Me and the Kids

 

Like Father, Like Son - Intensity

This Side of 1984

I just finished reading Lesslie Newbigin's The Other Side of 1984. I plan on doing several posts on this essay. It has made a great impact on me. I found this essay on a bargain book table at Hearts and Minds (see the link. An awesome place to visit and shop online). Newbigin wrote this essay believing people would be evaluating the state of British society and comparing it to what George Orwell predicted what life in 1984 would be like. Newbigin spends the first part of the essay explaining and evaluating our modern culture. What I found fascinating about his analysis and critique of modernism, is how prophetic he is. He wrote this in 1983 and in my opinion I think he has put his finger on the pulse of American culture right now. Newbigin exposes the limitations of the modernist worldview. He explains how all the promises of the scientific method of being able to observe and verify reality while at the same time abandoning myths and stories has left people without hope.

He said, "In the subsequent years of ministry in England I have often been asked: "What is the greatest difficulty you face in moving from India to England?" I have always answered: "The disappearance of hope." I believe that everyone who has made the same move will bear me out. Even in the most squalid slums of Madras there was always the belief that things could be improved...In England, it is hard to find any such hope...For the elderly and the middle-aged there is, for the most part, only the hope of keeping reasonably comfortable amid the disintegration of so many of the familiar values. For very many of the young there is only the terrible spectre of nuclear war, with nothing beyond."

When I read this quote I was speechless. Newbigin articulated for me what I see here, people who live without hope. It's not only those who don't believe the Gospel, but those who align themselves with Jesus. The kids I work with, the couples I talk to are so filled with doubt and uncertainity. They live in stable homes and are a part of a safe community. They live a reasonable lifestyle. But, they are plagued by doubt and hopelessness. Even though they seem to have it all. The challenge is, how does the Resurrected Jesus call them to live out of a new framework, a new story? I hope to flesh more of this out in the next couple of posts.

The New One and Brother

See what good genes produce? Okay, let me clarify, it's my wife's good genes.

Bigger then myself

For those of you have been through the birthing process, you know what a surreal experience it is . Seeing Liesl come into this world snapped me out of my self-absorbed funk and helped me to see again that I am part of something larger than myself. I live in a world that I try to control, manufacture and conquer. Seeing the birth of my daughter reminded me again that everything is a gift. My wife and I couldn't control her health, when she would arrive or what she looks like. We don't know what her life will be like. We don't know what she will struggle with or be successful at. She will have to live her story before her Author.

For a moment I was a part of something bigger then me and it made me aware that the same God who has hand on my daughter's life, is the same God who has me firmly in his hands. I don't know where my path of life will go and the unique struggles and challenges I will face. I don't know if I will die of cancer or if I will live to be 103. But, St. Paul's words give me comfort and strength as I take on this life of uncertainty and chaos. "For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." (Romans 14:7-8)

Because I belong to Jesus via His death and resurrection, He has promised himself to me and I am free to move into others lives, to think about church in new ways and to love my family boldly.

Hi again! Wow! Life has been full of transitions. First, in the middle of October we bought our first house. Second, on November 3rd my wife gave birth to our 2nd child. Liesl Rose came into this world at 4:06 pm at 6 lbs. 7oz.. Mom and baby are well. I promise I will start blogging again soon.