06.30.08
The Good Life in Santa Clarita
So I just saw this quote on the back of a Santa Clarita City bus. I’m not sure if it is an official city motto or not, but I thought it was worthy of some words:
“WHERE THE GOOD LIFE LEADS”
A couple interesting things about this motto:
- It lacks any real sense of historical philosophy by using the phrase “good life” in such a trite way.
- It assumes that people here have led the “good life” and in so doing it…
- …lowers the idea of “the good” to utter mediocrity
- …elevates our pride for being rich, vain, detached from anything outside of oursleves, and (in another’s words) it helps us glory in our own ”personal peace and affluence”
- …bolsters in us a selfish, vain-glorying attitude that we deserve what we have because we’ve been good enough
- …alienates anyone in our community that is struggling, be it financially or otherwise, and/or therefore…
- …makes people live fake, hypocritical lives that aren’t real and ignore or religate to dark corners problems (personally and communally).
- Then there is the small fact that, by saying Santa Clarita is where the ”good life” leads, this motto likens Santa Clarita to heaven, which is about the farthest thing from the truth.
I’m very thankful for Santa Clarita and those who serve and work to make it better and hopefully a hospitable place. But let me be real clear, where the good life leads is hell. We are sinners that need a Savior who will save us from the wrath of a perfect God toward our sin. I pray that if any of you are just trying to live the good life and eventually end up somewhere in the suburban sprawl with 2.5 kids, soccer practice, clean streets, and an SUV you would stop and ask me about the good news that saves us from our “good” lives.
06.27.08
The Love of God
There is a hymn. A version I particularly like of it Is on an old album that I’ve had for quite a while. And the title is “The Love of God.” It was written in 1917 by Fredrick Lehman, with the third verse originating from a Jewish text from around 1050 A.D. Today, as I was driving and listening to this hymn, my attention was drawn to the second verse:
When years of time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men, who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—
The saints’ and angels’ song.
The amazing thing about this verse is the juxtaposition of God’s love and His righteous judgment. If you aren’t familiar with the bible you might miss it, but I believe the lines about refusing to pray and calling on rocks and hills are references to passsages in the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible, when God in Christ comes to judge the world and make all things right. (e.g. Rev. 6:14-17, cf. Rev. 9:20-21; Rev. 16:9-11). What this verse of the hymn is extoling about God is that even when men are judged righteously by God in horrible ways. Ways that make them call out to the mountains to fall on them and hide them from God’s wrath…still His love endures.
And I just have to think…how? How does God’s love endure in the midst of horrible judgment and after it?
I have a couple ideas: 1) God’ love endures because we can pray now. That seems simple enough. There is no lack of opporunity to pray here. To submit to God now. To seek Him when He may be found. 2) God’s love endures because those who prayed are saved from wrath by His grace. The song’s perspective in the second verse is from heaven, and in heaven the redeemed are singing the praise of the glory of God’s grace. 3) God’s love endures because those who will experience this wrath in the tribulation can repent now before the tribulation and might believe during the tribulation. The tragedy is that the Bible says that those experiencing this great wrath will instead harden their hearts and curse God.
I pray that we would cherish God’s love, that we would cherish repentance while it can still be found and repent of our sins and turn to God for salvation and restoration, and that we would take the love of God to the lost, while there is still time for them to repent and be saved!
06.14.08
Arrived
“When we’ve arrived, stunned and suprised / All things resolved, in the blink of an eye / No more distractions, no sin left to fight / The first glimpse of Jesus, and faith becomes sight”
Just think what is will be to arrive in God’s presence…to glorify Christ forever…no distractions…no sin.
This is the chorus of the song “Arrived” of the new album O For That Day by Enfield (aka the Resolved Band). Buy the album at Grace Church or on iTunes.
06.13.08
On being happy…
I’ve been memorizing the beatitudes that Jesus spoke in his sermon on the mount (Matthew 5:1-12). What’s been interesting is that, because I’m memorzing these, I’ve been so much more aware of what other people and the world around me say happiness is. Because when Jesus talked about being blessed that essentialy translates into being happy. Not friviolity, but true happiness, purpose and meaning. Some of the clear distinction between Jesus’ words and my/our ideas are stunning and drastic. Go back and read them, I think you’d be amazed.
Some more thoughts about this at another time. I have to go, Resovled Band load-in is calling my name.
06.07.08
The geek in me…
So, the next couple weeks are going to bring the geek in me out.
First, I get to help with the Resolved Confernce in Palm Springs. I’m going down early on Wendesday to see and hopefully help with all the geeky load-in. That’s the running cables, setting up staging, hanging speakers and lights, etc. Then during the conference I get to hang out around Front of House and learn from the guys from ATK AudioTek (http://www.atkcorp.com/). Combine all the geeky stuff with amazing worship (and I mean the most amazing that is going on in comtemporary worship today: original songs about heaven and hymns, done by amazing people who know…it’s going to be amazing). Add to that the most profound teaching around on the amazing topics of heaven and hell. And add to that good friends that I will hopefully have time to hang out with. Resolved is going to be amazing.
Then, continue down the geek road. I’m very thankful that Grace Church is allowing me to go to InfoComm 2008 (http://www.infocommshow.org/). I’ll be there with Bill Brandenstein, our assistant minister of music and fellow audiophile extrodinare, and one of our very faithful and helpful members who is an A/V Systems Intergrator/Installer, John Hritz (http://comtronicsav.com/index.html). It is going to be geek heaven (I probably won’t put it that way after Resolved, but for now…) Basically, at InfoComm we will get to see and touch products that we might be installing at Grace Church, or at The Master’s College where I also work. And we can talk to the manufacturers about the products and how they fit our needs.
So, I’ll be away for a while being my geeky self. It is a long break from my regular routine, that will also be a blessing.
