Second Restoration

Just this last weekend I turned 27.  I know that does not seem old, and really it is not, however in my short lifetime it seems aged.  I am nearing my ten year high school reunion and we are about to have our second child, it seems a mile from when I graduated almost ten years ago.  Every birthday brings with it some retrospection and reflection of where I have been and where I am going, that seems only natural.  As I near 30, the where I am going seems to have more urgency as I look back on what I wanted to do and what I have not accomplished yet to this point.  This certainly wasn’t how I wrote it up, although parts have come together nicely, such as being married and having kids and purchasing a house by 25.  There are still pieces missing, empty feelings of failure and dissatisfaction.  Some of that seems to be a personal complex brewing, but some of it seems to be honest shortcomings.

There is part of me that knows that I should focus more on the things I do have and the amazing blessings I have been given, and I get that.  Also, I am mindful that Christ warns us against planning too far and focusing too much on the future, and I get that.  I just feel as if there is something more I am meant to do or be and can’t see how it all melds together.  Youth I suppose.  I am at a crossroads.  Do I accept the life I am currently living or do I take steps to shake things up and better life for those around me, even if it means some time of discomfort.

I have been looking into going back to school to get a Master’s of Divinity, with the idea to continue through to the Doctorate level and eventually teach at the University level.  Along with that end goal, I would be participating in ministry all along the way.  However, there are several things my family would have to give up along the way.  We would have to downsize our way of living, try to sell our house, move further away from family, and certainly become less financially stable and comfortable.  It would be an entire shift in our lifestyle.  The student loans would pile up beyond belief and be almost impossible to ever pay back, unless Obama passes his new student loan legislation, which you can take that however you would like.  Let’s not forget two young children two and under.  There are so many angles to this that they are overwhelming and it is easy to just stay put and be comfortable or at least more comfortable.

On the other side, should monetary comfort and a simpler life be the main factor?  Should closeness to family be the main factor?  Should fear and doubt be the main factor?  It would seem in all of this that God be the main factor.  Trying to find His answer in all of this has been the hardest part of it all.  There are so many principles and teachings that go both ways that is becomes hard to decipher.  The concept of giving it up for Him sounds wonderful and leading a life in service to Him and working for Him and His Church as my main focus everyday seems amazing.  It would seem to be what we all should do on the surface.  Then I am mindful we all serve different roles and is this my role, is it the role for my wife and our children, is it what we are meant to be doing.  Am I ready?  Will I ever really be ready?  Does the fear of public speaking keep me at bay or do I cope and deal with that as I once did in debate?  I am just laying this out here because I don’t have the answer, prayer is pulling me both ways as well.

There is what my family calls the ‘itch’ and maybe that has come to play.  The need for movement, change and new direction.  As my Dad said though, “Are you meant to scratch it?”…I don’t know.

I find it overly humorous and equally frustrating that both the rooted traditionalists and the progressive brethren in the churches are fearful and seem to have a disposition towards the Restoration Movement and the very mention of such movement.  I find in humor this common thread that does bind them together though they pull the church apart with their bickering.

Maybe it is the simplicity surrounding the movement, or maybe it is the consent and complacency to be at heart a denomination, I am unsure.  After all if their goal was to be simply Christian than what would they have to fear from each other, or to work with one another?  Or maybe, the movement calls out their baseless traditions and at the same time preaches simplicity and a common base that ruffles progressives who wish to extend their musical passions.

No matter the reason, unity suffers.  No matter the reason, the church suffers.  No matter the reason, Christ suffers.  So whether you need to lay your traditions at Jesus feet, or whether you need to lay your personal preferences at Jesus feet, until they are laid down neither is fully focused on the vision of Christ.  Let’s turn our focus to Christ, not our worship styles, our traditions, our in-fighting, even if we differ there is no excuse for not being able to be civilized and truly work towards Christ’s goal to be one in Christ.

Are we really one if we acknowledge we co-exist, but really never break bread together.  Whether you have a praise team, or you whole heartedly are against praise teams, whether you have a Christmas Play or you don’t have a Christmas Play….does this really mean you can’t talk to one another, that you can’t eat a meal together, does it even me you can’t worship together.  We disagree with those that live their lives in sin everyday, yet we are able to civilize ourselves to talk to them, why then can’t we find the time or means to talk to our fellow brothers?

As someone that has grown up in the “Church of Christ” I was taught and received an education in the Bible that by all accounts was amazing.  Lots of credit to my mom, dad and Bible Bowl.  I also have studied the Restoration Movement and understand what the goals and reasons for restoration were and how the “Church of Christ” came to be.  I believe earnestly in those goals and appeals and think there was a reason that they yielded such an important movement in Christianity.    But, do we care anymore?  Do you care how the churches around your region are doing?  Are you rooting for or against them?  Are they the joke in the room, or the dirty step child?  At least liberal and conservative churches do have something in common,  they equally isolate and criticize.

I have seen and heard, as I am sure you have, of individual quarrels that cross decades being a hindrence between neighboring congregations.  The obvious Biblical contradictions to this behaviour are infinite.  We are quick to label this church this and this church that.  Do we care about the Biblical principles we read and take seriously their action?

I write this, not simply to heap on criticism but to call on those that read this, though that stretch is not far, to shift direction.  Be more open, be more concerned, reach out, don’t focus on the differences but rather hone in on the focus of Christ.  No one wants to share in our civil wars or bickering, it brings no one to Christ and certainly does not give them an example of Christ in our lives or that of our Church.  There are reasons we no longer grow and it has nothing to do with this or that it has to do with our example of Christ.

Gathering of localities and churches started this movement and revivals allowed the simplicity of being a follower of Christ to show through.  We have mucked it up with our own traditionalism, progression, ego’s etc.  We must now turn around and restore what has always been there, Christ’s Church.

Health Insurance
We’ve forgotten two things in this country (listed in order of priority)

1) Life is precious. It is the most valuable thing we have, and we should be willing to do anything we can to protect it (don’t go all abortion on me here, although one could argue that this is one issue that has contributed to the devaluing of life). It’s expensive to maintain life, especially under circumstances when life is in jeopardy. At those times we should be thankful that there are options available, and realize that what we’re willing to pay for something is a measure of its worth to us.

2) We’ve gotten used to the idea of someone else paying for our health care. Do you see a list of services and costs at the doctor’s office? No, you don’t. Because you don’t care; someone else is paying for it.

The best way to reform the system is to make consumers responsible for their costs.

a) Expand availability and maximums for health care FSAs. Allow FSAs to be used to purchase insurance as well as pay for health care.

b) Remove employer mandates. This will inject competition into the insurance marketplace by encouraging consumers to purchase their own insurance at a cost known to them. Employers should be encouraged to add to employees’ salaries the cost of their share of whatever insurance they had provided to their employees to offset the cost of insurance.

c) Remove coverage mandates. This will allow consumers to purchase those products that they actually need. People could purchase catastrophic care insurance and pay for their own preventative care, or they could purchase a low-deductible full-service plan, or something in between.

d) Encourage cost to become part of the doctor/patient conversation. Providers should make cost information more available to their customers so they can make better-informed decisions.

e) Require a part of SS, Medicare, Disability, Welfare checks to be placed in an FSA allowing coverage to the millions that are not able to currently have coverage. If this requires an increase in the amount given it will still be cheaper than the other proposed methods.

f) Those having portions taken out of checks from point E, could be placed in a government handled or contracted FSA program allowing it to be well monitored and keeping with the requirement.

There is no need to punish those already receiving health care on their own or choosing not to carry health care simply to try and fix a much smaller sector of society. If you focus on that sector you can accomplish more than if you try and make a vague and sweeping legislation that will cost more and negatively effect others.

I was having a discussion the other day on the unity of the Churches of Christ and it is really ironically funny. We are a movement that grows out of the ‘essentials of salvation’, and we are all pretty much in agreement with those, ‘essentials’.  Yet we remain divided.  We are in unity in thought on the important aspects of the Bible and our salvation, yet we still are not unified.  How absurd.

When do we get over ourselves?  I am not favoring any positions, or on the sides of liberals or conservatives, but is it possible that Christians really could be just Christians.  These are the thoughts that moved the Restoration Movement and have escaped us today.  Maybe I find it hard to answer, ‘Where should I go to church?’, because I shouldn’t have to even answer that question.  I have heard the sides argue their positions, I have even been in the arguments, I once even chose a side (traditionalist).

I think relying on the ‘essentials’, embracing respect, and having an ability to have the Church not be about you really would go a long way in solving things.  Let’s be just Christians, rooted in the ‘essentials’, and learn to really love our brothers and sisters before ourselves.  Just because we have an opinion and we think we are right does not mean we NEED to always have our own way and voice it.  Unify in Christ, he demands it.

I constantly battle with this question because there are so many elements that go into the answer.  There is the spiritual element that moves me one way and then there is the human element that pushes me another.  Now I have discovered a parental element, but I am unsure to some degree what all that entails.

Should I go where I feel comfortable or should I attend where I can be of the greater use?  Should I go to the church in my community or if I feel more comfortable should I drive the extra ten minutes to go elsewhere?  Should I drive the extra if I am more needed nearby or should I stick with the church closest to me?

Let me know what you think….leave a comment below

We finally made it back home yesterday after 11 days of traveling.  We added a second destination last minute and ended up traveling to Western Illinois (Moline, Rock Island) to attend my Grandparents 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration.  There was time for just the wife and I, and then equal time spent seeing my extended family, which we had not seen in more than a year.  In the short time we were away from our son, it seems that he got smarter by the day and learned to make all kinds of new noises.  Anyway, that is a short summary of the past 11 days.

I give you that information to get to the main point, why we went to Illinois.  We decided with a couple days left up north to cut our trip short and pick up our son and drive the 7 hours to Illinois on a quick last minute decision.  We had already told most of the family we would not make it, because I was out of time off at work.  However, thanks to the kindness of our employers we were able to take a couple extra days and make the trip.  With failing health reports on my Grandfather and the seriousness of his condition we felt it was important to see him and for him to meet our son.  So we went.

It is hard to see someone struggling with an incurable disease, even harder when it is a member or your family, and harder yet when it is towards the end.  Emotions were mostly disguised or hidden most of the day, except some few moments towards the end, but they were still felt in the air.  The awkward silence, distance, and feeling of that person not quite being who they once were was enough to shift the mood of celebration to a mood of somberness.  Yet we all would not have missed it for the world.  Strange how things work out that way.

The hardest part, though I found in all of this, was watching the progress of a disease take down someone I care about, while knowing that it too is in the process of taking me down.  It was a glimpse into my future.  A wake up call, hopefully, for me to do the things I can do to avoid the speed at which it controls my life and tears down my body.

It is just another reminder, another person, that has been torn down by Diabetes for me to witness.  Still as humans we are resistant to change even when confronted with such vivid examples of why we should not do certain things.  I don’t know if it is a need to try it out our-self, even when we know the outcome, or if we simply subconsciously don’t think it will happen the same way to us.  I hope that this, the most painful and personal example, will be something that I can use to focus my energy and create a better outcome for myself and my family.

In a few short hours we will be leaving Camden, our five month old son, for the first extended time to go vacation in Northern Michigan.  For me and mostly Amber there will finally be an opportunity to sleep, but as expected, I am sure by tomorrow we will start missing him.  I will not be blogging as part of my relaxation and lack of a computer, and because I am sure the wife doesn’t want to see me staring at a screen while spending time with her.  So I will post again next Friday when I am back at work and in the swing of things.

Let me first preface this by saying I am very legalistic and analytical in nature.  The science behind things and the reasons why I do something are essential for me to make sense of my doing it.  Prayer is one of those funny things that does not fit nicely into the realm of logic.  I am praying to someone who already knows what I am thinking.  It would seem that I am repeating what God already knows.  So why do it?

Being so scientific in nature I struggle often with several issues of faith and the surreal nature of God and our being.  For some reason I have always ‘bought’ into prayer and have rarely questioned its importance in my life.  I guess I have always felt the necessity of its purpose in my life.  For me it was always easy to break down the science or logic behind it.

1. If I don’t communicate with someone closest to me then our relationship fizzles out. It is true with the humans around me and being human it results in my relationship with God.

2. Though God may know what I am thinking, prayer is reflective in helping me find what I am thinking in a manner that is focused on Him.

3. It sets up a discipline of time management for God. Much like Daniel in the Old Testament, it is a constant reminder of where I belong and who I belong too. It makes sure that my purpose does not get lost throughout my day.

4. There is no doubt in my mind that it has improved mine and improves others critical thinking skills in making decisions both large and small. The spirit will aid and guide, but we must be willing to take the time to reflect and lead.

5. Faith grows stronger through obedience, and also we must trust the way the Father has established communication is the best way in which to communicate. The Israelite’s didn’t always understand the reasons why they were doing certain things, but science has shown us through time that many of the commands were established based on health, welfare and spirituality. Prayer brings trust and obedience, and as studies have shown also greater health, longer life and happiness.

Prayer is an essential part of our Christian walk.  It is essential to those who have a faith driven by feeling and emotion and it is also essential to those that are driven by reason and logic.  There is a purpose for prayer in any one’s life.  Find the purpose for prayer.

I was filling out a questionnaire at work the other day on how I would like to be coached as an employee by a future manager, and I got to thinking about truth.  The word gets thrown around often and many people say that they wish for you to be honest.  But, as a society and often as a church we don’t.  We want to hear the truth when it doesn’t hurt and we want to tell the truth when it is safe to do so.  That isn’t very honest.

We all tip-toe around each other, trying to say the right things and actively worrying that we will either anger or offend someone around us.  I am not advocating that we be disrespectful, but whatever happened to telling things the way they are.  Reading documents of the past, I am alarmed at the approach that intellectual minds used when writing back and forth.  It was an approach that was up front and real, not shaded by political correctness.

In today’s church we implement this same societal policy to our conversations and writings.  Instead of being able to have open discussions on difference or doctrinal positions, we quietly discuss the issues when others are not around or tip-toe around them when they are.  Churches that once worked together, now separate themselves and work with those that they can feel comfortable with, without having such discussions.  Why have we made this about us?  Why has it become so emotionally personal?

We have let our culture and society interfere with our Christianity.  We see such problems handled the same way around us (race, sexual orientation, the list goes on and on) and we have adopted this as our way of handling the greatest gift we were ever given, the Kingdom of Christ.  Let’s get over ourselves and be truly honest even if it means brutally honest.  Let’s learn to take and examine at the grass roots level, not just simply at the academic level.