What's the first thing that goes through your mind when you get up in the morning?

I start bargining with myself for at least another 30 min. of shut eye.  Then I start talking myself out of using a vacation day and going back to bed.  Maybe I'm sick today?  No I'm not sick.  Then finally, I drag myself out of bed wondering why I couldn't have been a professional singer after all?  Oh that's right, I didn't want to be on the road and go broke.  At least I could sleap-in or maybe sleap on the bus.  Blah, blah, blah.

I make it to work, and at some point I'm with it and start digging what I'm doing.

So, I've run across this part in Psalms in the Bible where the Psalmist says something like, "Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love for I have put my trust in You."

Here is a go that is so into God that the first thing on his mind when he wakes up is God!  At first that might sound kooky or abnormal, but as I've started to think more, I bet NOT thinking about God is what is really kooky or abnormal.  Do the sanity check, if you are in love, I mean LUUUUUUUUUUV with some one, the are on your mind  big time.  It doesn't have to be a boy/girl thing either.  What if you have a really good friend who has been with you through everything.  You might think of that person a lot.  Or what if you a 18 year old and you away from home for the first time, living on your own or in college.  Let's say that you were really close to your dad.  Really close.  You're going to think about him a lot.  Something inside you is going to hurt with his absence.  Something in you won't quite feel right until you can talk on the phone, e-mail, letter or better yet visit.

So, God is our heavenly Father, and offers to have a relationship with us.  Reality check:  God is the perfect father.  Absolutely loving.  Absolutely just.  You know the drill.  He made all of the cool looking stuff in outerspace, and all of the animals here on earth.  He has a sense of humor and He's smart.  So what's not to really dig about God.

Ofcourse the Paslm writer was geeked out and digging knowing God.  How could he feel otherwise.  So, I want that.  I want to want God that bad.  I know Him.  I know what he is like, but it's really easy to ignore Him.  It's getting better.  I'm growing closer to Him, but if my relationship to God were a measure of how good I am at friendship. . . I don't make much of one.

Having a relationship with God is hard.  He's invisible and mysterious, and all that.  Yet, as I get closer and see glimpses into the His heart, I'm stunned and awed and drawn in desiring Him.  It sounds a little weird to say it, and I'm not sure what comes next, but I know that I want to want Him more, and will spend my life in pursuit of knowing Him.

Later,

Adam

Recently there has been quite a bit of press coverage on new wrinkle in the "culture war".  That is retailers and companies removing Christ from the Christmas season.  The biggest offense noted is that retailers are using the word "holiday" instead of "Christmas" for everything associated with the season.  Holiday shops and Holiday trees have replaced Christmas shops and Christmas trees. 

This has spurred a number of organizations to cry for boycotts and to pressure retailers to put Christ back in Christmas. 

At first I started getting a little worked up about this.  I admit it.  Then suddenly some recent news stories popped into my mind:  

•  In Korea individuals caught possessing a Bible are jailed, beaten and/or executed.  Christians must come together for worship in small groups.  They come in shifts under cover of night so as to avoid discovery.  One Bible is shared among many. 
• A woman in China was beaten to death for handing out Bible literature in the public market.  Also in China Christian house churches have been raided, shut down and their leaders jailed.  While many of the leaders were released, others are still detained.
• In Iraq and other Muslim countries Christian pastors and church leaders have been shot dead, because of their faith.  Woman a cast out of their families.

That's just a few examples of the many accounts of Christians being persecuted and even killed for their faith.  Why is it that mainstream Christians in America can't seem to have a healthy, living faith relationship with God unless there are billboards and retail locations to support them?  Why is it that Christians in America seem to experience little power in their relationship with God (unless they're getting a thrill from the latest Christian book, movie, or video game).  Why is it that many people come to follow Christ in countries where government seeks to forbid it.  Why is it that Christians in very poor countries have a rich experience of faith, and American Christians languish in spiritual poverty?

So, I'm going to bug someone with this, but everybody should get off the culture wars, and leave retailers alone.  If they want to call it Happy Holidays, Happy Gift Season, Year End Fun Time, or Annual Trying To Get You To Buy Season.  I don't expect business or government to nurture my faith relationship with God.  What I do expect is that as I daily read the Bible and spend time in conversation with God, my faith will grow regardless of the culture around me.

The culture war?  For the most part it is a sham. 

For the most part.

More soon.

Adam

P.S.  I welcome your comments (please be polite)

 

 

I'm driving around in my car with Sojourn's newest recording.  I should say, that I have a CD copy of what will be the new CD.  It should be available soon, and pre-orders are going to be open in about a week.

I feel like I've grown up as a musician doing this project.  I mean from a child to a man (so to speak).  The lyrics feel different, and the music feels different.  Releasing a new CD with Sojourn is always an opportunity to take a look at where I've been since the last CD. 

I've become less afraid of failure and less desperate to impress people with my successes.  I've slowed down my pace of life and continue to look at how I can simplify, and concentrate on what matters most.

I occurs to me that I've been very busy over the last 10 or 20 years. Long before the first Sojourn CD, but my relationship with God has not grown or florished as it could have.  I'm more determined now to take the time, slow down, stop and spend time in the Bible and prayer, and studying Bible teachings.

It's a radical culture shift for me to not be really busy, but now that I'm 40 (and turning 41 in Feb-06), I'm wondering what all the hurry has gotten me, other than less time with my family and friends.

I'm looking forward to what this new CD has to communicate, and the enjoyment it can bring our listeners.

Later,

Adam

“Blue Like Jazz” – part 2

 

I am posting some of the ideas I’m reading in the Donald Miller book “Blue Like Jazz”.    I am curious to hear your thoughts on these concepts:

 

Early in the book, Donald brings up the practice of calling God, “Father”.   Donald proposes the idea that our American culture has done a fairly good job of degrading the definition of “Father”, and that there may be many who are now turned off by the term.   As a result of broken families or other unpleasant scenarios, the idea of a “Father” no longer holds a positive reflection.   

 

Now, although I would stand up for the Christian Bible clearing defining God in the “Father” role, I can see how there may be many who would not want to affiliate themselves with a “Father”.        We may not know many personally who would fall into this category, but there may be more “out there” than we would like to believe.

 

This type of perspective on our corrupt culture can actually help Christians to think about how our words may be misinterpreted.    We may be throwing around Christian vocabulary, without realizing how the terms may be compromising our witness.   

 

I am not sure how much I agree with the concept, but I do like the fact that it may make us stop and think for a moment about the words we are using and how they could be interpreted.    It’s never a bad thing to take extra time to think before we speak.

 

Thoughts?

 

Hammster

I’m currently reading through Donald Miller’s book “Blue Like Jazz”.   In the book, Donald’s primary point appears to be the issue of American Christian self-addiction.     His contention is that our entire “Christian” foundation is based upon what we can get for ourselves and how it makes us feel.    Our focus is inward, rather than outward.

 

When considering the current “fad” of “Praise & Worship” and the pursuit of a meaningful “experience” with God, I can see where Donald is coming from.   

 

This also spills into our approach to politics and culture.    Many Christians want to see God take away certain political leaders or change certain areas of our pop culture, mostly because it makes the Christian feel uncomfortable.     Don’t misunderstand that I endorse unethical behavior or entertainment, but I can see how we continue to approach the issue from how we feel about it, rather than looking at how God may be in control and looking for us to interact with these opportunities.

 

At one point in the book, Donald tells a story of an experience he had a college festival.   Donald and some friends built a “confessional booth” and were preparing to pronounce their Christian belief to the primarily non-Christian students and faculty.   However, they chose to approach the issue from a standpoint of “confessing” to the non-Christians regarding the way Christ has been misrepresented over the centuries.    The only purpose was to show the students that Christ is not necessarily what has been presented to them, and that the Christians are asking the non-Christians to forgive them for the mistakes that have been made in the name of Christ.

 

In my mind, this sounds like a great example of realizing our past “evangelism” techniques have been more self-motivated, rather then actually looking to reach out to our fellow man and relate to them on a REAL level.

 

I will offer more comments and thoughts on the book, as I progress.

 

What do you think about my statements above, and the points that David is making?

Hammster

There is an account in the Bible about a young Israelite named Joseph. He was one of 12 brothers born to Jacob. This account takes place a long time ago in ancient Egypt. Joseph, for a variety of reasons, was hated by most of his brothers. They sold him into slavery. I have to imagine that as a young man he was frightened and upset. However, what the Bible records is that while a slave in nobelman's house, he served faithfully. God blessed Joseph and his owner. By the way, I'm not endorsing slavery. His owner was the captain of Pharoh's guard in the Nation of Egypt. Because he could so trust Joseph, he committed the management of all that he had to him. Some time later Joseph was falsely acused and thrown into prison in Pharoh's dungeon. Again, I can only imagine his dismay, hurt feelings, and discouragement. What the Bible records is that he faithfully worked and served while in prison. The result was that the prison guard eventually placed Joseph in charge even though he was still a prisoner. The happy ending is that Joseph eventually rises to a position of prime minister in Egypt, second only to Pharoh. He is later able to use his position of authority in the Egyptian government to help out his father and his family (including his evil brothers). Joseph's brothers are naturally waiting for Joseph to use his power to try and get even, but Joseph says something like this: You meant it for evil, God meant it for good. Romans 8:28 in the Bible says, For all things work "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." When disapointment, trouble or even tragedy hits a Christian's life, it is never a surprise to God. He allows for these things to develop us and grow us into the man or woman that He wants us to be. He has a purpose in mind for all that happens to us. That is if you are a Christian. If you are not a Christian. You're on your own.

This summer there was a shooting right in front of my house.  This week the neighbors across the street from us were burglarized.  The teenage son came home after school while the burglery was in progress.  The thieves pointed a gun at him and escaped.  The stole guns and other things. 

 

At first I responded with fear, but that is changing.

 

Something else I thought about.  In the last 18 months there has been killer tsunami that took the lives of over 100,000 souls in Asia.  Non-stop killing and violence in Israel, Palestine, Iraq and other parts of the world. In America there have been deadly hurricanes in the South and wild fires on the West coast.

 

Then I read today that there may be a killer flue virus that may kill several millions or 100 million.  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9535929/

 

My first reaction is fear.

 

In the book of Psalms (in the Bible) the writer says, I will not fear even if the mountains are carried into the midst of the sea.  The Bible also talks about certain “last days” in which he allows natural disasters and war to trouble man kind and get their attention.

 

My fear comes when I feel a perceived loss of control.  The sane thing is that I never am in control.  I don’t control the weather or the environment, even though I can contribute to its good.  I don’t control the actions of others, even though I work to make the world a better place.  Ultimately I am always at risk of death or injury in a great cataclysm or disaster which is outside of my control.

 

So where is my hope?  My hope is in eternal life in Christ.  I believe that this mortal life on earth is such a small fraction of my total life, that in eternity it will seem like a brief gasp.  The Apostle Paul in the Bible refers to events in our lives as “light and momentary suffering.  Keep in mind that Paul suffered a lot including an extended stay in prison.

 

My eternal life with Christ holds so much greater promise and is far far more substantial that this brief stay, that even the worst of suffering is soon over.

 

I still react in fear, but my faith in Christ allows me to redirect to hope in Christ.  I don’t have to fear anything or any one who can kill my body, because they can not kill my soul.  That is safely hidden away in Christ.

What makes a Christian? What does it take to be one? The Baseline is found in the Bible in Genesis 15:6. It says that the man Abraham believed God, and God counted that as righteousness. Later in the New Testament portion of the Bible, Abraham is mentioned again as a man of faith. God was asking Abraham to believe in God's promise even though he saw no immediate tangible evidence. Abraham said yes to God, and acted on that belief. This is important, because it's really easy to say, "I believe in God". Most everybody believes there is a God. Satan believes in God, and he is big time enemies with the Lord. By the way, yes there really is a real Satan. He's not pretend. Anyway, the saving belief is a life changing belief. It moves one to action. Now, Abraham was by no means perfect. He messed up a lot (so glad God is into forgiveness). Nevertheless, his life was centered on trusting and following what God said. The next thing to see is that it's not enough just to believe in something. People say that now days. "Not important WHAT you believe in, just that you have faith." That's just plain old ignorance talking. What goof ball came up with that idea. Unless you believe in and follow the God of the Bible, you are out of luck. There's another guy that had a very basic belief. When Jesus was being crucified for our sins, there were two other men being crucified for crimes. One of them hurled insults at Jesus, the other defended Christ, and said to Jesus, "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!" Jesus responded by saying, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise." This man didn't know anything about Jesus dying for his sins nor that Christ would raise from the dead. He didn't even have a chance to live out his new life changing believe. However, Jesus knew what was in the man's heart, and saw that the man's faith was genuine. So, it's not how much you know that counts. It's your willingness to give your life to Christ. Act on what you know, even if it is a little bit. Make a life changing decision of faith to believe in Jesus Christ. One more thing, I know this seems basic. Perhaps too simple. In one sense it is very simple, and it does not require that you be able to perform certain activities. Jesus takes you as you are no matter what you've done. At the same time it is very costly. God is a king. He is the creator. He wants you to give him your whole life. It will change you forever. Weird, but this free gift offered by Jesus costs everything.

A while back, Tim Hamm, had posted to the blog the question, "What makes you a Christian?" That's been on my mind for a while, because so often there are a million answers to that question. Sometimes we use special church words that don't necessarily make sense to the average person. Is there a formula? Are there certain steps that each person must experience in order to be considered a Christian? The first question really is who cares? Is it something everybody or anybody needs?

I have to go back to the source for these questions. The Bible. I know that there are lots of discussions and intellectual arguments about IF the Bible is true or fiction or if just parts of it are. Let's leave that one alone for now and just start with the belief that the Bible is exactly what it portrays itself to be: A message sent from God. For those of you who aren't into the Bible very much, God sends His message in two ways: 1) By showing us the lives (good and bad) of His special people: Moses, Abraham, etc. 2) Direct teaching: Like Jesus teaching or the letter from the Apostle Paul.

So, here is what I've learned from the Bible about who needs to be a Christian. Answer? EVERYONE

Let me explain. God made us to be with Him. God wasn't lonely or anything. He was enjoying creating. Everything He created (stars, planets, animals) everything was beautiful and really cool. He created people to enjoy and care for what He had created. In fact the Bible records God saying someting special just before he created the first human, "Then god said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness . . .'" (Genesis 1:26). Cool huh? We are made like God in that we have a sense of person hood, we imagine and create, and we have within us a undying spirit. What some people would call an eternal soul.

So what happened. Did God make this screwed up world the way it is? Gross. No that's not what happened. SIN happened. God created humans with the ability to choose. Choose to follow God's ways, His created laws, or to reject God. Well, the first man and woman chose to reject God's ways and follow their own ways. That rebellion was what brought sin into the world. From that moment, every person born was born with sin in their heart. Our seperates us from God. Sin is anything that I think or say or do that goes against God's laws. God is so pure, perfect and holy, that even my best efforts (on my own) are filthy garbage comparied to God. Sin can NOT be removed by good deed alone.

Sin is a like a crime against God's goodness. Everyday when God views his creation he sees all the evil and junk that human kind has chosen to bring to the goodness He created. Everyday, each of us viaolates God's laws. The punishment for that crime is eternal death in Hell. Don't kid yourself either, if you think that Hell only starts after you die, look around you. Without Christ, life is just plain old screwed up.

If the sin in our hearts is a crime and the punishment for that crime is eternal death (starting now), is there anyway to be pardoned from my crime? Can anyone save me? The problem is that if God just lets us off the hook then He would be a corrupt judge. So God entered the world as a baby. Baby Jesus grew up to be a sinless man. In fact Jesus is completely God and completely man. Weird, but if you are God, what's the big deal right?

Jesus was on the earth teaching the way to have eternal life and it ticked off a bunch of religious fakes, so they killed him buy nailing Him to a cross (go watch the movie The Passion). Hah, the trick's on them, this was God's plan. The Bible says that on the cross Jesus became sin for me. Jesus paid the penalty through suffering and dying on the cross. But, that's not the end. Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again.

We celebrate Jesus raising from the grave on Easter Sunday. Dying on the cross He canceled me debt of sin. Rising from the dead He canceled the power of death. Now all that's left is for you to excercise the power of choice that God has given you. Everyone who gives their life to Jesus will have eternal life. Life eternal is enjoying God forever. Starting now.

That's the abreviated teaching. More later.

Questions? Add a comment or e-mail me at adam@sojournband.com Adam

For those of you who have been following my journey to the drug trial, I quit the study. After two weeks on the test medication (not a placebo) I had some side effects with which I wasnt' willing to live. Other than the side effects, the medication worked nicely. It's called Lyrica (Pregablin). I probably could have done with about half the dose. I slept throug the night, had far less pain, and for the most part could concentrate. It's possible that had I stayed on the medication, the side effects would have tapered off. I have learned a very valuable lesson from this. Having to taper off the other drugs, made me take a hard look at the way I live my life. Some of how I spend my time and live my life might be contributing to pain. While I was tapering off the other medications I doulbed my excercise and also started spending more time reading and considering the scriptures. I pray more now also. Those all help emensly. I never exactly new what meditation was until, I looked at a passage of scripture and then worked through all that it meant, considering it in my mind or writing about it in a journal. It calmed my spirit, and helped me sleep. Too bad there isn't a doctor that could prescribe along faith lines, not just pharmaceutical lines. More and more I am reminded that nothing that comes into my life has taken God by surprise. I am a Christian, and God has allowed this pain in my life for a reason (Romans 8:28). Living and working through that truth has strengthened my faith, and in the process has brought me some relief. Adam