'Til I Have Something to Say
I was at a "meeting of the minds" the other day as a few of us geared up for leading a three day youth retreat over New Years' weekend. We were talking about getting our workshops together and how we need to be focused in what we're doing and what we say. One of the guys said, "Sometimes I just talk until I have something to say."
That's kind of profound, I think. Not deep like "Blessed are the meek" but, still, it's important. I think that it defines our culture. There's an awful lot of "talk" - TV, internet, blogs, YouTube, MySpace, movies, books, magazines, IM, cell phones - and all the hundreds of sub-genres in those spaces...
And it's a lot of talk - but only occasionally is there anything to say... Lori and I like a few shows on TV now and several are dealing with faith issues. I like Battlestar Galactica - the humans talk a lot about "the gods" but the cylons (the bad machines) worship the "one god" - and while we really don't see any human worship, we see a little about cylon worship... So what? Well, interestingly (to me) is that they're just dealing with these faith issues not so much as caricature (like Father Mucahey on MASH or the dad on 7th Heaven) but as a real part of the peoples' lives and reality - and the conflicts that faith can raise. A better example is on Bones (just watched it the other night) - the main character is a scientist who seems to always demand proof of God's existence when she's with her FBI agent partner who is a devout catholic. The FBI guy's character is one of the best "living faith in real life" characters that I've seen. When "Bones" was buried alive (and subsequently rescued) she and Booth end up in a church and they have this conversation:
Brennan: “What did you ask for?”
Booth: “That’s between me and a certain saint. Although I did ask for a little help finding the Gravedigger.”
Brennan: “Good move…”
Booth: “And I said thanks. You should try it sometime.”
Brennan: “If I were going to pray, I would have done it just before we set off the explosion.”
Booth: “You mean, you didn’t?”
Brennan: “No. See. If there was a God, which there isn’t…”
Booth: “SSSHHH! Don’t you see where we are?”
Brennan: “And if I were someone who believed He had a plan…”
Booth: “Which I do.”
Brennan: “Then I’d be tempted to think He wanted me to go through something like I went through because it might make me more open to the whole concept.”
Booth: “It obviously hasn’t.”
Brennan: “I’m ok with you thanking God for saving me and Hodgins.”
Booth: ” That’s not what I thanked Him for. I thanked Him for saving all of us. It was all of us, every single one. You take one of us away and you and Hodgins are in that hole forever. And I’m thankful for that.”
Brennan: “I knew you wouldn’t give up.”
Booth: “I knew you wouldn’t give up.”
"I'm okay with you thanking God for saving me and Hodgins..." "I thanked Him for saving all of us." I thought that was an amazing response. The whole thing. Thankful that this little community of friends is what it is - and that every member is vital and celebrated and, well, loved. And THANKING GOD FOR THAT. Not for the rescue. Not for being smart or lucky or whatever. For putting these people together.
In a way, that's church, isn't it? Putting people together - not one is unnecessary, every one is loved and makes the whole... Are we thankful for that? Do we thank God for the people who are so very unlike us? Do I thank God for the guy who keeps telling me that we don't talk enough about sin? Or for the woman who says we talk too much about sin? Do I thank God for the people who whisper about me behind my back and complain about Bill Starr to my face? We're all part of it, though...
Chip Ingram (who is not my favorite author/preacher by any means, but has some good stuff) wrote in God as He Longs for You to See Him:
“We may wonder whether or not God loves us, but we usually have a pretty good idea whom he shouldn’t love...”
But that's not how God works, is it? He loves the good and the bad, the righteous, the self righteous and the unrighteous, the pretty and the ugly, the conservative and the liberal, the hope filled and the hopeless... and even me...
And so, as it comes down to it, it looks like I've just "talked until I had something to say." But let me say it clearly. God loves everybody the same - completely. He doesn't hold anything back from the president of Iran or give the pope a little more (or less!). It's complete love. It's unconditional love. We don't return it very well, but God gives it nonetheless.
The woman who is so sickly sweet to me when I'm around but cuts me down when I'm not - Jesus died for her.
The guy who takes every opportunity to criticize me - God loves with all His heart.
The people who talk a lot about the love of God but don't ever show it - God doesn't hold anything back.
Me - when I'm all of those people and worse - God loves just as much as when I'm "good."
IF I'm ever "good."
God save us from ourselves...
That's kind of profound, I think. Not deep like "Blessed are the meek" but, still, it's important. I think that it defines our culture. There's an awful lot of "talk" - TV, internet, blogs, YouTube, MySpace, movies, books, magazines, IM, cell phones - and all the hundreds of sub-genres in those spaces...
And it's a lot of talk - but only occasionally is there anything to say... Lori and I like a few shows on TV now and several are dealing with faith issues. I like Battlestar Galactica - the humans talk a lot about "the gods" but the cylons (the bad machines) worship the "one god" - and while we really don't see any human worship, we see a little about cylon worship... So what? Well, interestingly (to me) is that they're just dealing with these faith issues not so much as caricature (like Father Mucahey on MASH or the dad on 7th Heaven) but as a real part of the peoples' lives and reality - and the conflicts that faith can raise. A better example is on Bones (just watched it the other night) - the main character is a scientist who seems to always demand proof of God's existence when she's with her FBI agent partner who is a devout catholic. The FBI guy's character is one of the best "living faith in real life" characters that I've seen. When "Bones" was buried alive (and subsequently rescued) she and Booth end up in a church and they have this conversation:
Brennan: “What did you ask for?”
Booth: “That’s between me and a certain saint. Although I did ask for a little help finding the Gravedigger.”
Brennan: “Good move…”
Booth: “And I said thanks. You should try it sometime.”
Brennan: “If I were going to pray, I would have done it just before we set off the explosion.”
Booth: “You mean, you didn’t?”
Brennan: “No. See. If there was a God, which there isn’t…”
Booth: “SSSHHH! Don’t you see where we are?”
Brennan: “And if I were someone who believed He had a plan…”
Booth: “Which I do.”
Brennan: “Then I’d be tempted to think He wanted me to go through something like I went through because it might make me more open to the whole concept.”
Booth: “It obviously hasn’t.”
Brennan: “I’m ok with you thanking God for saving me and Hodgins.”
Booth: ” That’s not what I thanked Him for. I thanked Him for saving all of us. It was all of us, every single one. You take one of us away and you and Hodgins are in that hole forever. And I’m thankful for that.”
Brennan: “I knew you wouldn’t give up.”
Booth: “I knew you wouldn’t give up.”
"I'm okay with you thanking God for saving me and Hodgins..." "I thanked Him for saving all of us." I thought that was an amazing response. The whole thing. Thankful that this little community of friends is what it is - and that every member is vital and celebrated and, well, loved. And THANKING GOD FOR THAT. Not for the rescue. Not for being smart or lucky or whatever. For putting these people together.
In a way, that's church, isn't it? Putting people together - not one is unnecessary, every one is loved and makes the whole... Are we thankful for that? Do we thank God for the people who are so very unlike us? Do I thank God for the guy who keeps telling me that we don't talk enough about sin? Or for the woman who says we talk too much about sin? Do I thank God for the people who whisper about me behind my back and complain about Bill Starr to my face? We're all part of it, though...
Chip Ingram (who is not my favorite author/preacher by any means, but has some good stuff) wrote in God as He Longs for You to See Him:
“We may wonder whether or not God loves us, but we usually have a pretty good idea whom he shouldn’t love...”
But that's not how God works, is it? He loves the good and the bad, the righteous, the self righteous and the unrighteous, the pretty and the ugly, the conservative and the liberal, the hope filled and the hopeless... and even me...
And so, as it comes down to it, it looks like I've just "talked until I had something to say." But let me say it clearly. God loves everybody the same - completely. He doesn't hold anything back from the president of Iran or give the pope a little more (or less!). It's complete love. It's unconditional love. We don't return it very well, but God gives it nonetheless.
The woman who is so sickly sweet to me when I'm around but cuts me down when I'm not - Jesus died for her.
The guy who takes every opportunity to criticize me - God loves with all His heart.
The people who talk a lot about the love of God but don't ever show it - God doesn't hold anything back.
Me - when I'm all of those people and worse - God loves just as much as when I'm "good."
IF I'm ever "good."
God save us from ourselves...
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