put our money where our mouth is...

The cover story in the magazine Christianity Today of December:

Scrooge Lives

was quite a contrast to their previous

Hunger Isn't History

published a month earlier. After reading these two articles online (Scrooge lives vs Hunger Isn't History) was a reminder to me of the importance of budgeting over just casual spending. I myself have recently tried to implement a budget into my life. Actually I had to do this when my spending output surpassed my financial earnings (I'm in grad school, this is not hard to do!). Consider this, the next time you feel like you have eaten to much or find yourself tempted to say the common phrase "I'm starving" when you have skipped one or two meals that day; consider that this reality exists for millions daily. For simply 30 dollars a day you can keep a child from hunger... so what's you reason to keep food from a child? Starbucks? Drinks with friends? Vacation?

Regression to the mean... and Francois Fenelon

In statistics regression to the mean is a mathematical inevitability. I feel in my life this same inevideable pull towards normalacy. Two underlying problems emerge when I attempt to coincide this with my faith. The first is that Christ calls us to a standard of holliness that is quite far from the "mean" of this world, but rather a radical outlier, a data point that is not even on the same graph. Second, I seem to be unable to resist the pull towards the mean. What is the solution to my problem?

There is none. Well, no procedure that fits into the exact formulas that we find in statistics. In statistics we need control variables, but in life these seem to be few and far between. Still, I attempt to derive insights from a radical outlier who came before me: Francois Fenelon (1651-1715 AD). Francois Fenelon was a prominent member of the court of Louis XIV and tutor for the duke of Burgundy. His defense of the Quietist movement (which stressed the complete detachment from the things of this world) led to his eventual denunciation by Pope Innocent XII and banishment from the king. I have chosen these excerpts from his work "Christian Perfection", where discusses the path towards a "spirit filled life."

Christian perfection is not so severe, tiresome, and constraning as we thing. It asks us to be God's from the bottom of our hearts. And since we thus are God's, everything that we do for him is easy. Those who are God's are always glad, when they are not divided, because they only want what God wants and want to do for him all that he wishes... What God asks of us is a will which is no longer divided between him and any creature.. which wants with out reserve whatever he wants, and which never wants under any pretext anything which he does not want... Happy are those who give themselves to God! They are delivered from their passions.... from the crule remorse attached to wicked pleasures and in the end from the eternal condemnation of God. So let us scorn earthly things, to be wholly God's. I am not saying that we should leave them absolutely, because when we are already living an honest and regulated life, we only need to change our heart's depth in loving, and shall do nearly the same things which we were doing. There would be this only difference, that instead of being devoured by ... our overbearing passions.. we shall act instead with the hope in God.

We must be born again, renounce ourselves hate hourselves, become a child, be poor in spirit, weep to be comforted, and not be of the world which is cursed because of its scandals. These truths frighten many peole and this is becayse they only know what religion exacts without knowing what it offer, and they ignore the spirit of love which makes everything easy.

But woe unto those weak and timid souls who are divided between God and their world! they want what they do not want. They are torn by passion and remorse at the same time... How dangerous it is for our salvation... to want always to stay where we are! Our whole life was only given us to advance us by great strides toward our heavenly country. The world escapes like a delusive shadow. eternity already advances to receive us. Why do we delay to advance while the light of the Father of mercies shines for us? Let us hasten to reach the kingdom of God. One commandment suffices to blow away in a moment all the excuses which we could make for having reservations from God: Thou shalt love the Lord they God with all they heart, with all thy soul, with all they mind, and with all they strength... He (God) suffers no division, and he allows us no longer to love outside of God except what God himself commands us to love for love of him. We must love only him not only with all the stretch and strength of our hearts, but also with all the concentration of our thought. How then could we believe that we love him if we cannot resolve to think on his law and to bend our energy to doing his will? Those who fear to see too clearly what this love asks fool themselves by thinking that they have this watchful and devoted love. There is only one way to love God: to take not a single step without him, and to follow with a brave heart wherever he leads. All those who live the Christian life, and yet would very much like to keep a little in with the world, run great risk of being among the lukewarm of whom it is said: they will be spewed out of the mouth of God.

(works taken from: Foster, R.J., Smith, J.B. (1993),Devotional Classics "Preparing for the Spiritual Life", New York, NY)

Do distractions keep me silent...

Andy Stanley talks about "living in the margins", which means being a Christian influence in whatever one is doing. While studying at the library today a student came up and asked me for my cell phone to call his friends for a ride. I thought it peculiar that he asked me as I was obviously not the first one on his path he could have asked. I agreed and as he left a message on the machine, I offered to give him a ride home if he did not have when I left. He came by in a half hour later with his ride, and thanked me as he smiled and then left. After he left, I immediately wished I had shared something about a God who loved and died for him, yet I did not feel any words from the Spirit.

Then I thought... well should I have any? While I in no way believe God works in an established equation (Bible + Prayer = predictable God), I couldn't help but wonder if by surrendering this week to Him I would have been prepared for that moment. two weeks ago I re-surrendered my walk to Christ, and the week following I began to pray and read his word. This is something I have neglected to do this past week. Why? Distractions of this world.... how numerous they have become. Why do I feel a pull in the unseen reality to keep me distracted so that I don't follow the Holy Sprits leading? I think a number of people who call themselves Christians in the Western World have this problem: movies, music, TV, relationships, friendships, work.... they all can be a distraction. Could this by why a number of those people have Undergraduate or Graduate Degrees and yet are infantile in their faith, not understanding the Christian world view, not thinking logically or apologetically, being unable to give a reason for this hope they have. I believe that these distractions can contribute to the missed opportunities to learn and share about our Savior. Lord, remind me that I am a pilgrims and not residents in this World. May I not be distracted by what it has to offer, but instead renew my mind on things above. Amen!

The art of Introspection...

It was Plato in his work "Dialogues, Apology Greek philosopher in Athens" (469 BC - 399 BC) who wrote about his mentors phrase “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Supposedly Socrates said that at his trial for heresy, for his ideas challenge the accepted beliefs of the time. His message, think for oneself. The idea of introspection is examining oneself, and discovering why we do the things we do (both in thought and action). As a Christian I must point out that while I start with introspection, I don't end there. I get understanding from myself, but not answers. Still, it is important to understand oneself. This includes preconceived biases and beliefs, predispositions and dislikes. The celebrated psychologist Carl Jung once said: “Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” It's often good to have our beliefs challenged, but as long as we seek to resolve those challenges. Here are a variety of questions that can help get you started (titles are listed above):

Sex/gender/sexual orientation
Is this something you embraced or struggled with.
Have you felt ostracized?
Did you siblings of opposite sex get treated differently as a child.
Do you feel you have adequate social support? How does your immediate family act to your choices in life? Do they reflect your families beliefs?

Socio economic level or Education
Did you feel that you had less opportunities that those around you.
Did you feel that education was highly valued in your family structure.
What is the education level of your parents?
Religion/spirituality
How much of an impact does your religion play in your daily activities/life?
Does your religion limit that you can date/marry?
Have you felt discriminated in a work or social setting because of your beliefs?
Have you felt threatened by any others whose religion is difference than yours?
Age
How does your age effect your sex life?
Have you ever felt victim to ageism?
Do you feel that western society has a greater appreciation for youth and beauty or age and wisdom.
Did you have a mid life crisis, and if so…how did it get flushed out.
Name a common misconception that you feel elders have with your generation
Political affiliation
Does your political affiliation coincide with your parents
Do people stereo type you based on your political affiliation
What are the stereotypes for your political beliefs.
Do you even follow politics?
Disability
Do you prefer the term disabled or handicap
What is word disability means to you
Is there a tendency for others to overly altruistic due to your disability
What is one myth that you would like to dispel about your condition.

Am I slave or am I master...

Lately I have found a number of things in my life I have not wanted to part with because they mean too much to me. This serves as a wake up call that I may be ripe for an enslaving destructive dependency… if left unchallenged, deception and denial will spread and blind my heart, and this deception will allow my addictions to gain their foothold. If the problem is unchecked, addictions can destroy my capacity for self control. So why do I engage in such behavior? Because it turn my lows into temporary highs, providing doses of relief that I control. All are ways that I find to relieve pain or helplessness or boredom.
The realty is that its promise of freedom is really a house of mirrors that traps me with little hope of escape, the effects are always self destructive. Of course I would quit if I could on my own, but I have become a slave to my own desires, and often I believe I deserve the relief and power my addiction provides.
Don’t get me wrong, the desire to feel good is not unhealthy, but having a belief that one needs relief “NOW” regardless is a trap leading to enslavement in a destructive dependency. When feeling good becomes more important to a person then doing good, loving others, or knowing God, they are drifting on the waves of the addicted. A need for relief does not have to drive us into arms of addiction. The question I need to ask myself is "am I willing to feel the inescapable pains and valleys in my life?" The alternative is committing to immediate relief and control. Ravi Zacharias reminds me that “All pleasure cost (something). For legitimate you pay the price before pleasure. For illegitimate you pay the price after pleasure.”

a spoonful a day keps the doctor away...

Why is it that people are willing to use Aspirin for Headache and birth control for decreasing one’s chances (97% to be exact) of impregnation , but when the idea of behavioral modification techniques or psychotherapy is introduced people resists stating they don’t want a part of that psycho stuff. Do they not realize that just as there body’s are chemically composed, so are their brains. More precisely, they have the limited ability to change the chemical compositions in their own brain, influencing their own perception and behavior. Scary to think one’s perception is actually formed by a serious of chemical substances interacting in a nero network of cells. Perhaps our perceptions then if subjective to external and internal stimuli aren’t as invulnerable as we might think.

Is your girl high matinance?

Is your girl high maintenance? From the article the top ten signs that your chick is a high maintenance girl:

1 - She's unfair.
2 - She's daddy's girl.
3 - Going out is like the countdown to eternity.
4 - Irrational demands.
5 - Bills.
6 - She doesn't do "dressed down".
7 - What does "sacrafice" mean?
8 - Difficult to please.
9 - Social brick.
10 - My way or the highway.