who still have gospel meetings and invite people either a)I've never heard of or b)I don't really respect. Why not me? I mean, aren't I a solid preacher who knows what is true and has over the course of thousands of sermons somewhat honed his craft? I mean, I gotta be well past the 10,000 hour rule for having mastery over a craft (though, of course, preaching masters the preacher rather than vice versa...God is funny that way).
I suppose there are two ways to look at this. The first way would be the voice of arrogance...too many churches want the smiling white teeth, the well-groomed, the deep-voiced preacher...they're looking for all the wrong things! Or they want to be told what they want to hear, to hear the same sermons that they've always heard, to have the same affirmation of "we're right, and everybody else isn't" that seems to have characterized our movement. If that's the case, I tell myself, then I'm glad that I'm not on that circuit.
But the second way is probably a bit more honest. I am not much of a self-promoter...this isn't something I've ever really wanted to do, but it's likely important for building that resume. I'm introverted, have a hard time looking people in the eye, and my voice is irritating not only to me (it is!) but likely others. Sometimes my sermons aren't traditionally evangelistic but more of a Qoheleth-type search for truth (not this, not this, not this, but this), and while this is good for a long tenure at a church it's not a quick-and-to-the-point way that many like. And probably my greatest problem is that maybe I'm just not as good as I think I am. It takes a certain amount of smug arrogance to think that one is good enough to preach in the first place, and I have that...but likely it's a little bit misplaced. Maybe I'm at the right level, and God knows enough to keep me humble.
This summer I will have finished 22 years in full-time ministry, and 18 years preaching. I've loved this life, and will always be grateful to do this. It was not in my plans to do this back in the days we talked about The Circuit, but I'm still chugging along while a lot of those guys are now selling insurance or teaching middle school. I suppose God has a plan for me after all, and he can use me, even if my name will never be in lights.
Thursday, March 9, 2017
Beauty and the Beast...so gay, so sad
So the new Beauty and the Beast movie will have a repressed gay henchman longing to love his Gaston. Some of my fellow Christians, of course, are up in arms about this. A drive-in movie theater in Alabama has refused to show it, stating that they absolutely will not compromise on what the Bible teaches. We're horrified...SHOCKED...that something like this could come out of a Disney studio.
So...what's my feeling on this? I'm not even going to begin to justify what others are doing, but instead say that I believe that a lot of this is overblown. First, if you are expecting Disney movies to teach morals to your children, that's a problem. Second, homosexuality is now a part of American life, whether you like it or not. It's part of what America IS now...and so when a Disney channel shows have a character who has two moms, it's not that surprising. Should be shocked that even 'family' movies reflect this trend, much as they historically treated Asian as slanty-eyed lispers or blacks as subservient farmhands?
And third, and most importantly...if you want to do away with movies that, as one Facebook post I saw said, you couldn't watch with Jesus sitting next to you, then how many Hollywood movies could you really watch? Why are you so mad about this and so ready to pony up $10 for everything else?
-A chick-flick in which the unmarried couple sleeps together half-way through the movie...is that Christian?
-An action movie with lots of gratuitous violence as a man takes vengeance on a gang that hurts his family...is that Christian?
-A buddy cop movie with lots of foul language...is that Christian?
-A romantic family flick in which a woman falls in love with a beast who wears fancy garments...ummmm...
The point is this...getting freaked out that a gay character is in a Disney movie is most likely counter-productive. See it, don't see it, have a conversation about your family values with your kids...do whatever you want. But stop it with the outrage. You don't own the studio, though you've given them a ton of your money over the years. Your whiny self-righteous bitterness brings more shame onto Jesus than this movie ever will, and others can see it. No wonder people don't take your Jesus seriously.
So...what's my feeling on this? I'm not even going to begin to justify what others are doing, but instead say that I believe that a lot of this is overblown. First, if you are expecting Disney movies to teach morals to your children, that's a problem. Second, homosexuality is now a part of American life, whether you like it or not. It's part of what America IS now...and so when a Disney channel shows have a character who has two moms, it's not that surprising. Should be shocked that even 'family' movies reflect this trend, much as they historically treated Asian as slanty-eyed lispers or blacks as subservient farmhands?
And third, and most importantly...if you want to do away with movies that, as one Facebook post I saw said, you couldn't watch with Jesus sitting next to you, then how many Hollywood movies could you really watch? Why are you so mad about this and so ready to pony up $10 for everything else?
-A chick-flick in which the unmarried couple sleeps together half-way through the movie...is that Christian?
-An action movie with lots of gratuitous violence as a man takes vengeance on a gang that hurts his family...is that Christian?
-A buddy cop movie with lots of foul language...is that Christian?
-A romantic family flick in which a woman falls in love with a beast who wears fancy garments...ummmm...
The point is this...getting freaked out that a gay character is in a Disney movie is most likely counter-productive. See it, don't see it, have a conversation about your family values with your kids...do whatever you want. But stop it with the outrage. You don't own the studio, though you've given them a ton of your money over the years. Your whiny self-righteous bitterness brings more shame onto Jesus than this movie ever will, and others can see it. No wonder people don't take your Jesus seriously.
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Facebook Live Worship
A local church has been advertising on their sign in front of the building that they now will Facebook Live their worship services on Sunday morning. A friend of mine, a youth minister in another town, has also been doing much the same thing with his Sunday school classes.
I'm not quite sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, for a younger set who might well not be able to come to a class due to work or distance reasons, this might well be effective in helping to teach them faith facts. And so on this, I applaud the outreach. Heck, I podcast my Sunday morning sermons and I know a handful of people listen to this each week for various reasons (they help in the church nursery or they are people I have known in the past who like my preaching are two reasons I have heard).
Yet when it comes to local worship, advertising locally in a small town, I wonder about this whole idea of videostreaming. Essentially it says, yes you are here in town, perhaps even close enough to walk, but you just don't want to get out of your pajamas in order to have a spiritual experience. But, it is objected, what about the old people who can't get out? Again, I get it (though my experience is that a. most older people have no idea how to get videostreaming and b. if anybody will make it services even when it's uncomfortable, it's the old people), though I wonder if this is simply an example of trying to fill a niche that doesn't need filling.
But my biggest concern is this: I wonder if internet worship makes us spiritually incomplete. For the power of church is not just in going and absorbing some good preaching or hearing the songs of faith. There's something about the necessity of community, of sitting next to somebody who may be very different than you but who likewise proclaims that Jesus is Lord. There's something about leaving the comfort of home to go a place that may at times be intimidating or downright scary and encountering the presence of God in a special place. There's something about realizing that we are more than individuals who come to God, but that we are a people united in community. All this is very difficult to do in front of a computer screen.
Of course, maybe this is the faith of a new day. So often we hear how people like God, but they don't really like Christians or the church. And so if people live on their phones and their screens are are increasingly starved for real human contact, isn't this the kind of God that they want to like? Should we be surprised that 'worship' without the need for human interaction is becoming so common?
I'm not quite sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, for a younger set who might well not be able to come to a class due to work or distance reasons, this might well be effective in helping to teach them faith facts. And so on this, I applaud the outreach. Heck, I podcast my Sunday morning sermons and I know a handful of people listen to this each week for various reasons (they help in the church nursery or they are people I have known in the past who like my preaching are two reasons I have heard).
Yet when it comes to local worship, advertising locally in a small town, I wonder about this whole idea of videostreaming. Essentially it says, yes you are here in town, perhaps even close enough to walk, but you just don't want to get out of your pajamas in order to have a spiritual experience. But, it is objected, what about the old people who can't get out? Again, I get it (though my experience is that a. most older people have no idea how to get videostreaming and b. if anybody will make it services even when it's uncomfortable, it's the old people), though I wonder if this is simply an example of trying to fill a niche that doesn't need filling.
But my biggest concern is this: I wonder if internet worship makes us spiritually incomplete. For the power of church is not just in going and absorbing some good preaching or hearing the songs of faith. There's something about the necessity of community, of sitting next to somebody who may be very different than you but who likewise proclaims that Jesus is Lord. There's something about leaving the comfort of home to go a place that may at times be intimidating or downright scary and encountering the presence of God in a special place. There's something about realizing that we are more than individuals who come to God, but that we are a people united in community. All this is very difficult to do in front of a computer screen.
Of course, maybe this is the faith of a new day. So often we hear how people like God, but they don't really like Christians or the church. And so if people live on their phones and their screens are are increasingly starved for real human contact, isn't this the kind of God that they want to like? Should we be surprised that 'worship' without the need for human interaction is becoming so common?
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Congratulations. You're Both Idiots.
We've all seen the show or movie in which there is a love triangle. Two men are fighting over a women, show themselves to be complete and total jerks, and she finally gets between them and says, "You're both idiots, I don't like either of you" and then walks out.
I feel kinda like that right now when it comes to both left and right. I used to be a solid conservative, but my years of studying the Bible showed me that Kingdom of God was not, in fact, a desperate cry from Jesus to lower taxes on the wealthy or build up our military infrastructure around the world. Yet the liberal perspective, which in practice seems primarily a cash grab in order to fund do-gooder projects of dubious worth, have never seemed a worthy alternative. While today I probably sympathize more with the Left than the Right, partly because the Right has moved so far into crazytown that it's impossible to at all accept it, I don't feel home in either ideology or either dominant political party.
The first week and a half of the current Trump administration has not made me feel any better. Trump...crap. What an idiot. Whether it's appointing cabinet ministers who are designed to placate the billionaire class or continue repeating many of our foreign policy adventures of the past half-century, or whether it's Trump himself overreaching to drive away every ounce of goodwill or common sense that may have existed, I'm convinced that ending his reign cannot come soon enough. Even Mike Pence would be a welcome change at this point...maybe not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I do think he has principles.
But some of the liberal response has, to me, been lacking. Yes, I am glad that there are protests. But I'm sometimes worried that their actions fall short. I wonder how many of the good-hearted liberals speaking of how we should not close our borders to refugees are willing to sponsor those same refugees. And many of those who are speaking up are doing so in such a crude manner that one can't tell the difference in style between them and Trump.
I'm not happy, and my patient waiting for the center to arise and put away this imbicility is starting to wane. It's not getting any better anytime soon, and I'm tired with the idiots on both side. Thankfully the 21st century is the best time in history to engage in some media escapism.
I feel kinda like that right now when it comes to both left and right. I used to be a solid conservative, but my years of studying the Bible showed me that Kingdom of God was not, in fact, a desperate cry from Jesus to lower taxes on the wealthy or build up our military infrastructure around the world. Yet the liberal perspective, which in practice seems primarily a cash grab in order to fund do-gooder projects of dubious worth, have never seemed a worthy alternative. While today I probably sympathize more with the Left than the Right, partly because the Right has moved so far into crazytown that it's impossible to at all accept it, I don't feel home in either ideology or either dominant political party.
The first week and a half of the current Trump administration has not made me feel any better. Trump...crap. What an idiot. Whether it's appointing cabinet ministers who are designed to placate the billionaire class or continue repeating many of our foreign policy adventures of the past half-century, or whether it's Trump himself overreaching to drive away every ounce of goodwill or common sense that may have existed, I'm convinced that ending his reign cannot come soon enough. Even Mike Pence would be a welcome change at this point...maybe not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I do think he has principles.
But some of the liberal response has, to me, been lacking. Yes, I am glad that there are protests. But I'm sometimes worried that their actions fall short. I wonder how many of the good-hearted liberals speaking of how we should not close our borders to refugees are willing to sponsor those same refugees. And many of those who are speaking up are doing so in such a crude manner that one can't tell the difference in style between them and Trump.
I'm not happy, and my patient waiting for the center to arise and put away this imbicility is starting to wane. It's not getting any better anytime soon, and I'm tired with the idiots on both side. Thankfully the 21st century is the best time in history to engage in some media escapism.
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