Blogging Geniuses

I don’t know how they do it! That's my rant for today. How do they do it? I find it difficult to post regularly, mostly because I’ve gotten out of the habit. Part of my blogging is as a spiritual discipline, sharing some of the things God is speaking to me, especially those things that I think would be helpful to you.

So, #1, I’m aware I have to re-develop the blogging habit. I get that. But let’s look at some accomplished bloggers, writers whose blogs attract hundreds of times the readership of The Masked Evangel.

Ben Witherington posted four blogs yesterday (Wednesday, June 18 – I’m writing this on Thursday to post on Friday – even though my blogging platform doesn’t provide a way to do that, my laptop has a little used blogging tool called Microsoft Word, so I can write ahead when I have the opportunity, and then post on a later day). Ben’s four posts averaged out to around 675 words each. I personally believe Ben is a robot who doesn’t need sleep. He’s one of those guys who accomplishes so much with the life God has given him, that I am ashamed to ever utter the words, I don’t have the time.

Craig Groeschel and Anne Jackson both write posts ahead (they’ve written about it as advice to other bloggers). Craig’s posts average 145 words each and Anne’s about 294 words each. How do I know this? Okay, I admit I took their last ten posts and did a word count.

Perry Noble posts every day (I'm having trouble linking to Perry today -- hope you can navigate there! I swear the link is right. Try www.perrynoble.com/), and his articles are usually a little longer – about 373 words each. Then there’s Greg Boyd (who has more brains and theological knowledge in his little finger than I have in my entire body), whose latest post (at the time I wrote this) was about 1900 words! Every writer has his own style, and the question isn’t so much, How long are the blog posts?... but, Is the blog worth the investment of time it will take to read it? Believe me, I’m a better person for reading the blogs I do. I subscribe to about 25 blogs. I scan them almost every day, and if they catch my interest I read them more carefully. I’m a better Bible scholar, theologian, pastor, family man, and person because of that small investment of time. Hey; If I find myself continually disinterested in a blog’s content, that blog gets dropped from my subscription list – life is too short.

Anyway, Friday is supposed to be the day I give a shout to someone else’s blog. This week I want to direct your attention to Craig Groeschel. Read this and this. It won't take long, and it will be worth it; I promise.

But first, thanks for reading The Masked Evangel. I’m dedicated to making it more worth your while than it’s ever been. (By the way, my last ten posts averaged about 225 words a piece – that is until this one threw off the curve!) And if you want to read some really great blogs, check out my blog roll in the lower right column.

365: Psalm 33-36 (Day 163)

Psalm 34:14b admonishes us: Look for peace and work for it. Jesus said: Blessed are the peace-makers (Matthew 5:9). Both of these passages teach us that, as God's children (those who would carry on the family business, so to speak), we have a responsibility to actively pursue peace. Peace never comes by the path of least resistance.

What if I refused to stoke a conflict applying water, rather than gasoline, to smoldering fires. What if I actively advocated for peace, a smoothing hand to ruffled feathers and a soothing voice to frenzied spirits? And what if I had the kind and volume of peace in my hearts that overflowed to those around me.

The antithesis of this peacemaker ethic is hiding behind my right to not get involved. That's what the priest and the Levite did when they happened upon a crime victim in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. The Samaritan, on the other hand, simply got involved and did what he could to heal the ravages of violence. He didn't end a war or free a nation, he just reached out to another human being.

Where would God have you get involved in the pursuit of peace?

Musings on the Sovereignty of God

One group of Christians identifies God by his sovereignty, his control over everything. By their understanding, everything that happens is God's will, part of his plan. God knows what will take place because he has predetermined it. When bad things happen to good people, it's all part of God's design, and if we knew what God is up to, we would understand. The point is that God is sovereign, and it doesn't really matter if we understand or not; it doesn't really matter if we like it or not, because we're God's creation (read: We are God's property).

Another group identifies God by his love. Rather than focusing on his transcendence (how different and far away from us he is) and power, they focus on his immanence (how like us and near to us he is) and love. But real love makes us vulnerable, and vulnerability doesn't seem to fit with a transcendent God. This group, for the most part, also believes God knows every aspect of the future, not because he predetermined it, but because of his simple foreknowledge. Because he loves us, he has endowed us with free will (not fully realized in the unbeliever, because how free can anyone be who is a slave to sin?). Of course, predetermination and free will sort of cancel each other out, don't they? As God's crowning creation, this group doesn't focus so much on God's property rights, as much as on God's love for us (read: We are God's children).

Still another group, more closely related to the second than the first, focuses on God's openness. They say God only knows those aspects of the future that he chooses to know. They don't doubt that God could have created a universe where he predetermined everything down to the smallest detail, but they believe God chose not to create that kind of universe. They don't doubt that God could have created a universe where he simply foreknew everything, but they believe God chose not to create that kind of universe. They believe that God chose to create a universe where people would honestly have the ability to choose, and that how the future unfolds is in part dependent on those choices, making us not puppets, but partners with God in life.

What do you think? And how does what you believe shape how you minister to those who have experienced the tragedy of loss? How does what you believe impact your understanding of prayer?

See You Later, Zach

I had the bittersweet privilege of visiting with some people from my last pastorate on Monday. It was wonderful to see them, but the reason for our reunion was a sad one. A young man named Zach got his driver's license last Wednesday, and was killed later the same day when his car hit a tree. Zach was a good kid. He was born just up the road in Mt. Pleasant, but his family had moved to Ohio some years ago. I was touched to see several members of his church youth group travel from Ohio to SW Pennsylvania to say their goodbyes. I had baptized Zach's little sister and his grandpap (SW PA for grandfather) a little more than a year ago, and I dearly love the whole family, all four generations.

The Prophet Joel wrote to his generation after it was assaulted by a devastating natural disaster. Rather than a cry of gloom and despair, Joel wrote a note of encouragement, assuring Judah that God had not forgotten them, and that there was still every reason to look with hope to the future. He admonished them to be reminded by their hardest days to inventory their own lives, taking stock of their relationship with God.

Zach knew Jesus. We hate it that his life ended so tragically, and we grieve for our loss, but we are comforted to know that we will see him again, when we experience a much more joyful reunion.

To my friends in mourning, my prayers are with you. You know how to get in touch with me; and please know that I always love to hear from you. As much as I hate the circumstances of our gathering, it means so much to me that you asked me to be with you in this most difficult of times. Please know that I love you.

All that Glitters Is Not Gold

I thank God for the opportunities I have had to teach and/or lead worship over the past few months. I taught a segment of The Church of God in Michigan's ISL (Institute for Servant Leadership) on the person and work of the Holy Spirit. I was blessed to speak at City Church in Connellsville for a Saturday night and Sunday morning service. I taught and led worship at Beaver Valley Church of God, led worship at Whitehall Camp & Conference Center, and will be speaking this weekend at Robertsdale Church of God. A couple weeks from now I'm supposed to preach at Grove City, but that depends on the outcome of this weekend.

Yes, we had some weeks off and enjoyed worshiping with our sister Church of God congregations around the area, but my favorite weekends were sharing in one way or another, teaching or leading worship.

Hey, Robertsdale friends; you can get a jump on Sunday by reading 2 Chronicles 12:1-11. And for our Sunday afternoon Bible Study, read Matthew 5:17-48. That way we've covered both an Old Testament and a New Testament passage.

Looking forward to this weekend. I'm praying for you!

Convicted

My friends at Church for Men-Florida caught me off guard with this quote from Shane Claiborne. Thanks, guys.

"We can admire and worship Jesus without doing what he did. We can applaud what he preached and stood for without caring about the same things. We can adore his cross without taking up ours. I had come to see that the great traged in the church is not that rich Christians do not care about the poor but that rich Christians do not know the poor."

Always Winter But Never Christmas

Hi. It's been a while. Surprise!

If you're a Chronicles of Narnia fan you'll recognize the title as perhaps the most memorable line from C. S. Lewis's classic The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. That scene always tugs at my heart. You know the one where Father Christmas shows up because Aslan is on the move. The children receive presents and shortly thereafter the thaw begins. Spring has arrived.

In a previous blog I shared this winter photo from the front portch of our home at Whitehall Camp & Conference Center in Emlenton, PA. We actually did enjoy a beautiful spring as evidenced by the dogwoods blossoming all around our house (below). Thank God for a wonderful place to be refreshed over the past three months. Thank you to everyone who touched our lives with your many kindnesses and caring words. It was very humbling to be on the receiving end of such compassion.

Some good things are beginning to happen on the church search process. I can't wait to give you an update on that. I sort of feel like the Pevensee children in Narnia as they encountered Father Christmas, and experienced the blossoms of springtime as Aslan released Narnia from the winter spell of the White Witch.

More to come... Oh yes, there will be more!