Like a Child | God as Father

Occasionally we ‘rerun’ a blog post. We are blessed to have a talented group of writers who are sensitive to the voice and heart of the Lord through the seasons of their lives. What they have to share is worth repeating! This is one such blog post. Enjoy!

It’s no accident that all four of the gospels begin with the revelation of God as a loving father to all of humanity. The exploration of the incarnate God, the journey of discovering Jesus, begins with the revelation of God as a father doting on his son.

The father child relationship is so important in my own personal life journey. The relationship I had with my father had a tremendous impact on my life. His emotional absence and the lack in our relationship has been a source of grief and great pain staining my belief about myself, and creating trauma that impacts the way I approach relationships with others. It interferes with the way I father, and opposes the way I even care for myself.

I know I’m not alone in this, so many people have been impacted by their relationships with their fathers, and yet that is the way God chose to reveal himself to humanity, and each gospel accounts this revealing of Jesus, his son. Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all describe the event of Jesus’ baptism. The first words we hear God speak in the New Testament are those of a doting father, who delights in his son. Imagine with me this moment: it’s been 400 years since God has spoken through the prophets, or revealed himself to his people. Suddenly, a prophet is revealed: some crazy man named John who wears camel skin and wanders the desert. He’s warning everyone to repent of their sins and turn to God.(Matt 3:2; Mark 3:4; Luke 3:7). 

God, in all his power, and all that holiness, and all that expectation, reveals himself during Jesus’ baptism as a loving father; one who is well pleased with his son. This is so vastly different than the voice booming on the mountain side, accompanied with thunder and lightning and fire and smoke.(Exodus 19:16-18).

I love the juxtaposition of these realities as expressed in John 1:17: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.” Jesus, he explains in John 1:12, gives us the right to become children of God. This really sets apart the work of Jesus as he brings another revelation of the heart of the father. God, as is even portrayed in the Old Testament, is full of mercy, generous, kind, and loving. He can be trusted, depended on. He is one who heals, who speaks kindly, who loves to show mercy, who is patient, and long suffering. He is one who waits expectantly with a ring and a robe to welcome us home. He is one who leaves the ninety-nine to pursue the one astray. He is a father, who is avidly pursuing our hearts. He deeply longs to be in a relationship with us, his children. He is a good father who loves us. Take a moment to listen to this YouTube playlist of songs while considering these truths. I pray these songs bless you and minister to your heart as you consider how much the Lord loves you today. You are his dearly loved child. Rest in that today.

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About the Author

Mike enjoys spending time with his wife and four kids. He loves Jesus, art, music, and poetry. He currently works as the Manager of Learning Technology Solutions for Los Angeles Pacific University and is passionate about adventuring outdoors.

Like a Child | God as Father

It’s no accident that all four of the gospels begin with the revelation of God as a loving father to all of humanity. The exploration of the incarnate God, the journey of discovering Jesus, begins with the revelation of God as a father doting on his son.

The father child relationship is so important in my own personal life journey. The relationship I had with my father had a tremendous impact on my life. His emotional absence and the lack in our relationship has been a source of grief and great pain staining my belief about myself, and creating trauma that impacts the way I approach relationships with others. It interferes with the way I father, and opposes the way I even care for myself.

I know I’m not alone in this, so many people have been impacted by their relationships with their fathers, and yet that is the way God chose to reveal himself to humanity, and each gospel accounts this revealing of Jesus, his son. Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all describe the event of Jesus’ baptism. The first words we hear God speak in the New Testament are those of a doting father, who delights in his son. Imagine with me this moment: it’s been 400 years since God has spoken through the prophets, or revealed himself to his people. Suddenly, a prophet is revealed: some crazy man named John who wears camel skin and wanders the desert. He’s warning everyone to repent of their sins and turn to God.(Matt 3:2; Mark 3:4; Luke 3:7). 

God, in all his power, and all that holiness, and all that expectation, reveals himself during Jesus’ baptism as a loving father; one who is well pleased with his son. This is so vastly different than the voice booming on the mountain side, accompanied with thunder and lightning and fire and smoke.(Exodus 19:16-18).

I love the juxtaposition of these realities as expressed in John 1:17: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.” Jesus, he explains in John 1:12, gives us the right to become children of God. This really sets apart the work of Jesus as he brings another revelation of the heart of the father. God, as is even portrayed in the Old Testament, is full of mercy, generous, kind, and loving. He can be trusted, depended on. He is one who heals, who speaks kindly, who loves to show mercy, who is patient, and long suffering. He is one who waits expectantly with a ring and a robe to welcome us home. He is one who leaves the ninety-nine to pursue the one astray. He is a father, who is avidly pursuing our hearts. He deeply longs to be in a relationship with us, his children. He is a good father who loves us. Take a moment to listen to this YouTube playlist of songs while considering these truths. I pray these songs bless you and minister to your heart as you consider how much the Lord loves you today. You are his dearly loved child. Rest in that today.

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About the Author

Mike enjoys spending time with his wife and four kids. He loves Jesus, art, music, and poetry. He currently works as the Manager of Learning Technology Solutions for Los Angeles Pacific University and is passionate about adventuring outdoors.

Like a Child | In Awe of God Playing Hide and Seek

“And Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of God.’” Matthew 18:3

When I think of what makes a child a child, a lot of different and sometimes very contradictory things come to mind. For example, a child can be incredibly sweet and endearing, but they can also be very selfish and mean. They can show great love and give you undivided attention, but then they can turn around, totally ignore you and act as if you don’t matter at all. They can be playful and light-hearted and then, in the flash of a second, can turn and be moody and depressive. 

So what was Jesus talking about when he said that to enter the kingdom of God, we must be like a child? Does he want us to be impetuous, unpredictable and lacking in self-control as children so often are? Or could it be simpler than that? Could it have less to do with our childlike personalities and more to do with his desire simply to be in a close, loving relationship with us, like a Father or a Mother? Maybe he wants to be for us like a good, good father who we recognize as our creator, our sustainer, our strength, our wisdom-giver… the one who loves us unconditionally? Does he simply want us to be dependent on him, like a little child is toward their good father or mother? I’m thinking this might be closer to the mark of what God is looking for.

Children generally love to play games, and an all-time favorite is Hide and Seek. It seems like sometimes God plays this game with us, his children. At times he seems to hide from us and other times he seeks us out. It seems we also try to hide from him at times and then at other times we seek him out. 

Even as adults we are invited in the same way to look for God and to find him in sometimes the most unusual circumstances of our lives. Here are three examples, two that happened to two friends of mine and one that just recently happened to me.

Our friend, Betsy, lost her teenage son to a motorcycle accident. Wracked with grief, she held fast to the Lord but struggled with depression and a sense of hopelessness. After her son’s funeral she took home the flowers that had been displayed at the Memorial Service. One was a kind of lily that usually only blooms in the Spring. But exactly on her son’ birthday in the Fall, the lily bloomed with one large, beautiful flower. And then, after that flower had faded away, the plant did not blossom again until exactly Easter morning and this time it had three beautiful flowers. Both of these bloomings held great symbolic meaning for Betsy, who received them as a message from God that she was loved, her grief was seen and that her son was safe now and with his Heavenly Father.

I have another friend who lost his wife about three years ago. In deep grief, he went about his days doing what he needed to do with work and with others in his family, but he missed his wife terribly. One day while walking downtown with his head lowered, he noticed a dime on the sidewalk. Without thinking much about it, he leaned down and picked it up. The next day he was walking again in another part of town and, looking down, saw another dime on the sidewalk! This was interesting. It was not a penny, a nickel or a quarter, but a dime. The next day the same thing happened…and this continued to happen daily for weeks. When he was telling me about this, he was absolutely convinced that these daily dimes were secret little messages from God, saying, “I see you. I love you. You’re going to be ok. Your wife is here with me and doing well” and expressing other sentiments like this. This was a grown, middle-aged, intelligent man with a successful business who was convinced that God was spreading dimes out for him to find across the city! To me this sounds like a childlike faith in a game of “God’s Hide and Seek”.

My story is a little bit similar. This last Thanksgiving, I realized I was heading down into a funk that happens often during the winter holidays. I know it was in large part due to missing my wife, but it had also been a seasonal occurrence for many years, even before I was married. I had a wonderful holiday with my kids and grandkids, but this funk was simmering in the depths of my soul. One day when I was feeling especially discouraged, I glanced at the clock and it read 1:11. I thought nothing of it. Later that day I glanced at the clock and it read 5:55.

The next day I looked up to find 3:33. Sometime the next day I saw 4:44. I went to bed early and woke up to see 11:11. The next day I thought I’d check my email and the phone opened to show me it was 2:22. This went on till after the New Year and it actually is still happening from time to time now.

I absolutely know how crazy this might seem to people, especially non-believers, but I was convinced after the third or fourth occurrence that God was shooting me a quick little reminder that he was with me, that things would get better and be ok, that my wife was with him and doing well. So every time I see the clock show a time like that, I just smile and say “Thank you, Lord!”

Just like a little child.

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About the Author

John lives in Pleasant Hill with his dog, Gunnar, and a multitude of guests who enjoy the peace and beauty of the Cascade foothills. With three children and three grandchildren all living in Oregon, he is continually blessed with their company and the good food that always accompanies their get-togethers!

In His Image | Connecting with God

Did our multiverse all start with a bang? Genesis 1 didn’t mention a loud noise, but one thing I know for sure - our Creator is my Heavenly Father. And for my Christian faith, that relationality means everything! We were created “in His image” and that produces divine and human connectivity - dynamic relationships with God and those around us.

Belief in general can be a bit flimsy, with so much we just don't yet know. Our conscious mind and earnest heart are constantly decoding our human experience as we attempt to make sense of ourselves and the world. How we do this definitely matters, because emotional bias can creep in and confuse our rational side.

In our constant quest as truth-seekers, I believe our efforts should center on our growing perception and relationship with Abba Father, and not as much on perfect scripture interpretation and liturgy. Jesus died to fulfill the law, and with that, our faith’s focus becomes the key. It’s not just faith, but faith in God.

As my former Faith Center Pastor Roy Hicks Jr. use to say, “It’s not religion, it’s relationship!”

So how can we focus on God the Father? And what about His Son? First let me say that in my opinion, our modern Christian experience tends to focus more on Jesus, and not so much on the Father (that can be ok - but I hope we’re not missing something). God is typically more the authority figure in our imagination, while Jesus is the compassionate friend who died for us. Does that make God seem less approachable?

Does He have a branding problem?

Well, maybe. In all our lives, authorities loom large. They likely have the most impact on us – for good and for bad. No doubt we have already assigned attributes (and made assumptions) about who God the Father is, taken from the sum-total of our experiences with our earthly authorities – again both good and bad.

Besides being created in God’s image, we share His spiritual DNA. 

We are not only connected, but we also share some attributes. Yes God is God, but doesn’t He practice the same fruits of the Spirit that we subscribe to? Let’s all imagine a perfect father/mother, with all the best traits. Now let’s rightfully assign those to our Heavenly Father.

And then we stumble.

In the midst of the idealizing in our minds, we remember times when we failed to experience those traits from our earthly authorities (now we’re cynical) or we’ve failed in some parenting attempts (we feel remorse and guilt).

But still we are connected. Like glue.

Those connections can be hard sometimes, but we can learn from them. And the better part is this: Our connections are useful comparisons, and they work in two directions. As we learn from God, we can be a better friend or a more in-tune spouse - and be more compassionate. And as we become better people, we can through each other, understand God more clearly and love Him more completely.

My favorite image of a good father comes from the bible’s prodigal son story. Daddy ran to his son and welcomed him with a kiss and embrace. He didn’t want his money back. He did not punish him. He wouldn’t even let him apologize! He just wanted his son in his life again. Is this our image of our God? It should be, and it certainly can be!

Maybe like the prodigal son, we just need to get past the trauma of running away, and now slow down and enjoy our moments with Him. Remind ourselves that Abba has our best human attributes too and to use what we share as talking points to get to know Him better. Reason with Him, ask questions and listen. And certainly, let Him be a part of our laughing and crying. And our adventuring. Be amazed at His creation and thank Him for it.

Get past fear. Put away shame. And calm our anxiety. Let’s lean into connectivity with Abba Father and be in relationship!

Luke 15:20-24 MSG
“When he was still a long way off, his father saw him. His heart pounding, he ran out, embraced him, and kissed him. The son started his speech: ‘Father, I’ve sinned against God, I’ve sinned before you; I don’t deserve to be called your son ever again.’

But the father wasn’t listening. He was calling to the servants, ‘Quick. Bring a clean set of clothes and dress him. Put the family ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Then get a prize-winning heifer and roast it. We’re going to feast! We’re going to have a wonderful time! My son is here - given up for dead and now alive! Given up for lost and now found!’ And they began to have a wonderful time.”

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About the Author

Terry is a man in constant motion to explore new horizons. He has a thirst for new places and faces, and a deep love for the natural world - with a weakness for waterfalls and sunsets. All of this venturing out helps to both ground and inspire him, because it opens him up to people, with their vast, collective array of experiences, outlooks and responses.

He finds all of this fascinating and sees that it has encouraged the growth of something crucial in his Christian development: empathy and compassion toward his brothers and sisters on this planet.

Rhema | Getting Real with God

Rhema

Rhema is a Greek word used throughout scripture to mean “spoken word.” The idea communicates a fresh word, resonating in your heart and spirit in a specific and meaningful way. We invite you to turn a listening ear to consider what The Holy Spirit is stirring in your spirit, mind and body this season.

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Hello my friend, I want to tell you that God is speaking to you. How does that make you feel? Anxious? Comforted? Or maybe as a long-time believer, you've heard it a million and one times. Maybe its effect has become too worn with age.

Perhaps you've discovered that God doesn't yell (except through pain and suffering). That was a joke (and likely you're nodding your head right now). Most of the time, his voice is soft and subtle, and unfortunately drowning in our constant distractions.

If this blog title "Rhema" seems foreign, it's because it's an ancient root word from the Greek, used by both Plato and Aristotle to describe sentence structure. It's seldom used today, but in our Christian heritage, it translates to "God's word spoken to you."

But hold on, there's a crucial distinction between past and present here. Our “historical” vs our "right now."

We believers are taught that God HAS spoken through the ancient texts of the bible. And our modern brand of Protestantism teaches us that he also speaks to us in REAL TIME. Our faith is not just a historical belief structure, but an ongoing relationship with two way communication. Jesus is the Word made flesh, and The Word of God is active and alive in the present.

That's amazing and life-changing, as it should be.

But what about when it's not? In other words, how do we get stuck, mired into something far less than God intended? If I may, let me describe this in two words - knowledge and revelation. An unintended consequence of our life-long church attendance is a kind of "social familiarity" with the Word of God, and with the accompanying language (Christianese, as we jokingly call it).

I know that idea may sound off-base, but hear me out.

Unfortunately our human nature dictates that familiarity breeds taking something for granted. Knowledge can get tucked away and unused, in our mental archives. Plus it's all too easy, as we hurry through our daily lives as simply doers, to just check things off our to-do lists (or those To-NOT-do Ten Commandments). Staying busy can be emotionally easier than personally relating to our Abba Father. You know, hiding behind our workaholism.

Knowledge is not the end-all.

We also need revelation. An earlier pastor of mine used to refer to a "quickening of the spirit." Like a sudden wake-up call, it usually happens for me WHEN I'm too busy. It could be a new idea (an "ah ha" moment), but mostly it's something I've been dealing with for quite some time, but now I suddenly get it.

But here's the thing: we MUST take the time to listen.

And for that we need to not just slow down, we need to stop. And sit at his feet. Truthfully, we don't have unlimited capacity to pay attention. The white noise chaos even seems to invade our sleep and our dreams. Spending quiet awake time with God helps clear the clutter and quiet the noise.

But it's not a formula, nor should it be. It requires dialog - talking and listening. And best of all, it produces an authenticity in our relationship with our Father God. And that's when it gets real!

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About the Author

Terry is a man in constant motion to explore new horizons. He has a thirst for new places and faces, and a deep love for the natural world - with a weakness for waterfalls and sunsets. All of this venturing out helps to both ground and inspire him, because it opens him up to people, with their vast, collective array of experiences, outlooks and responses.

He finds all of this fascinating and sees that it has encouraged the growth of something crucial in his Christian development: empathy and compassion toward his brothers and sisters on this planet.

Common Ground | Right or Relationship?

Several years ago I was struggling in my marriage. You know, the typical getting to know each other kind of stuff, when a relationship goes from romantic to real. We weren't seeing eye to eye, rather we were going nose to nose. I don't remember now what the hot topic was, but I certainly remember what a great friend of mine said to me later as I told him about the conflict. He said I had two choices in any argument. I could be "right,” or I could have relationship. Which one, he had the guts to ask, was more important to me?

I instantly knew he was right. And wise. But, I silently reasoned, couldn't I have both? Well ideally yes, but in this case, no, as my ego was bigger than my logic. Struggles between people are typically chalked up to "lack of communication,” and yes, that's mostly true. But good intention can so easily be drowned in the words, due to the lack of strong relationship in the first place. Or it can be absent altogether, buried under our baseless assumptions. One of my favorite quotes is: “A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices.” (And in my case, reiterating them).

We are taught from an early age that right is, well, RIGHT. Math either computes exactly or it's wrong and rendered useless. The scientific method requires earnest study, then an educated theory, then experiments to prove it wrong or right. In our biblical heritage, there is extremely high value, even if not always verbalized, in having right doctrine. We speak of being “right with God” with frightening consequences for the alternative.

In our current world, realizing a sense of common ground sometimes seems like a quaint notion reserved for pacifists, or a weak option if we feel like being nice to people. In reality, I would submit that it’s absolutely essential for any of us to not only get along, but to excel as individuals and as human team members.

Why? Because we ARE all relational. We were created that way. Every last one of us. And every good work in every facet of our human experience is in some way affected by, involves, or benefits others.

So should we devalue or even toss out our strong and long-held convictions, for the sake of agreement? Should we avoid honest conversations at all costs? Absolutely not. But here are a few things that help me navigate the thorny patch of words and people:

1. I should always be seeking a more “perfect truth”. I see through the glass dimly, and I always want to see more clearly. It’s okay to not have all the answers yet, and my view is typically tainted by incomplete information (emotional assumptions).

2. People, even those I disagree with, are way more important than my arguments. I will never influence anyone in a positive way, without already having a relationship with them. That comes first. Mutual respect comes next.

3. I have way more in common with others than I have differences, and we are frequently desiring the same good outcomes. “Us vs. Them” tribalism has to go. Can I work with others for a common good even while disagreeing with them?

I realize that I act, by nature, like a myopic mule with blinders on. But I desperately need others’ perspectives, fueled by their personal stories to complete my big picture. And empathy - borrowing others’ glasses to peer into their world - is a powerful key that unlocks it all.

It’s a win/win - righteous relationship!

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About the Author

Terry is a man in constant motion to explore new horizons. He has a thirst for new places and faces, and a deep love for the natural world - with a weakness for waterfalls and sunsets. All of this venturing out helps to both ground and inspire him, because it opens him up to people, with their vast, collective array of experiences, outlooks and responses.

He finds all of this fascinating and sees that it has encouraged the growth of something crucial in his Christian development: empathy and compassion toward his brothers and sisters on this planet.

Oneness | The Trinity: A Surprisingly Practical Doctrine for These Times

The night before Jesus was crucified, killed in part because of political and religious corruption, he prayed that his beloved disciples, his friends, would “become completely one.”

John 17:20-24
“I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”

Knowing he was about to suffer tremendously and die, Jesus prayed for his followers to be unified, in the same way that Jesus is unified with the One he called “Father.”

So, how does it work? How does it work that Jesus is God and that God is the Holy Spirit? My high school youth director said to think of it like water, ice, and steam: the same chemical in different forms. But ice and water and steam can all exist separately from one another, where Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit are one single divine nature. It’s all a little much, a little complicated, especially in a world in which animated pictures have become a stand-in for communication and many of us (raises hand) think that reading the headline gives us all the information we need.

But in addition to Jesus praying that we would act like this unified divine being, we’re also made in the image of a Trinitarian God, so it’s probably something we ought to pay attention to. Because we’re not just going through the motions, it’s the very nature of who we are.

God is many things, but at the core, God is love. Out of love, God created the world. Out of love, God sent Jesus to redeem us. Out of love, God offers the opportunity for reconciliation, rather than condemnation. God’s love is so expansive that worlds, planets, stars, the sun, the moon, all of life flows out of, into, and through God. God’s love is life creating, life sustaining, and life saving. Our first job as followers of Christ is to love God. Our second, to love one another. Jesus says that “everyone will know you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

I think it’s important to note that God doesn’t love human creatures exclusively. The scriptures are full of references and stories about God’s love for all creation. Psalm 104, for instance, praises God for the majesty and care of creation, describing in loving detail how God gives every animal a drink of water, provides shelter for birds, gladdens human hearts, and provides plants for humans and animals alike to eat. The earth is full of God’s creatures, and God loves this very good world. St. Francis of Assisi is one of our spiritual parents who reminded us of this again and again.

But we’re the only creatures made in God’s image, so what does that mean for us?

The Trinitarian nature of God is intimacy and relationship. German theologian Jürgen Moltmann says that the Trinitarian nature of God demonstrates “the process of most perfect and intense empathy….The Persons of the Trinity make one another shine through that glory, mutually and together. They glow into perfect form through one another and awake to perfected beauty in one another” (The Trinity and the Kingdom). This is the Imago Dei in us. This is the way of being to which we can aspire. And no part of our life is exempt. Every relationship, every interaction, is and ought to be indwelled with this spirit.

This is a radical way to look at the world: motivated and sustained by the love of Christ, we share the good news that old ways of living, being, and relating have been replaced by the reconciliation of all creation to the Creator. Our calling, then, is reconciliation, returning and leading others to a life in Christ that is communal, just, and interdependent by its very nature.

And when we get this representation wrong, we really get it wrong. Every violent abuse of power and every bullying act is a mutilation of God’s image. It violates the stewardship with which we have been entrusted by the Creator who lovingly crafted and righteously cares for this world.

One way in which the early church Fathers described the Trinity was the word perichoresis, a Greek word meaning things like: to make room for, to go forward, to contain, rotation, around. It describes an intimate indwelling, a deep and fluctuating connection, mutual submission, shared love and breath and purpose and experience. A communal dance of connection between God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Our most trusted and intimate relationships are a dim reflection of the Holy Trinity, and yet we are called to pursue that same oneness. Just before He prays, Jesus tells his disciples to love one another, to abide in Jesus: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. ‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.’” John 15:9-13

What does it mean to pursue intimacy in an age of emojis? What does it mean to live in mutual submission to one another in a country where independence and individual freedom is the highest prize? What does it mean to dwell with one another in our economy? The questions of the Trinity aren’t simply mysterious and theoretical, they’re deeply practical ones with long-reaching, beautiful potential. Brazilian theologian Leonoardo Boff says:

“We need to go beyond the understanding of Trinity as logical mystery and see it as saving mystery. The Trinity has to do with the lives of each of us, our daily experiences, our struggles to follow our conscience, our love and joy, our bearing the sufferings of the world and the tragedies of human existence; it also has to do with the struggle against social injustice, with efforts at building a more human form of society, with the sacrifices and martyrdoms that these endeavors so often bring. If we fail to include the Trinity in our personal and social odyssey, we shall have failed to show the saving mystery, failed in evangelization...We are not condemned to live alone, cut off from one another: we are called to live together and to enter into the communion of the Trinity. Society is not ultimately set in its unjust and unequal relationships, but summoned to transform itself in the light of the open and egalitarian relationships that obtain in the community of the Trinity, the goal of social and historical progress. If the Trinity is good news, then it is so particularly for the oppressed and those condemned to solitude.” Trinity and Society

How can I contribute to a world that presses into the Kingdom? How can we, as a church, resist the impulse to build walls, cut connections, decide who is “in” and who is “out”? How can we submit to one another, abide in and with one another, and become truly “one”?

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About the Author

Sarah is the author of Vegangelical: How Caring for Animals Can Shape Your Faith (Zondervan, 2016) and Animals Are Not Ours (No, Really, They’re Not): An Evangelical Animal Liberation Theology (Cascade Books, 2016). She spends her days working for CreatureKind, helping Christians put their faith into action. She lives in Eugene with her husband, son, and animal companions and enjoys action movies, black coffee, the daily crossword, and dreaming of her next international journey.

The Advent of Revolution | Revolution of Love

Jesus started a revolution, but not in any kind of political sense. He came to challenge the way we relate and respond to God and how we live with each other. Our motivations and methods were all wrong.

Any kind of rebellion, religious or otherwise, was a hot button for this non-conformist growing up (under the surface anyway). Family and religious adherence, of course, was the thing. There really wasn't much grey area between "compliant" and "rebellious".

We live in a world of rules, I was told, and much of my early Christian experience was about the 10 Commandments, where rebelliousness brought consequences. And all too often compliance was a social currency, where the guilt was heavy and the reward for good behavior was at best, a dose of relief.

I was a child in the 1960s and 70s. Out my cultural window, so many kids older than me were actively and even violently rebelling from long-held social norms and because of that, breaking from their parents too.

In my teen years, even my Christian experience was starting to simmer on the social stove. My family's church was conservative and stale. Then a new church sprang up across town in a converted school, and although it was filled with beards and long hair, Faith Center had a dynamic pastor and an energetic, fresh culture of love and grace. And they embraced the Holy Spirit.

As with the outside cultural revolution, this spiritual movement was birthed and travelled by young people. Me and my sister’s exodus started by attending a bible study in a packed out home nearby: 25+ wide-eyed hippies loving Jesus. Seeing young people passionate about God perplexed my parents. And they were curious, so instead of fighting any of this gentle rebellion, a funny thing happened. My conservative parents were swept into it as well.

Soon the Sheldon family six were literally sneaking away from our old church to this new one - double services on Sunday morning. It was surprising to me and doing this as a family made me a bit peeved because my parents were infringing on our teenage cool. This was not their crowd and not their rebellion. It was ours!

That experience started a lifetime shift in me from rules to grace, from theology to love. I started to see and experience the relational aspect of my Heavenly Father and eventually saw WHY that was essential. Sure, the Law is important, scripture makes that clear. But Moses brought the tablets down as a last resort for a rampantly corrupt and marooned generation. The God/Man/Woman relationship was horribly broken and the way back was unclear.

Yes, consequences are motivators and so is guilt and fear. But to what end? All of it has little to do with relationship, the whole reason for redemption in the first place - and the ultimate endgame. If we build our lives on those negative motivators, we don't sustain long term compliance. And we are left STILL alone.

Jesus didn’t pass an edict, but like a caring physician, he made a house call. He was revolutionary, but mostly, relational! He personally showed, in word and deed, the Father’s never-ending love. But he didn’t just make himself a martyr - it was not merely symbolic. He walked and talked and fished and certainly joked and cried and sang and hugged his family, friends and even strangers along the way.

Now in our modern day, he teaches us how to love and to be loved - the ONLY formula for emotional healing, correcting destructive behavior and reconnecting our vital relationships. Desiring long-lasting, loving connections is a universal human trait. Without that, we truly are powerless to change.

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About the Author

Terry is a man in constant motion to explore new horizons. He has a thirst for new places and faces, and a deep love for the natural world - with a weakness for waterfalls and sunsets. All of this venturing out helps to both ground and inspire him, because it opens him up to people, with their vast, collective array of experiences, outlooks and responses.

He finds all of this fascinating and sees that it has encouraged the growth of something crucial in his Christian development: empathy and compassion toward his brothers and sisters on this planet.

Adventuring with God | It’s Who You Meet

Ephesians 1:15-16
“For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.”

“It’s not where you go. It’s who you meet along the way.” This quote is on a piece of Wizard of Oz-inspired art I acquired (we teachers have ways of acquiring such random things), and as far as I can tell from the internet, it seems to have been said by the Tin Woodman. For a character whose goal is to acquire a heart, this shows how much of a heart he already has...and wisdom, too.

My whole life has been about adventuring with God. From my childhood, I wanted to travel the world, doing His work wherever He took me. I hoped my life would be an epic journey, like the stories featuring heroes of the faith and other literature I grew up on. On this journey, I would have adventures near and far, see amazing sights, and soak up cultures around me.

I have been incredibly blessed in this way, it’s true. But I’ve learned something: it’s the people I meet along the way, or who journey with me, who make the difference. They not only give me a piece of themselves, they help me know myself better. And best yet; they help me know God more.

Just as Frodo had Sam in the Lord of the Rings books, and Paul had Barnabas (and others) in the Book of Acts, we need each other in this great adventure of life. Barnabas’ name literally means “encourager.” He certainly did this, walking alongside Paul as they traveled to share the Good News. I’ve been blessed with close friends in this way, from peers to coworkers overseas and others who have walked with me during difficult times and adventures. Other times, God has been my only companion. Those have been precious times, too, as I’ve gotten to know Him (and myself) better. And there have been the people I’ve met in this adventure of life, who have encouraged me and made me a better person. There are too many to recount them, but I’ll share one with you that is on my heart right now.

I was home in the States for the summer between my two school years teaching in a country in South/Central Asia. I had sent a message to the director of the summer camp I had worked at as a young adult. There, my camp nickname was Jungle, because I wanted to serve God in Latin America (much of which has tropical rainforest). In my message, I said I had time to help out at camp in any way I could. The director wrote me back, inviting me to join them on Lake Day during high school camp, where the staff and kids would hang out at a lake and he could spend some time catching up with me. But he didn’t stop there. He invited a young camp staff member to join us. Her camp name was Adventure. It fit her well! The silly fun camp person in him was excited— “Let me take a photo of this moment in history when Jungle meets Adventure!” But that wasn’t the main reason he introduced us.

Adventure (I won’t use her real name here for reasons that will become clear) had it on her heart to go someday to Central Asia and help people there. The director brought us together so I could share with her my experiences there and encourage her. I greatly enjoyed this. We became Facebook friends, and I kept up with her a little here and there. A few years later, tragedy hit. Her brother was in a car accident, and eventually died. It was heartbreaking. But Adventure didn’t let her heart grow cold because of it. She kept herself open, sharing her heartbreak with others so they could support her, and sharing it with God so he could heal her and keep her heart tender toward others. I learned a lot from watching her go through this tragedy. I’d like to say as an older person that I mentored her or encouraged her somehow, but really it was me who was blessed by this. Since then, I’ve gotten to meet up with her for coffee, and hear her heart to encourage others and share hope with them.

As I write this, she is on her way to the country that has been on her heart in Central Asia. She is taking with her a small team of a couple close friends, and they have plans to share hope and encouragement with people there. They may have landed by now, after a layover in Europe. I am on her prayer team. By the time you read this, she will probably be back in the States. But I hope you will join me in praying for her presence to impact the people there long after she is gone. It certainly has impacted mine.

Ephesians 1:15-16 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.”

May we remember to thank God for all the people He’s put in our path, and pray for them, wherever they are at in their faith journey. Many thanks to the faithful friends and relatives who have been praying for me and my journey, and to God, who has led me on an amazing adventure.

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About the Author

Jessie is an educator, currently in the role of academic advisor at a charter school after teaching there and overseas. She is also a novice writer, with several books in various stages and a (long-neglected) blog about the journeys of women. She is very excited to join the CitySalt blog team. She has been blessed by a few communities of Christian writers that have encouraged her dream. She lives with her trusty sidekick cat, Arwen in the foothills of South Eugene, where she can go hiking within minutes of the sun coming out from behind the clouds.