Say What?

I was sitting in my office annex the other day and was listening to folks use Canada's third official language as they ordered double doubles, triple singles and four by fours.  Which begs the question: is a coffee with four creams and four sugars still a coffee or is it liquid candy? But again I digress.

As I listened to the customers speaking in a code readily understood by them and those who served them, I wondered about the language we speak in our churches.

How often do we assume that everyone who comes through our doors on Sunday morning speaks the same language as we do?  And I'm not talking about English.

I have to remind myself from time to time that not everyone understands "churchy" language. Part of my job is to act as a tour guide, as I lead people to catch a glimpse of the eternal.  And part of that job is occasionally acting as a translator, translating "Christianese" into everyday English, so that it can be understood.

If you get the wrong coffee because of a miscommunication, that's a mistake that can be corrected. If you miss eternity because of a miscommunication, that is a tragedy and it's forever.  Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

. . . as sin!

I was looking for a specific product at a hardware store last week, apparently in vain.  When it became obvious they didn't have what I needed and I would have to look elsewhere, the clerk sympathetically commented," What a sin!"
An inconvenience yes, a nuisance maybe, but hardly a sin.
It kind of made me think of a conversation that I overheard about Croc footwear when they first came out. The final opinion of those involved was that they were incredibly comfortable but “ugly as sin.”
Now granted ,Crocs are ugly, at least as ugly as earth shoes and probably even uglier. I've maintained that Crocs don't actually float, they're just so ugly the water repels them. But ugly as sin? I don't think so.
Sin is the deliberate violation of God's will and God's law. It's not an inconvenience and it's not a nuisance, it is sin. And it is ugly and it is dangerous and the Bible says it will separate us from God.
So let's be careful that we don't minimize and trivialize sin by flippantly using the word to mean what it doesn’t.
On the other hand, let’s be careful that we don't minimize and trivialize sin by calling it a mistake or an oops.
Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

First Silence Your Critics

I fear for Canada!  While we can’t claim to have been founded by those seeking religious freedom,( unless it was a freedom to trap and sell beavers), for almost 150 years our public policy and laws were shaped with at least a nod to our Christian heritage.  However, it would appear that those who lean to the right are now being excluded from the public arena.
Some of it is spill-over from our neighbours to the south. Recently HGTV cancelled a new reality show.  The reason? It appears the hosts, twin brothers Jason and David Benham are vocally pro-traditional marriage and pro-life.
But we can’t just blame it all on the States.  
Last week it was announced, first by the liberal party and then by the NDP that pro-life candidates would have no place in either party.  Seriously, the “Conservative Party” have said they are not interested in re-opening the abortion debate, but that is a discussion for another day. So why did Justin Trudeau and Thomas Mulclair find the need to limit who can run for their parties?
Because the reality is that this will not just remove the Pro-Life and traditional marriage voice from the public forum, it will remove the conservative Christian voice from the same forum.
Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

Deja Vu

It is like Déjà vu all over again… the quote of course comes from Yogi Berra, but it seems to be a reality in the present day situation in Ukraine.  In 1940 Russia began what is known as The Occupation of the Baltic States and for almost fifty years they occupied the countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.  And the West fumed and grumbled and refused to recognize the Soviet Occupation, but that didn’t seem to bother Russia…… much. 

And while the occupation of the Baltic States has been forgotten by most of the world it seems to be playing out again in Ukraine.

And it’s easy to think it’s simply about geography, but ultimately it’s about people.  My Great-Grand-Father left Estonia as a young man so he wasn’t there for the occupation; however he lost his family in the purges that followed under Stalin and that left him devastated.

I don’t have a solution for the crisis in Ukraine any more than the leaders of the NATO nations do.  However my faith in these situations rests in the reality of God’s word, in particular Psalm 20:7 “ Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.”
 Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

Tolerance is a Two Way Street

It was recently announced that Trinity Western University in British Columbia intends to offer a law degree in 2016.  And at least two provincial bar associations, including Nova Scotia, have voted to not allow students graduating from Trinity to be members of their associations. 

The reason?  Trinity is Canada’s largest Christian liberal arts college and part of its community covenant, requires all staff and students to abstain from “sexual intimacy that violates the sacredness of marriage between a man and a woman.”  Members of the Gay rights communities assert that  this covenant discriminates against Homosexuals.  Technically it would also discriminate against heterosexuals in common law relationships but apparently they don’t have a strong lobby group. 

Trinity Western’s president, Bob Kuhn suggested the vote “can’t help but have a chilling effect on the freedom with which Christians, especially evangelical Christians, feel a part of the society.”

Trinity is not discriminating against a group of people, they are simply requiring that their student’s refrain from certain activities as long as they are students of the University.

However, the reaction demonstrates how lacking in tolerance are those who speak so loudly for tolerance.   They are saying “We require you to be tolerant of us, but we have no interest in extending tolerance to your beliefs.”

Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

Heaven is for Real

I wonder how Johnny Depp is feeling after his latest movie was left in the dust by a movie about a Wesleyan Pastor and his family?  “Heaven is for Real” opened in theatres this week in third place, which I think was a surprise to many. 

And people have asked me what I think about the story, which is the account of Pastor Todd Burpo and how he, along with his family and his church, deal with his three year old son’s vision of heaven. 

I’ve read the book and  have seen the movie and enjoyed them both.  Did I agree with everything, nope, but I often default to: In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.  

In the end, will “Heaven is for Real” damage the Kingdom or hinder the gospel?  It’s doubtful.  Will it bring people closer to Jesus?  Probably some and maybe others will meet Jesus because of a little boy’s story of what he saw when he was really sick. 

There are a lot of things in the book that are difficult to explain without a supernatural source and my theology doesn’t permit the dark one that type of power over an innocent child whose godly parents and their church family are covering him in prayer.

Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.