The Priority of Mission

Part four of a five part series on the priorities of Estevan Alliance Church. This is an adapted excerpt taken from the message I delivered to the congregation on Sunday March 27th. 

I believe that we are called to be a church of mission. You, my brothers and sisters at EAC, have so impressed me in my time here with your commitment to global missions and the work of our international associates. I have never fellowshipped with a congregation that has been more faithful in giving to overseas and cross-cultural gospel causes than this congregation. When God speaks to you, you have never failed to open up your wallets and give with a cheerful heart. This church is a shining beacon of missions giving within our family of churches and I am so proud of you for that – but even as I praise you for your good works I need to warn you that opening up your wallets is not enough.

If we are to fulfill the high calling that God has placed before us as a church we need to also learn to open up our hearts and be more committed to prayer for missions (for more on that see part one in this series on the priority of prayer) but most pressing I feel is that we need to learn to open up our schedules and allow God to send us. 

Now I’m not talking about a life-long calling overseas (although I would love to see God do some more of that in our congregation) but instead I’m talking about short term missions trips. I’m talking about 1-2 week commitments where you pull yourself out of your own world and let God do something with you somewhere else. I’m talking about coming face to face with the work God is doing on the leading edge of ministry and learning from it; coming face to face with a different culture and being challenged by it. I’m talking about stepping out of normal life and culture so that God can help you to evaluate it objectively from a distance - seeing perhaps for the first time things that he's wanting you to change so that when you come home after your trip you don’t come home the same person.

The vision document that EAC adopted last year states that we want to be the type of church where a minimum of 40% of our active congregation has had a short term mission’s experience. I believe that missions are a transformative experience that builds the church like no other, and if we want to be the church that God desires us to be then we need to take that seriously. Following the model Jesus sets out for us in Acts 1:8 I believe that there are 3 types of missions trips that we must regularly offer as a church to do that. 

The first is our Jerusalem – local missions. That’s missions within our own culture in a close geographic proximity. The annual Broken Arrow work project weekend would be an example of that. It’s not a long drive and they all speak English there but anyone who has gone will tell you that God challenged them powerfully while they were there. 

The second type is what I’m calling cross-cultural – that’s our Judea. It’s going somewhere else where we are totally removed from the trappings of our culture and forced to engage with a people very different from us. An example of that would be the Guatemala trip that the team just returned from. 

And the last type of Short term missions opportunity would be the ends of the earth category – a mission to a creative access country – like the team that went to Silk Road and the Asian Spice region did last year. Those are the types of trips that require a lot of preparation and a lot of caution but will afford you the opportunity to really see what God is doing on the bleeding edge of missions.

If we want to be a church of missions it’s not enough to open our wallets we need to open our hearts and our schedules too – and that’s something I want to facilitate for you as your new pastor.

Onto Transformers...

I present to you today Robots in Disguise Grimlock.

Ruthless Carnage...

Grimlock is one of the most iconic names in Transformers mythology. First appearing as the leader of the Dinobots early on in the Generation One continuity his character evolved down two different routes through the expanded transformers universe. In the first two seasons of Generations One as well as all of the comics both ancient and modern, Grimlock was the ultimate warrior. Gruff, blunt, and brutal - it was often hard to believe that he was a good guy. In the cartoons he was a virtual caveman with extremely limited intelligence but in many other continuities he was brilliant but simply slow and simple of speech.

...Cuddly butler

The other Grimlock that developed was the extremely powerful comic buffoon. For some unknown reason the writers of the 1986 Transformers movie wrote Grimlock as a lovable but simple oaf. Grimlock was stripped of his ruthlessness and instead turned into a cuddly Tyrannosaurus who's childish simplicity was only matched by his own belief in his unmatched awesomeness. Strangely in the Generation One continuity after the movie Grimlock solidified his new character by almost NEVER transforming into his robot mode - instead choosing to do everything through his Tyrannosaurus mode with his comically stubby little arms.

This Grimlock has nothing to do with either of those Grimlocks.

One of these things is not like the other...

For some unknown reason Hasbro decided (perhaps to maintain a trademark) to name the 3rd member of the build team after the iconic and famous Dinobot commander. He is not intended to be a new incarnation of the same character nor does he share any similarities in design or personality with his namesake. He just is Grimlock. He's remarkable because after two strikingly similar figures in Hightower and Heavy Load, Grimlock is a radical departure both in aesthetics and design. Where the previously featured team members became the legs in the "standard" combination of Landfill, Grimlock was designed to be the arms and his transformation bears evidence of that intended purpose.

Well that's all for today. Check in tomorrow for the final installment of both the 5 part series on the Priorities of EAC and the final member of the build team.

Until then,
Chris

The Priority of Ministry

In part three of our five part series on the priorities of Estevan Alliance Church I want to talk about the priority of ministry.

I believe that we are called to be a people of the ministry. I probably talked the least about this priority in the Sunday service last week because our good sister explained it so well in her charge to the congregation. The basis of the mandate I believe can be found in Ephesians chapter 4 when it says:

He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. His purpose was to equip God’s people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ  until we all reach the unity of faith and knowledge of God’s Son. God’s goal is for us to become mature adults—to be fully grown, measured by the standard of the fullness of Christ.  As a result, we aren’t supposed to be infants any longer who can be tossed and blown around by every wind that comes from teaching with deceitful scheming and the tricks people play to deliberately mislead others.  Instead, by speaking the truth with love, let’s grow in every way into Christ,  who is the head. The whole body grows from him, as it is joined and held together by all the supporting ligaments. The body makes itself grow in that it builds itself up with love as each one does their part.
Ephesians 4:11-16 (Common English Bible)

Please don’t see this new era in the church as an opportunity to sit back and watch someone else do the work - having someone back in the captain's chair does not mean that someone has come to do all the work off the ministry. I have been so overwhelmingly blessed by the way this congregation has stepped up during this season of change – you have shown me the character and capacity of this church and in doing so you have given me great joy. Now is not the time to let up, to take your foot off the gas, now is the time to shift gears and keep on pressing forward. I believe strongly in the ministry model that is espoused in the above passage - that my role as your pastor is to equip you, the people of God, to do good works of ministry. I see my role as that of a trainer, a mentor and a facilitator - I will throw my shoulder into the task alongside you but I do it so that you may come to develop and use the gifts and skills that God has placed inside of you for His glory to be made known in all the Earth. I am the equipper and you are the ministers – and nothing excites me more as your pastor than seeing you discover and use your spiritual gifts. I want to do whatever I can to see you fulfil God’s plan for your life – and I guarantee you that means serving somewhere. 

So to fulfill God's plan for Estevan Alliance Church we are all going to have to shoulder the labour together. The Scriptures say that the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few - it's not that there aren't enough workers to meet the need - it's that too many of them aren't interested in working. God has given us a city, province, country and world within which we are supposed to BE the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That means sharing it AND living it. There is no way in which to do that that does not include being a minister of God's grace and truth. Learn your gifts, open your heart and serve God with reckless abandon - that's what it means to be a church with the priority of ministry.

On another note: I present to you Heavy Load.

Heavy Load could rightfully be mistaken for a clone of Hightower with different equipment. Their base models are identical just with Hightower being red with a crane top and Heavy Load being yellow with a Dump Truck apparatus. He's the strong one in the group with reinforced armor that intimidates even the most powerful Decepticon. He's also extremely loud and boisterous and light hearted - which keeps the build team - and their young leader Wedge from getting too stressed out in the face of trouble.

Well that's it for today. See you back for part 4 tomorrow.

The Priority of the Word

In part two of our five part series on the priorities of Estevan Alliance Church I want to talk about what it means to be a people who give priority in their lives to the Word of God. As your pastor I believe strongly that we are called to be a people of the Word. We are called to be a people who actively engage the Scriptures and allow them to change us and direct us. That goes beyond the preaching on a Sunday morning and into our Bible studies, Christian education, small group meetings, discussions over coffee and interactions on the internet. 2 Timothy 3:16 says that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness”. We need to live our lives as though we believe that thoroughly. We need to also understand that the Bible is a living and active message from God - that it's not static and dead and antiquated; and consequently that means that it’s interesting, it’s exciting and that studying it is a privilege – not a chore. We need to discover that excitement for God’s word - personally and corporately.

Another thing we need to realize is that when it comes to the fields of Biblical Studies and Theology that we’re not always going to agree. We are going to have differing perspectives on certain texts and certain doctrines and within the community of God's people that’s okay. I’m not always going to agree with the conclusions taught in an adult Sunday school class, or a Bible study, or a small group meeting - and I'm okay with that. My teachings are not always going to line up with those of your favourite television, radio or internet preacher and that's okay as well. You’re not always going agree with everything that I say from the pulpit – and for the most part that’s okay ;). Being a people of word does not mean that we have to be closed minded or dogmatic in our approach to Scripture, rather it means that we heed the words of St. Augustine when he says:

"In the essentials, Unity. In the non-essentials, Liberty. In all things, Charity." 

We have our essentials here – the ecumenical creeds of the early church councils and the eleven points of the Alliance Statement of Faith – these things are non-negotiables here, but those documents while specific in the important areas also leave a lot of liberty to be explored. We need to practice a generous orthodoxy here at Estevan Alliance Church. Our differences are not seen as deal breakers but rather an opportunity for God to refine and sharpen our understandings as Iron sharpens Iron. I believe that Estevan Alliance Church needs to be a big tent where people from all backgrounds, traditions and walks of life can come and encounter God in a real and personal way through his Word. I believe that we need to be humble in our "understanding" of Scripture and come to terms with the reality that it is not our theological frameworks that saves, redeems, transforms and empowers people, it is instead the Word of God and the movement of the Holy Spirit that makes all these things possible. I want - and I believe that God wants Estevan Alliance Church to be a place where debates don't lead to division, where new ideas intermingle with traditional beliefs and where the unchanging Word of God stands as the final and only arbiter of truth. If we are to take seriously the Priority of the Word of God these are the attitudes and methods that we need to capture in our congregation.

And now the Transformers.

Today's figure is Robots in Disguise Hightower. Hightower is a member of the Autobot's Build Team, another group of combiners within the RiD/Car Robots universe. Following the precedent started in Generation One, construction vehicles are usually Decepticons and are often part of a combiner group but here the Narrative turns things on it's ear. Hightower along with Grimlock, Heavy Load and Wedge are part of a group that combines together to create Landfill (a lousy name for a hero if I ever heard one). Landfill is unique in that he cam combine three different ways depending on who is the legs and arms. Leading to hours of fun. But I'll cover more on him later when I've profiled all of the other members.

The auctions have begun

This is not the promised post for today but I thought it was high time to get the ball rolling on the auctions. So here are the first three auctions that I've listed covering many of the toys featured in the blog. As promised at the beginning I am listing all of the lots with a 99 cent starting bid and trusting God to bring the value he wants for my donation.

I've also decided to donate the money to Impact Ministries. Many of you have mentioned Japan, and there is a neat link between selling what are effectively Japanese toys to support disaster relief in Japan but I have felt convicted lately that when a major disaster happens some people need to continue to support works in the world that are perpetually in need - even if they aren't as sensational. Because of that this money is going back to Guatemala where God gave me the vision for this sale.

Take a look, watch and if you feel like it, bid!

Transformers 2007 Movie Lot

Transformers Revenge of the Fallen Twins

Transformers: Alternators lot

A new beginning - the Priority of Prayer

The dawn of a new week and the beginning of a new chapter in my life. That's what today is for me. Yesterday I was officially installed as the Lead Pastor of my church. I was honoured by all the kind words and well-wishes that I received but as much as it was a warm and fuzzy environment there were some serious things that needed said. I had the opportunity to share with those in attendance  the ways that I believe God is calling us to be the church in this next season of ministry at Estevan Alliance Church. Over the course of this week I want to share with you the five priorities that I outlined for our church in my address on Sunday and perhaps elaborate a little bit for the purpose of this blog. Of course I will be continuing to list Transformers as well and tomorrow keep an eye out for the eBay listings starting to appear tomorrow.

The first priority of the Church: Prayer
I believe that we are called to be a church that prays. And not just a church that prays, but a church that prays together. We are called to be a people of prayer: A people defined by prayer, A people led by prayer. Prayer is not supposed to be one more thing that gets tacked onto our already busy schedule as a church family it should be the thing that drives the schedule. In Ephesians Paul reminds us to:

 “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”Ephesians 6:18 (TNIV)

We are called to stand in the gap for each other, for the ministry, and for the people of the world. We are called to be a church that prays. The Lord says through the prophet Isaiah that “My house shall be called a house of prayer” Together - we are the house of God.

To that end I want to encourage you to commit yourself to corporate prayer. There are several opportunities already happening on a regular basis that you can be involved in. For years there has been a group that has faithfully met to pray on Monday nights at Estevan Alliance Church. Abraham’s Prayer Group has been a cornerstone ministry for Estevan Alliance but I have to be honest, it’s not as well attended as it should be if we are to be a church that makes prayer a priority.

There is also an opportunity to pray every Sunday morning at 9:00 in the fireside room. A group of us gather together to pray for the service and seek out God’s blessing for this church – you are all welcome to come – none of these groups are elitist or by special invitation only, please join the prayer times. 

There is also a group of mothers who gather together to pray for the schools in the city and for the children who are attending them. If you are a mother who is interested in that please talk to Nicole Gibbons and get involved with praying. And I’m going to give you one more opportunity. Perhaps Monday night isn’t a night that you’re available for Abraham's, or perhaps Sunday mornings are too crazy with the kids to come before the Sunday school hour to pray, or maybe you’re not a mother so you wouldn't really fit into the ladies group. If any or all of these describe you then I'm asking you to join me in a new prayer endeavour.

I’m committing for the next 3 months (and beyond if people start to join me) to be in the fireside room praying every Tuesday morning from 7:30-8:30. There is no agenda, no format - I will just be there praying and I would love for you to join me. I will be there with the coffee will be on and I will be praying – alone or with anyone who will join me. If you’re a morning person or if you can stop in before work I’d love to see you there.

If we are serious about being a church that is interested in building the Kingdom of God, if we are serious about being a church that is salt and light to our community, if we are serious about being a church that God can use to bring the gospel of reconciliation and restoration to a world that is desperately in need of Good News - then we must be equally serious about prayer. We must understand that as a preacher I recently heard said it - Prayer is not something we do in preparation for ministry - it IS the work of ministry. I'd like to urge you to take this challenge seriously if that's the type of church we want to be.

...And now for something completely different - I present Ultra Magnus.

This is Transformers: Robots in Disguise Ultra Magnus. He's missing a few pieces and looks a little worse for wear (too much white plastic on this figure - it discolours over time). Ultra Magnus in the narrative of this series was the brother of Optimus Prime and was a formidable warrior back on Cybertron - even more formidable and decorated than Optimus Prime. However when the Autobot council needed to choose a new leader - someone upon which to bestow the powerful relic, the matrix of leadership - they chose Optimus and this infuriated Ultra Magnus who left Cybertron in disgust vowing to one day take what was rightfully his.

Yeah, that sword is the hope of Children

Eventually he tracked down Optimus Prime on Earth and tried to steal the power from Optimus Prime - surprising to both of them when the energy transfer begun what occured was a merging of their two forms to create the most powerful Autobot ever - Omega Prime. Ultra Magnus reluctantly helped out Optimus a few times afterward but always wanted to keep his distance. Eventually in the final chapter of the series they reconcilled and worked together to defeat the powerful Decepticon leader Galvatron using a sword forged from the power of hope of all the children on Earth (seriously I couldn't make this stuff up!).

Ultra Magnus (like the Optimus Prime I posted on Saturday) is what Transfans like to call a Partsformer. Partsformers are figures that don't really transform so much as they disassemble and reassemble in a different configuration. They are common for combiners because doing combined modes are really difficult to truly transform. Ultra Magnus as a figure really suffers for his combined mode with Optimus Prime. It's bad enough that his vehicle mode is a car transport truck which is 75 percent hollow (another real challenge for engineers making a satisfying transformation) but his arms and legs need to detach so they can be worn on Optimus Prime in the Omega Prime configuration. Because of all the partsforming I've lost a number of small pieces from this figure and combined with the discolouration will probably have to be sold in an AS-IS auction.

Until tomorrow,
Chris

A further example and a couple links

Following up on my post from a couple days ago about the difference in the concept of power between eastern and western cultures I present today's Transformer - Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime.

Optimus is from the same series as the Bullet Train team that I featured in that post and consequently is designed with the same sort of power-up mentality in mind. Optimus Prime makes his first appearance here as a fire truck (something that he would return to several times in subsequent toy-lines as there is only so much you can do with an eighteen-wheeler's trailer and the extra plastic is expensive to produce). And as you can see in the first picture is a modest figure in his normal robot form - however he can combine with all the rest of his vehicle mode (which normally turns into a battle station/communications platform when not in use) and become Super Mode Optimus Prime (pictured below). In this form he goes toe to toe with Megatron and all of his evil forces and is armed to the teeth.

I know what you're wondering and the
answer is yes - he's a firetruck with a
missile ladder!

But it gets better than that - because Optimus Prime can further combine with his "brother" Ultra Magnus to form the most powerful Transformer - Omega Prime. This really is a cool figure in and of itself and for the kitbashers out there (people who do custom work to turn one figure into another character) this mold makes a fantastic Hot Spot (G1 protectobot leader).

Optimus was an investment when I was in my third year at college - he was a toy I couldn't afford but at the time I couldn't care less. Debt means very little to the average college student, and I was thoroughly average. He was even more expensive when you factor in that I simply had to buy Ultra Magnus as well to make him complete (look for that figure on Monday). It's probably for the best that I part with him now as he is rife with small parts that are easy to lose (and that I have lost several times over already - this is actually the first time in a couple years that he's been 100% complete) and if I don't get rid of him soon I won't be able to get as much for him.


One other thing today. A good friend of mine (who's blog I have promoted before) is doing a series on the doctrine of Hell and it's place in the Christian and Missionary Alliance (in Canada) statement of faith. He's done two parts so far and if you're the type that enjoys a good pondering of theology you'll find his thoughts fascinating. Check out part one here and part two here.

Until Monday,

Chris

All business

Today's transformer: 2007 movie voyager Starscream. The first toy I purchased from the live action Transformers movie.

All good things...

The Wagon, the train and the nature of heroism

Okay. I admit it. I made it two full weeks through the season of Lent without slipping up but here I am on day 15 and I've fallen off the wagon. No only did I not follow-up Tuesday's post with the promised Transformer but I neglected to post at all yesterday. I'm sorry. I'm going to have to eat some crow and move on. But the thing about falling off the wagon is that it's only really trouble if you stay off the wagon, so today I'm going to endeavour to catch up on my commitment and get moving once again in the right direction.

Today I have a trifecta of Transformers to present to you and part with (one for each of the days I missed and one for today). These brave Autobots comprise team bullet train from the import cartoon of 2001 Transformers: Robots in Disguise. The figures are Rail Spike, Rapid Run and Midnight Express (which is in my opinion a name that is vastly cooler than the other two). These figures are notable for three reasons. 1. They transform from very sleek high speed rail engines into surprisingly filled-out robot forms. 2. Despite their dimensions being extremely similar, they each have a very different way of transforming that produces a very different style of robot and 3. They have the ability to merge together to form the super powered combined form of Rail Racer.

I picked up these figures long after I had actually moved on from collecting the toy line they were from because of their uniqueness. It's not often that you see Transformers that turn into trains, and it's not often that you get a set of combiners that are formed from 3 figures - it's just a very odd number of figures to combine. Team bullet train was an anomaly in the Transformers Universe and anomalies are usually cooler and more valuable than more standard figures. Unfortunately these trains were not in the best of condition when I bought them and Rapid Run is missing part of his weapon which makes him incomplete and far less valuable as a set than they would be otherwise.

Team bullet train is also unique because it (along with other figures in its toy line) reveals a fundamental difference in the understanding of heroism between Japanese culture and North American (can I broaden that to say Eastern and Western culture? I don't know so I'll stick to Japan and North America) culture. This can be easily noted in the differences between different iterations of the Transformers Universe.

The Transformers toy line began back in the early 80s in Japan by the company Takara whereas the Transformers mythology (and original Television series and comic book series) had it's origins in North America a couple years later. The original series (now referred to an Generation One or G1) contained very western story lines. After season three the narrative split - in North America we received a three-part miniseries called Rebirth that introduced the Headmasters and Targetmaster toys. These toys were robots who's heads and weapons detached and transformed into smaller robots. In the west, the explanation was that in a time of crisis and desperation humans (and humanoid aliens) overcame adversity by working together cooperatively thus giving birth to a new type of transformer. In Japan, that miniseries was disregarded completely and a whole new season was produced where the Headmasters (the title of the series actually) were tiny robots who "powered up" into big robots by joining with their bodies. Hence the theme of heroism by power was first explored in Transformers mythology.

Over the years since then there have been a number of transformers series, some produced in Japan and dubbed over to the States and some produced over here and dubbed over to Japan. The ones that originate over here tend to illustrate heroes who are outnumbered, out-gunned and out-classed by the villains; yet somehow by sheer force of righteous purpose and will they manage to overcome the odds and save the day. A great example of that would be the recent Transformers: Animated where the creators made a conscious choice to not only make the Autobots diminutive in size compared to the Decepticons, but also to arm the Decepticons with weapons of war and the Autobots with tools (an axe, a wrecking ball, magnets, welding tools). The only way that the Autobots were able to prevail was ingenuity. On the other hand we have the Japanese series which focus on an escalation of power where he with the most power prevails (the good guys always end up the most powerful in the end) a prime example being Transformers:Robots in Disguise (which was called Car Robots in Japan) which is the series Team Bullet Train hails from.

Yeah, that's right. I'm three trains in one.
Deal with it!

In Japanese Transformers mythology the Autobots overcome the Decepticons by being more powerful, by finding an artifact, or an ancient power source, a mythical weapon or by joining forces with others to produce something far greater than the sum of it's parts. That's why toy lines driven by Japanese narrative forces tend to feature many more combiners than North American based series. In Japanese narratives power is found, possessed and exploited for either good or evil - but it is an external thing that must be acquired and mastered to be of use. In North American narratives power in found within, in the most unlikely of places and that inner-strength is what enables the hero to prevail.

It's an interesting difference, but it begs the question (and you knew I'd go there) what do we believe about power and heroism? When we look at someone who uses power for good to overcome an evil or injustice (a fair definition of a hero) how do we define that power? Is it external as the Japanese assert or internal as we have been raised by society to believe?

Well not surprisingly according to the Bible the answer is neither and both. The power to act heroically comes from an external source that lives within us - we call that Power God as manifest through the person of the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit does not operate the way either culture envisions it in their narratives. Unlike the Japanese perspective we do not acquire or master the power of the Holy Spirit - he is not a tool to be utilized for our purposes or our gain. In Acts chapter 8 we get the story of Simon the Magician a witch-doctor of sorts who amazed people with his great power. Along come the apostles who demonstrate even more power than he has by laying on of hands and praying for people to receive the Holy Spirit. Simon is amazed at what he sees and desires to have that power for himself.

Simon noticed that the Spirit was given only when the apostles placed their hands on the people. So he brought money and said to Peter and John, "Let me have this power too! Then anyone I place my hands on will also be given the Holy Spirit

Acts 8:18-19 (Contemporary English Bible)

Simon, the text clearly states in verse 13 was a believer in the Lord. He was baptized and followed Philip around like a lost puppy, amazed at what the apostles were doing. But he wanted to master the Holy Spirit and use Him as a tool and Peter thoroughly rebuked him for it. The thing we need to learn about that power is that we are not called to master it, but rather we are called as followers of Christ to allow his power to master us. We don't learn to be good Christians by practicing our craft we grow in our giftedness and ability to be used by God as we yield more and more of ourselves to the power at work within us that is making us more like Christ. We call that process sanctification.

And unlike the North American mindset which is thoroughly humanist (or robot-ist?) in it's philosophy - that the power to overcome anything is latent within us - the Bible teaches that in and of ourselves we can do nothing; that none are righteous apart from God (Psalm 14:2-3,16:2, Romans 3:23) and that it is God who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13) and his strength is made perfect not in our internal fortitude, but in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). 

I don't know if there is anything sacrilegious about drawing Bible lessons out of Transformers narratives but I think I just did it. I hope that was helpful.

Until tomorrow,

Chris

Slower

This exercise of regularly blogging through the season of Lent has been a real challenge for me - but not in the way I imagined it would be. Parting with my Transformers has been a bittersweet affair but in the end a necessary one that I'm getting more comfortable with as the days march on - however the real challenge has been keeping up with the daily blog entries in a way that isn't just putting in a post with a picture of the selected toy and saying "there, I did it for today!"

I'm a fairly verbose person by nature, and opinionated too. I'm usually full of commentary on things that are going on in the world and in the pertinent theological discussion of the blogosphere. I'm not always right but I always have an opinion - but somehow committing those opinions to screen real estate and the permanency of the internet has me thinking twice before I post anything - and perhaps that is a lesson in itself. This exercise in blogging through Lent is teaching me to think before I speak (or post) and to evaluate my opinions and gut reactions in ways that are probably healthy for me. Anyone who knows me even remotely well will know that I tend to let my gut reactions drive my decision making - If I haven't made a decision on a matter in the first couple minutes it's because I'm either terrified of the implications of said decision or because I'm consciously trying to be more measured; reflective decision making is not my natural gear. That however is exactly what this blog is teaching me to do. The Apostle James reminds us:

Know this, my dear brothers and sisters: everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry. This is because an angry person doesn't produce God’s righteousness.

James 1:19-20 (Common English Bible)

What I take from that is that I need to perhaps let my ideas and thoughts ferment like a good wine before I continue in the creative process and like the Master Creator pronounce them "good". I need to take my instincts and hone them through prayer and meditation on the Scriptures so that they are thoroughly saturated in God's will and plan. James continues in the next verse:

Therefore, with humility, set aside all moral filth and the growth of wickedness, and welcome the word planted deep inside you—the very word that is able to save you.

James 1:21 (Common English Bible) 

 "With humility..." says to me that I need even my intellect refined and redeemed by the life changing Word so that my deeply held and passionately defended beliefs fall in line with the message and mandate that God has called me to exercise in this world. As a pastor - and now even more so in my new position of leadership in the church - I need to make sure that my plans spring forth from God's plans and not the other way around. "The moral filth and growth of wickedness" that James refers to here is probably related to the anger mentioned in verse 20 but I think it speaks on another level to of the moral wickedness of self assurance and confidence in my own ability to minister to people - in short, pastoral arrogance. Arrogance has a way of growing in us until we become so self absorbed and assured that no one can hold a contrary opinion and be right - my word becomes THE Word rather than THE Word becoming my word. After all when the Lord called Jeremiah he did not say that Jeremiah's words would be authoritative rather he said "I have put my words in your mouth." (Jeremiah 1:9 emphasis mine) I have to be very careful in asking myself what are my words and what are the Words that God is placing in my mouth as a leader, pastor, preacher and teacher?

Even the Apostle Paul in his letters that we rightly recognize as the inspired Word of God had cognizance of the difference between divinely ordained words and his own thoroughly sanctified opinions (1 Corinthians 7:12, 2 Corinthians 8:8-10) I pray that as I take up the mantle of leadership at EAC that I would have the same understanding of my limitations.

I write all this with the heavy burden of a brief but important message coming up to be given during my installation service where I will be expected to share some of my plans for the church going forward. I will be completely honest with anyone reading this that this message is a source of apprehension. I have had six and a half years to evaluate this church and think of the ways that I would change things to better fulfill the mandate that God has called us toward and some of those ideas are fabulous (and some have been implemented even before I was appointed to this position) but some of the ideas I've had over the years have also been awful and unfortunately a few of them found their way into practice before we realized how bad they were. I would be a fool to believe that I could have any sort of ministry longevity in this church without chasing a few bad ideas going forward - I am after all still a work in progress and God still has a lot of rough edges to smooth out and a number of cracks to fill - but my hope and prayer is that I will learn the discipline of slowing down and allowing the Spirit of God to be both inspiring the leadership I provide and vetting the ideas that I come up with so that the frequency of those bad ideas steadily diminishes over time.

At this point I feel like I'm starting to ramble and lose focus in this post so I'm going to wrap things up. If I could ask you for one thing going forward it would be that you pray for me. Pray that God would shape, refine, polish and embody the direction that he has placed on my heart for this church. Pray that my will would  be so overwhelmingly saturated in God's will that he would be able to accomplish his purposes for the church through me. Pray that God would use the leaders that God has surrounded me with to speak into my life and my ministry so that I may experience the growth that comes from iron sharpening iron (Proverbs 27:17), and pray that when needed to that I would lead boldly not seeking the approval of men above the approval of Christ (Galatians 1:10).

Thanks for letting me ramble. I'll post the Transformer of the day later tonight. Jo's teaching a class in the basement right now so I can't get to the storage room.

Chris

Low

When I was a child one of the most depressing days of the calendar year was always December 26th. It was the morning after Christmas when you woke up in your room surrounded by your mountain of new toys that you inevitably received even though Mom and Dad gave you the "don't expect much this year because we're broke" speech and you have everything you had been pining for since that Sears Wish-book arrived on your doorstep(I'm contextualizing here - growing up in Ontario in the 80s it was the Consumer's Distributing Catalogue for us). It didn't matter at all what you had, or what you had gained or how wonderful your Christmas had been all you can think about that morning is the fact that Christmas is over - and the next Christmas Season is at best 10 perhaps 11 months away. I feel a little bit that way today.

When I was a young pastor (perhaps I still am) a mentor of mine explained to me that it's fairly common for Pastors to experience the Monday blues. After an intense week of prayer and preparation for the Sunday service and the adrenaline and excitement that comes from doing God's work and seeing people respond - the notion that it's all finished can be difficult to deal with. It's not that things necessarily went poorly - in fact some of the lowest days in my experience have come after the greatest services - just like the lowest boxing days came after the best Christmases, but it's a longing for something that has passed and is now gone.

In that sense ministry can be a little like a drug. Your hit from serving God and when you come down from that high you go through withdrawal. Today I'm in a bit of withdrawal, I just finished an intense weekend that saw four distinct services in three days including a very emotional church family funeral, and the culmination of a long journey of faith and submission that saw me named the Lead Pastor of Estevan Alliance Church on Sunday. By all accounts things went wonderfully this weekend but here it is on Monday and I'm left feeling low.

This is not how I want to live my life. The roller coaster of emotions that accompany a ministry addiction is neither healthy nor honouring to God and I need to find a way to get off. When I was in Guatemala I was amazed at a particular cultural practice that the Guatemalan people practiced surrounding gifts. When you give a gift to a Guatemalan who is versed in their own cultures social graces that person will politely accept the gift and set it aside without opening it or otherwise mentioning it. To us that seems ungrateful but in that culture it is a sign that they value the giver more than the gift and to ignore you - even for a moment - to focus on the gift you gave would be terribly rude. If ministry - and the invitation to work alongside a God who has no functional need for our help - is a gift, how rude are we to God when we routinely focus on, obsess over and jones for his gifts but seem unsatisfied with just being with him when we're not ministering?

In his book, "Crazy Love" Francis Chan asks this poignant question:

The best things in life are gifts from the One who steadfastly loves us. But an important question to ask ourselves is this: Are we in love with God or just His stuff?

Imagine how awful it would feel to have your child say to you, “I don’t really love you or want your love, but I would like my allowance, please.” Conversely, what a beautiful gift it is to have the one you love look you in the eye and say, “I love you. Not your beauty, your money, your family, or your car. Just you.”

Can you say that to God?

Our love for Him always come out of His love for us. Do you love this God who is everything, or do you just love everything He gives you? Do you really know and believe that God loves you, individually and personally and intimately? Do you see and know Him as Abba, Father?

You could easily add ministry to that list of things we love that God gives us and be just as wretched in our response to him, and if I'm honest with myself I think I have.

I'm not trying to be overly preachy here, I'm just making some observations from my own life about some things that I think God wants to change - and isn't that what the season of Lent is for? My desire is to want God even more than I want to do things for him; to want God more than I want to work alongside him and in getting that perspective right to practice a more Guatemalan type of gratitude to my Saviour and Lord.

...

Onto today's Transformer. I have no compelling story about today's figure. To be honest, getting rid of this one is no big sacrifice. The truth of the matter is that I tried to sell this one on over a year ago and got no bids on the auction so it's been sitting in a flat-rate Canada Post shipping box in my basement since then. It's not a huge sacrifice but doing the right thing doesn't always include a huge sacrifice - sometimes being obedient to the call of God involves doing the easy things too. So here is a fairly nice looking figure - a black, convertible Corvette from the Transformers Alternators line named Battle Ravage.

Harry however may be more
heartbroken over this sale.

This is not to be confused with the much rarer, much cooler Jaguar XKR named Ravage who turned not into a robot but into a Jaguar similar to his Generation One cassette namesake. I had him and sold him ages ago.

Until tomorrow,

Chris

Growing up

When I was in college and I started to revisit my enthusiasm for Transformers it was in the height of the Beast Wars era when robots who changed into animals were all the rage. One of my favourite characters from the show was Cheetor, who played the role of the wet behind the ears rookie on the team who was full of impulsiveness and potential but also immaturity. I don't know what it was about the character but something about resonated with me. Cheetor became my first focused collection.

At one point or another I had 10 different Cheetor figures (which is impressive considering at that point there were only 5 different molds available at the time. I made sure that I had double everything so that I could display all the figures in both robot and cheetah mode. Eventually I decided to liquidate my Beast Wars collection because I needed funds to build up my growing Alternators collection. But even after getting rid of all of my other Beast Wars toys I held onto my Cheetors for a while longer - even making  them the focus of a now famous Jr. High devotional video during Joanna's first maternity leave. But even that had to end. As I got older and my collection evolved I divested myself of all of my Cheetors and moved onto another character to centre my collection around.

So in 2009 during the 25th anniversary of Transformers Hasbro released the Universe line of toys as a sort of re-imagining of the greatest characters form the history of the toy line. You can imagine how excited I was when I heard that they were releasing a new Cheetor figure based on the original Beast Wars incarnation. I picked up the figure the first time I saw it in stores. Now unlike any of the other toys I've purged during this season Cheetor is from a toy line that I'm still actively collecting (although less actively recently - but that's another story that I'll perhaps share at a later date) so parting with this figure is a little more significant than learning to purge things I don't need or want.

The reason I chose Cheetor to go next (believe me there is a lot of other stuff I could have done first) is symbolic - like this exercise as a whole. Cheetor to me represents a time in my life when I pursued what I wanted with reckless abandon. If I saw something I fancied I bought it - it didn't matter if I needed it (which I didn't) or if I could afford it (most of the time I couldn't) I lived a life completely absorbed with me. That's not to say I was a bad person - most of my Cheetor purchases took place when I was still a student in Bible College and I was very serious about following Jesus - but my faith (like my attitude toward so many other things in life) was immature. God has been calling me deeper in the last few years and the last 8-9 months or so have been especially challenging as I have been thrust into a position of leadership without being given a corresponding mantle of said leadership. These months of transition have been difficult, I have learned things about myself - some of them wonderful, some of them not - but through it all God has forced me to grow. When I was in Guatemala in 2010 I had a powerful experience in a church service down there when the pastor preached a message on James chapter 1. The core scripture was this:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 

James 1:2-4 (NIV)

What I have learned over this past year is that the trials and tribulations of life have been what God has used to shape me and make me grow. I'm going to be sharing a little bit of the specifics of this tomorrow morning in the service so I don't want to give you and excuse not to be at church so I'll be intentionally vague for now. But suffice it to say that while I still have miles to go on this journey toward spiritual maturity, and this journey toward being the man, husband, father and pastor that God has called me to be - I feel like I've covered a lot of ground since I was last collecting Cheetor figures. Which is why I think it's time for this guy to find a new home. It's time for me to say goodbye to the things that tie me back to my immature faith and celebrate things instead that remind me of a faith that is maturing. It's hard for me to admit - but Cheetor, I've outgrown you. Now it's time to move forward.

Until Monday,

Chris

Addendum

Woe is me. In all the busyness of the last few days I neglected to fulfill my commitment to list a Transformer for March 18th. I had pulled it out of storage earlier in the day and taken the picture but never got around to posting it on the blog.

This is Alternators Optimus Prime. And this figure (like Hound earlier) is a bit of an enigma to me as to why he  is still in my collection. After selling off most of my Alternators a couple years ago (even giving a few away for free to my younger brother Keegan) for some reason I thought it important to hold onto this one. This is an example of latent hoarding at it's worst. Let me tell you why.

1. I don't collect Optimus Prime as a character. I Simply can't afford to. There is no other character in the Transformers brand that gets more attention and has more toys made. Collecting Optimus Prime for a completionist like me is an expensive and impossible task.
2. The licensed replica form of this toy is a Dodge Ram SRT-10. I have never really liked Dodge trucks. There is no real objective reasoning for that. I know many people who do and those that like them like them a lot, but there is something deeply personal about whether you are a Dodge, Chevy or Ford man when it comes to trucks. I have always been a Ford guy.
3. The toy itself isn't very good. The mold was plagued with QC (Quality Control) problems and (as you can see in the picture) the panels don't really fit well together in vehicle mode and some of the joints leave you holding your breath when you transform it hoping something doesn't snap. The design of the Robot mode has way too much "truck kibble" for my liking and he just doesn't come off looking enough like Optimus Prime.
4. Lastly, it's not worth anything. There was a black version released a few years ago as a SDCC (San Diego Comic Convention) exclusive under the banner of Nemesis Prime that's somewhat valuable - but this mass release toy is neither rare nor special.

So why do I still have it. I guess it's just for the sake of owning something. A poor reason if I ever heard of one. Off it goes to the sales.

Chris

Light of the World

*the following is a transcript of my message for the March 18 Lenten service being hosted by EAC. I post this for the benefit of those who cannot attend. Thanks,

Chris

Just last week I returned home from an eleven day missions trip to mountains of Guatemala. I was working with an organisation called Impact Ministries amongst the Pokamchi people group. We spent our time building schools, working with children, getting to know the people and trying our best to be Jesus with skin on to a people who are lost in great spiritual darkness.

One of the places we visited was a natural marvel of nature: A huge sinkhole in the side of a mountain outside of the village of Chicoy. This enormous cavern in the side of the hill was easily 2-3 times the size of this sanctuary and it went deep into the mountain itself were very little sunlight was able to shine through the small opening at the top, covered in brush and trees. When you got down to the bottom what you found was a place that was very, very dark – physically AND spiritually.

The Mayan people believed that this sinkhole was a place of power – that it was a point of connection to the Gods of the underworld and all around the floor of this cavern was evidence of recent sacrifices and rituals enacted to appease these false gods. At the bottom of this sinkhole the darkness was oppressive – you could see it, you could smell it and you could feel it.

Have you ever considered what a world cast in unending darkness would look like? Have you ever thought about what it would feel like to have no light? Over this Lenten season we are focusing on the “I AM” statements of Jesus from the Gospel of John – exploring what the implications of those pronouncements are for us today. Today we look at John 8 and verse 12 where Jesus makes the claim that I am the light of the world. What does it mean for Jesus to be light in a world that is turning in the shadow of darkness?

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 8:12 (TNIV)

Well first we need to understand what darkness is – I’m a pastor, so you can deduce from that what you wish about my skills and knowledge in other fields and disciplines – but whether you believe it or not I was quite good a physics back in High School and one of the things I remember from my grade 12 physics class is that there is no such thing as darkness. Darkness has no physical or measurable existence; it is merely the absence of light. Just like cold is a word that we use to describe the absence of heat – something we Saskatchewan folks know a little bit about – to walk in darkness is to walk without God. CS Lewis in his book “the great divorce” tried his best to envision a world where the light of Christ was not present – it was his picture of hell. Too many people are living in Hell on Earth because they choose to cower from the light of Christ. Is it any wonder that Jesus calls Hell “outer darkness”? It is a description of a place where God is not.

Another example of this darkness is illustrated in the events of Good Friday. I’m convinced that God loves a good metaphor – he just seems way too fond of them in the course of the Holy Scriptures so what do you have when Jesus is on the cross? At the brightest part of the day, during the most gruelling hours of the crucifixion, when the light of the world is close to death, the sky is blackened and the lights go out. Humanity is treated to a terrifying show of what their sin has brought them. The light of the world stepped down into darkness and we saw fit to extinguish his flame.

In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:5 (TNIV)

For Jesus to be the light of the world it means that the darkness of the human condition – the human condition of sin and separation that comes to full fruition in hell – is receding. The darkness that could not overcome the light is little by little being obliterated by the radiant light of he who is the essence of light.

Secondly we need to understand the nature of this light.

"For Jesus to be the “light of the world" means the world has no other light than him. If there is going to be a light for the world, it will be Jesus. It is Jesus or darkness. There is no third alternative." (John Piper, I am the light of the world. March 13, 2011)

No other light. Any other source of light that we find in the darkness, any good work, any act of charity, any movement of compassion or expression of love and justice is at best reflecting the light of the world. Just as the moon has no light of its own but instead reflects the light of the sun any light in this world that pierces the darkness is a reflection of the light of Christ. The Apostle James reminds us of this when he says:

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:17 (TNIV)

For Jesus to be the “light of the world” means that any hope we have in escaping the darkness of the humans experience can only be found in him. He is the way, the truth and the life – no one comes to the father except through him because no one can see the father except by him. In the verses immediately following the “I AM” statement the Pharisees asked him “Where is your father?” They couldn’t see God in the darkness. And Jesus replied:

“You do not know me or my Father,” Jesus replied. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”

John 8:19 (TNIV)

It is because Jesus is the light of the world that we can know God.

Lastly we need to understand something about the world. Darkness is the world’s condition but it is not what it was made for. For Jesus to be the “light of the world” means that the world was made for this light.  As John Piper says:

 “This is the light of the creator of the world. When this light comes, it not only makes sin plain as foreign and ugly, but it also makes everything good in the world shine with its full and true beauty. This world was made to be illumined by this light. This light of Christ is native to the world.” (John Piper, I am the light of the world. March 13, 2011)

When time has reached its fullness and God’s plan of restoration and reconciliation has come to pass in the making of everything new – His light, the light of Christ, will be the only light we need. John of Patmos tells us in his Revelation that:

“There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever.”

Revelation 22:5 (TNIV)

When the light of the world shines fully on his creation – there will be no need for anything else. When the light of Christ reaches its fullness on this earth – when God’s Kingdom comes on Earth as it is in Heaven, even the sun will be obsolete. And that was what I got to experience just a little of in the bottom of that sinkhole. We stood in the centre of that place and we worshipped God. We praised the name of Jesus Christ, we proclaimed Scripture and sang songs and prayed prayers and when we opened our eyes that place of utter darkness, that had been used for abominable acts and had been used in service to evil powers and principalities for so long – was somehow brighter. The sun hadn’t moved, the sky hadn’t change, no one had lit a candle but the light of the world broke through a little bit into that stronghold of Satan and things changed.

The Good news that Jesus Christ is the light of the world is that he can do the same thing in our hearts as well. Where there is darkness, where there is sin, where there is rebellion or resistance to his grace Jesus will bring light and that light will change us. Because just like the world, we were made for the light of the world. We were made for Jesus.

On Hell

The Christian blogosphere is on fire this week with people weighing in on Rob Bell's new book Love Wins which has brought up charges of universalism against the author from many people (a charge that Bell himself flatly denies). There are plenty of thoughtful and balanced responses to Bell's new book out there that you should read (and even more horrible and poorly constructed attacks from Bell's usual detractors), but a secondary discussion that it has raised - and perhaps something we should be grateful to Rob for regardless of how orthodox his book may or may not be - is the question of Hell, eternity and final punishment.

One of my favourite Biblical Scholars (and prolific blogger himself) is Dr. Ben Witherington III - and he has posted a really insightful and balanced explanation of the theological problems with the doctrine of Hell. I like this article because Ben explores the strengths and weaknesses of both of the major viewpoints on Hell (Eternal Torment and Annihilationism) and informs without forcing a conclusion on the reader. I'd encourage you to take a look at it here if you're interested in these things, and the hot theological topics of today by clicking here.

Here is an excerpt of Dr. Witherington's thoughts:

Does the NT teach that 1) there is a Hell, and 2) some folks are going there (not necessarily in a handbasket), and 3)  they will experience eternal torment once there?

I have put the matter in three parts, because you could answer questions 1) and 2) with an emphatic yes,  and in fact say no to 3).  Indeed, there is a time-honored tradition of interpreting the NT to say that what happens to the damned is that they are consumed in Hell or Gehenna or the Lake of Fire — pick your favorite moniker — but then, since they are consumed, there is no eternal torment.  Their suffering does not go on and on forever.  And one of the possible implications of interpreting the NT this way is that when we finally get around to the last rodeo, which is to say to the new heaven and new earth, only believers in Christ are left standing on the premises.   Now this is certainly not universalism in the typical modern sense of the term; it’s not an “all dogs go to heaven” kind of universalism, or a Unitarian kind of universalism.   This is, instead, the view that except for those who willfully and knowingly refuse to have any part in Christ and his kingdom,  ‘Love Wins’.

And later on

What about texts which suggest that Hell is  a place of eternal torment?  Yes, there are such texts, and they can be interpreted that way.  Perhaps the most famous of these texts is 2 Thess 1.5-10  which should be quoted in full:

“All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. ⁶ God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you ⁷ and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. ⁸ He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. ⁹ They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might ¹⁰ on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.”   Note—- there is that word aeon, in this case aeonion in vs. 9, and in the NIV  translated ‘eternal’, as above.

To read the full discussion follow the link above the quotes, and don't forget to read the comments too - there is a great discussion going on as people interact with and push back to Dr. Witherington as well. Happy St. Patrick's Day and remember - I posted today's Transformer yesterday so enjoy the links instead.

Chris 

Happy birthday to me

Good evening friends. Thank you to everyone who made the effort to wish me a happy birthday today. It's been a really great day despite the fact that I'm in the middle of one of the most hectic ministry weeks I've had in a while. If you remember to, please pray for me as I have 4 distinct services crammed into three days this coming weekend.

I'm going to keep it brief tonight - I have nothing deep or profound to say about God, life or the human condition. I spent my day working, attending meetings, in a choir practice, and for the last couple hours playing video games to veg out. Nothing has come out of that experience that has moved me to write. However I do have a commitment to keep with regards to Transformers - so here are today's entries.

I present to you the twins: Skids and Mudflap. These two deluxe class toys are from the 2009 Revenge of the Fallen (ROTF) movie line. You may remember the characters as the double-dose of Jar Jar Binks-ish ridiculousness in the second live action Transformers movie. As characters I couldn't stand these two - and they (IMHO) are one of the reasons that ROTF was a horrible movie (a horrible movie with Transformers, mind you), but as toys these two were pretty cool.

Modeled after two concept cars, the Chevy Beat and Chevy Trax, they were nearly identical in vehicle mode but through unique transformations and interesting character designs they ended up quite different in robot mode. Interesting fact: neither the Beat nor the Trax made it into production; both becoming victims of GM's bankruptcy and restructuring. However the Beat concept was tweaked and refined and later introduced again as the Chevy Spark which is set to go on sale in North America at some point this year.

I'm listing two Transformers today - one for the 16th and one for the 17th (we'll say the green one is for St. Patrick's Day) because I couldn't just write a blurb about one of them without the other. After all they're twins.

Remember to wear your green tomorrow.
Chris

What's really important

* Apologies to all this post was for March 15th, but due to a late board meeting last night I didn't get to publishing the post until this morning. It was written though yesterday -I have witnesses!!

I'm still in a little bit of shock.

Today just as I came back to the office from lunch I received word that one of our dearly loved sisters in Christ, Brenda Dyck had passed away. Brenda was only 49 years old and had courageously battled cancer for quite some time. Sometimes she was victorious - lately she was losing the war. Several times over the six and a half years I've been in this community I have had the honour of praying for and with Brenda and her husband Randy for God's Divine Healing. It seems that God, in his abundant mercy, saw fit to fulfill his promise of healing in the resurrection rather than in this age.

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world

John 16:33b

As I reflect on the things I saw in Guatemala, the things we're all seeing on the news that are going on in Japan, and the personal tragedies and struggles that we see in people's lives here in Canada - it's easy for us to resonate with Jesus words that we will have troubles. It seems sometimes that suffering, pain and loss are the only things guaranteed in life (beyond death and taxes of course) and we wonder if any of what we do here really matters anyways? It's hard to look at the things you do for a living, the relationships you pour time and energy into, the hobbies that you pursue and even the good works that you try and live out as you follow Christ as being anything more than a drop in the ocean in light of the overwhelming tide of wrongness we see around us. Sin, sickness, injustice, oppression, poverty, famine, flood, earthquake, tsunami and the like all seem like insurmountable adversaries to us seeing the Kingdom of God that was proclaimed as already being here in the sermon on the mount. What can I do that matters?

Surely my little Lentin project of selling off my toys does nothing for the millions suffering in Japan right now, surely my commitment to blog does nothing to feed the families I met in Guatemala who are living far below the poverty line and are trapped in the darkness of pagan worship that strips them not only of their relationship with the Saviour - but also forces them into a corrupt system that exploits them financially to keep them in the good graces of the various 'gods' that they worship. And certainly nothing that I do here is going to somehow alleviate the pain and loss felt by the family and friends of our dear departed sister. So why does any of this matter. Why don't we just give up and take the advice of Job's wife? Why don't we just curse God and die.

The answer I think is in the second half of that statement form John 16:11; "Take heart! I have overcome the world." God does not want us to live like the Ostrich burying our heads in the sand pretending that life is not hard, or painful or challenging at times but he does want us to acknowledge that God is bigger than our challenges, God is more powerful than our pain, and that He - despite how bleak the circumstances may seem - is still on the throne. John 1:4-5 says:

In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Take heart means to not give up on this life, or this world, or our present circumstances. Take heart means not to throw in the towel and concede defeat to a corrupted creation and the laws of entropy and decay. Take heart means that the little things we do - although they seem small and insignificant compared to our troubles, when empowered by God's all-sufficient Spirit matter. The warm greeting you extend to someone at the beginning of the Church service has eternal implications - regardless whether or not there has been an earthquake somewhere, the fact that I am doing my best to become less materialistic by selling off my Transformers - although by some measure a token gesture of obedience - still matters because through it I am learning how to discern between what my flesh tells me is important and what's really important. And the love and compassion you extend to a grieving family in their time of loss still matters - even when all you have to offer them is your own tears of compassion and empathy. These things matter because the world in all it's troubles and hardships cannot overcome the one who has come to redeem them. They are not bigger than the one who is making all things new and when we respond with Christ-like love and service we are working alongside the one who is overcoming the world by his power made manifest in is people. That is why this blog is still important - even on a day like this.

So here is today's Transformer. 2007 Movie Voyager Optimus Prime. He's the smaller of the two Optimus prime figures from the 2007 movie line. I don't have much else to say about him.

Until tomorrow,

Chris

One of those days

"My brothers and sisters, think of the various tests you encounter as occasions for joy. After all, you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Let this endurance complete its work so that you may be fully mature, complete, and lacking in nothing."

James 1:2-4 (Common English Bible)

I was reminded of this passage today as I reflected on the past year or so in our lives as a family. We have had our shares of trials and tribulations as some translations put it. Some of them have been severe, and some of them have merely been uncomfortable but I have been reminded through them that God is doing a work in our lives - in MY life. Sometimes that's hard to see and sometimes it's plain as day - but when the plan comes to fruition and you see God's fingerprints all the way through guiding and shaping circumstances to bring us to a conclusion that reflects HIS highest glory it all becomes worthwhile. I'm not sharing this today because I've had some sort of epiphany on the subject or that I have amassed enough wisdom to be an authority on hardships (although in the very next verse James encourages us to ask for wisdom) but rather I share this today because God has a way of reminding me that I am very much a man in process.

Without getting into any details (trust me they would bore you) today has been one of those days. Had it not been for the commitment I made to blog through this season of Lent I would not be cramming this post in at the end of the night - I would have simply called it quits and hoped for a fresh start in the morning. But I did promise however many of you out there are reading this that I would be faithful and my parents always taught me to keep my word (please forgive me if this comes across as half-hearted - I'm trying my best here) so here it is. And I know that my momentary troubles pale in comparison to what some of you - and some of the people in my congregation are suffering with right now - they're not even in the same postal code; but one thing I have learned in life is that everyone's worst problem is everyone's worst problem. While I may dismiss my tribulations as trivial compared to some of the issues that have gone down the church prayer chain in the past seven days God does not dismiss them so readily.

While I hate the process, I know that God is using these circumstances that grate on me so much as sandpaper - smoothing out my rough edges and polishing me into a work of art - that's what James is talking about. I'm not sure if I'm able to find the joy in the situation yet, but I'm trying.

Onto today's Transformer: I present to you 2007 Movie Deluxe Bumblebee (Concept Camero Version). This figure for most people was the first chance to get their hands on any sort of replica of the 2010 Chevy Camero. This concept car (as it was at the time) was so popular that this figure sold out EVERYWHERE it was stocked. It was released alongside the Deluxe Classic Camero Version (which you may remember that Bumblebee transformed into in the first 3rd of the movie) but it massively outsold it's slightly more yellow casemate. All of this created the perfect storm to make Concept Camero Bumblebee a hard to find and highly sought-after toy. I remember buying this online from a scalper (someone who ran to the toy store and bought out the entire display to sell on ebay at a huge markup) an paying more than double retail for this toy. Little did I know at the time that Hasbro would release more than a dozen repaints and variations on this mold in the next 3 years - none of which were hard to find. Oh well. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

Until tomorrow,
Chris

Misplaced value

I'll get right to the point with today's post. My goal with this year's Lent discipline was to purge myself of the things that I hoard for no reason other than the compulsion to hold onto stuff - and instead focus on the things that have actual value to me, whether functional or sentimental. My plan has never been to eliminate my collection of Transformers completely (although I'm trying to open to that if God should so lead) but rather to pair down my collection to something more focused and less out of control.

That's not to say that parting with these toys isn't difficult for me - I'm a completionist - they type of collector that sets a series of parameters and tries to collect all of the items within those parameters to have a "complete set". From time to time those parameters have shifted and I have purged my collection to retool it to the new parameters. You can usually tell what the focus of my collection is by what is on display at the time. For instance, in my office you'll find my Transformers:Animated collection, and my Rodimus/Hot Rod collection. At home you'll find many of my Universe/Generations toys out on display. In storage are many toys that don't quite fit into any of those categories but that I have nonetheless held onto because of their value - either sentimental or financial as well as some figures that I just don't have room to display with their collections. Occasionally one of those figures that doesn't fit the established parameters is so special that it finds it's way onto display in spite of it's exceptional status - a prime example would be today's figure: Alternator's Hound.

The Transformers: Alternators line of toys was a bit of an anomaly in itself back when it first came out. It was an attempt to make a more Grown-up style of toy that paid homage to classic characters by transforming  them into licensed models of real world vehicles rather than stylized cartoony approximations. The distribution of these toys was spotty at best - some figures were overstocked and became shelf-warmers and others were shorted in their product waves and became very rare and highly sought after. There were also two packaging variants the earlier box and the later bubble and then there was the difference between the generic characters they created to fill out the line and those that were real throw backs to famous Generation One characters. When all of these factors aligned (short supply, old packaging and famous character) you have the recipe for a valuable figure. That's exactly what I have here in Hound.

Hound has been on display for most of the time I've owned him, and even when I purged myself of most of the other figures in the Alternators line I simply couldn't part with this figure. But the recent events of my trip have left me asking myself why. I've never been a big fan of Hound's character, I've never really been fond of the toy on its own merits and I'm not interested in collecting his line anymore so why have I been compelled to hold onto him? I think the answer is a simple case of misplaced value.

We have a way of focusing on the wrong things in life and letting trends, media and society dictate value to us rather than making sensible value judgments ourselves. In Revelation 3, in the letter to the church in Laodecia the Spirit says the following: "You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see." Sometimes the things that we think make us rich are not the things that really matter - we wrongly ascribe value to things that have no real value. You could easily make the argument that none of my Transformers have any real value and on one level you'd be absolutely correct but I'm working on baby steps here and in the context of my own personal journey here I'm learning that some of the things that I consider valuable just aren't. 

So today I'm pulling Hound off the shelf and packaging him up for sale - and hopefully the market forces that drive Transformers enthusiasts like me will still consider him to have significant value - because to me he doesn't - and I have the feeling he's only the tip of the iceberg.

Tomorrow is Sunday, and traditionally Sundays don't count in the season of Lent (I'm no exactly sure why - but it makes the whole 40 days math work out) so I'm likely not going to post anything tomorrow, but check back Monday to see what else I decide to part with.

Blessings,

Chris

It's the little things

So here we go my second post today - I promise not to make this one as lengthy, mostly because it's already 8:30 and I'm having trouble staying awake as it is. I simply don't have the stamina for a long post tonight. When I got home yesterday I arrived in town just in time to pick up Jack from the sitters and take him to school for his afternoon pre-K program. Normally I'm pretty frustrated about interrupting my day and driving across town to take care of this chore - it really breaks up my day. We used to have sitters that literally lived a few houses away from his school so they would walk him over and pick him up and Joanna and I could focus on the work we had to do at the office - God's work (as I would tell myself).  But eventually all good things must come to an end (or so they say) and we were effectively "fired" by our sitters because they had to cut some kids to comply with home daycare regulations and we started the long journey toward finding new daycare for our kids.

Long story short, after a couple of failed starts and a messy few weeks in between sitters we found someone else that we liked and that was willing to take us as a part-time client. Jack and Harry are treated well, they are in a Christian environment and we feel good about the level of care and attention they get - but our current sitter doesn't have the ability to take Jack to school in the afternoons. Joanna and I have to share that duty between us, which is essentially a half-hour process twice a day: Driving to the sitters, getting Jack ready to go, loading him up, driving to school, getting him settled in class, and driving back to work. And then around three-o-clock every afternoon we reverse that process. Most of the time I see this responsibility as an annoyance, it takes away our lunch hours (which are often prime times for meeting with people), it interrupts our afternoons (and really takes a bite out of staff meeting which is always being cut short by one of us departing to pick Jack up after school) and I generally feel guilty about using up work time to drive my kid around town. But not yesterday.

Yesterday for the first time in a long while I was looking forward to picking up Jack and taking him to school. Yesterday I couldn't wait to walk up to the door and greet my little boy. Yesterday I realized that this responsibility wasn't a chore at all - it was a privilege. I have the opportunity to see my little boy multiple times a day when many parents are forced by their workplace expectations to go long hours without meaningful contact; I get to see where my boy goes to school and to interact with his teachers on a regular basis and find out how he's doing, I get the joy of knowing that I'm an important part of my son's life and see the joy on his face when I walk up to the door of the sitter's and he know's that Daddy is coming for him; and I get to ask him about his day at school right after it happens hearing the things that he's excited about, frightened of, and proud of accomplishing right when it's fresh in his mind rather than waiting until later in the evening when he is preoccupied with something else. Yesterday as I walked up to the door of the sitter's house to pick up Jack for school I got to see my special little boy for the first time in a dozen days and the only thing that compared to the smile on my face was the one on his. Daddy was home and it was the highlight of his day.

I loaded Jack into the van and drove to the school. We talked about his week, and his time with Nanny and his special student day (which I missed while I was away) but when I put the van in park in front of his school I heard him say something that just simply melted my heart. Jack got out of his seat and came forward to the front row and said in the sweetest tone, "Thanks for driving me to school Daddy." Never has such a simple act of gratitude meant so much to me.

It's the little things that matter most in the Kingdom of God. The willingness to do a menial task out love love rather than obligation, the simple gift of the widow's two mites in the offering plate, the expression of hospitality to a stranger - the cup of cold water in the name of Christ and of course, the simple heart-felt thank you of a child. My tendency in life is to focus on the big picture, to cast grand vision and see the world in broad strokes - but I'm coming to realize that if I want to be like Christ in the way I live my life I need to be much more concerned about the little things. Walking in discipleship of Christ is about doing the little things right again and again until they become a pattern of character and priority that defines us. And in this season of Lent that's what I want to practice with this purging of my Transformers.

Which brings us to Transformer number three. In keeping with the theme of little things I have decided to part with the 2007 Movie line figure Elita One. Elita One was not a character who actually appeared in the movie but rather was a repaint of another character designed to fill out the toy line. And as a scout class figure (read: small) she's not the type of toy I usually spend money on collecting but it's not her size that makes her special. You see Elita One has two very special things going for her that make her important to my collection. Firstly, she's a Target exclusive figure. Limited release/Store exclusives always hold a higher collectible value than mass release figures. And secondly, she's one of the few figures that I've managed to keep MISB (Mint in sealed box) which drives up her value further. Unlike Prime and Megatron who I've already purged, it's the little things that make this selection special. And I hope that's a lesson that I can apply further on in life than this blog.

Until later,
Chris