“Instead of burning a guy at the stake, what about burning him at the STILTS? It probably lasts longer, plus it moves around.”
In other news, John and Ang put their house on the market 5 days ago. They have a showing tonight which makes 2 in 5 days. Not bad, for a cooling Calgary market. Now we just need an offer!!!
John
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Now that's a prayer!
This 500 year old prayer is one of my all time fave's. May it inspire you to greater things.
Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little, when we arrived safely because we sailed too close to the shore.
Disturb us, Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; Having fallen in love with life, we have ceased to dream of eternity and in our efforts to build a new earth,we have allowed our vision of the new Heaven to dim.
Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery; where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars.
We ask You to push back the horizons of our hopes; And to push us into the future in strength, courage, hope, and love.
- Sir Francis Drake
Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little, when we arrived safely because we sailed too close to the shore.
Disturb us, Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; Having fallen in love with life, we have ceased to dream of eternity and in our efforts to build a new earth,we have allowed our vision of the new Heaven to dim.
Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery; where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars.
We ask You to push back the horizons of our hopes; And to push us into the future in strength, courage, hope, and love.
- Sir Francis Drake
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Prayer as superstition
Beyond lucky underwear and ladders, most Christians wouldn't admit to being overly supersticious. It's in the realm of witches and goblins and Harry Potter. That being said, I think we're a more supersticious lot then we don't give ourselves credit for. Especially with prayer.
Ask most to define prayer and they'll say something to the effect of "talking to God." The liberal may say "talking WITH God." Either way, conversation is implied. The problem is, most of our conversation to/with God is done via 911. For example:
"Help me God *puke puke* Oh God please *puke* I promise *puke* I won't ever *puke* do *puke* that *puke* again. Thank you Jesus. *wipe face* Thank you God"
"Please God, help me pass that test tomorrow."
"Dear God, I know I haven't talked to you in awhile but I really need you now. Everything's falling apart. Please God, please Jesus, help me now."
"God, please help my house to sell. My family and I are planning to travel the world and have already booked tickets and accomadations."
Sound familiar?
The problem with these prayers is they're it. Our entire conversation to/with God. Instead of communing with the divine we ingest a lucky charm (they're magically delicious). Weeks, even months go by, meanwhile, we live our lives not giving God a second thought until. . .TRAGEDY STRIKES. Stress becomes too much. Or most often, our moral failings catch up with us and we're forced to deal.
Here's the harsh reality. If we only pray when we're in trouble, we don't want God, we want magic which is why we resort to superstition; closing of eyes, bowing of head, bowing of knee (optional) and mumbling of words to an unknown being. How must this seem to God?
Here's a challenge for us all. Go one week without calling 911. Only talk to God to become more like him or to thank him for allowing you to live in a country free of cyclones and earthquakes. If you're feeling especially eager, pray on behalf of the hundreds of thousands who've lost their lives and the millions who feel like they have. Try it and see what happens. You'll either realize how superstious you really are or you'll be relieved to know you actually care.
John
Ask most to define prayer and they'll say something to the effect of "talking to God." The liberal may say "talking WITH God." Either way, conversation is implied. The problem is, most of our conversation to/with God is done via 911. For example:
"Help me God *puke puke* Oh God please *puke* I promise *puke* I won't ever *puke* do *puke* that *puke* again. Thank you Jesus. *wipe face* Thank you God"
"Please God, help me pass that test tomorrow."
"Dear God, I know I haven't talked to you in awhile but I really need you now. Everything's falling apart. Please God, please Jesus, help me now."
"God, please help my house to sell. My family and I are planning to travel the world and have already booked tickets and accomadations."
Sound familiar?
The problem with these prayers is they're it. Our entire conversation to/with God. Instead of communing with the divine we ingest a lucky charm (they're magically delicious). Weeks, even months go by, meanwhile, we live our lives not giving God a second thought until. . .TRAGEDY STRIKES. Stress becomes too much. Or most often, our moral failings catch up with us and we're forced to deal.
Here's the harsh reality. If we only pray when we're in trouble, we don't want God, we want magic which is why we resort to superstition; closing of eyes, bowing of head, bowing of knee (optional) and mumbling of words to an unknown being. How must this seem to God?
Here's a challenge for us all. Go one week without calling 911. Only talk to God to become more like him or to thank him for allowing you to live in a country free of cyclones and earthquakes. If you're feeling especially eager, pray on behalf of the hundreds of thousands who've lost their lives and the millions who feel like they have. Try it and see what happens. You'll either realize how superstious you really are or you'll be relieved to know you actually care.
John
Friday, May 09, 2008
Junta
I awoke this morning to 6 inches of snow. It's May 9 so that's cool. I thought about complaining but then I remembered my "smack with a newspaper" comment from the previous post so I said nothing. I also awoke to discover the Junta Military in Myanmar has seized the latest food shipment, confiscating it from the UN. That's right, seized. This is the worst example of "biting the hand that feeds you" I have heard of. In the UN's words, "the food is now sitting on the tarmac doing no good." The food was destined to feed 95,000 people.
I barely even know what to say. What military regime is so twisted that it would deny life saving food and medical supplies to thier own countrymen all because "they're wary of outsiders"? The Junta have behaved appalingly and should be ashamed. Part of me wonders when it becomes time for outside interferance, although in saying this, I realize the implications and the thousand cans of worms it would open. For instance, many would argue the U.S. "interfered" in Iraq and look where that's gotten us. At the same time, the Allies "interfered" in Nazi Germany and virtually all would feel good about that.
Bottom Line: Injustice sucks huge.
John
I barely even know what to say. What military regime is so twisted that it would deny life saving food and medical supplies to thier own countrymen all because "they're wary of outsiders"? The Junta have behaved appalingly and should be ashamed. Part of me wonders when it becomes time for outside interferance, although in saying this, I realize the implications and the thousand cans of worms it would open. For instance, many would argue the U.S. "interfered" in Iraq and look where that's gotten us. At the same time, the Allies "interfered" in Nazi Germany and virtually all would feel good about that.
Bottom Line: Injustice sucks huge.
John
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Myanmar. "A la la la"
The first estimate was in the thousands. And then the tens of thousands. Now. . .100,000. Some experts believe the losses could rival The Tsunami from 4 years ago. I can scarce believe it. The storm, the loss of life, the pride of the Junta. Dozens die every hour yet only now are relief planes "allowed" to bring hope. I can't imagine being a Burma resident and knowing the only reason my ailing infant will never get better is because my government is "skeptical and wary of outsiders." The frustration, anger, grief and despair has got to be choking the hope right out these people. Many are probably wondering where God is. He's stuck at the border, that's where.
It's difficult for North Americans to know what to do in these situations so usually we avoid these kind of things. I can't tell you how many people I know who actually refuse to read the paper or watch the news because they don't want to be constantly reminded of "depressing things like this." Amazingly, when these same people experience tragedies of their own no amount of Emails, Facebooks, Blogs or Bulletins could cover their hardships enough. I don't mean to be harsh here, I just don't think closing our eyes, plugging our ears and repeating "a la la la" is what God's Kingdom Bearers are called to do. I think we're called to more.
Here's some of the more:
Prayer is usally option #2 after "a la la la" and it's a good option. We can ask God to soften the hearts of the Junta. We can ask God to blow open the Burma borders so salvation can roll on in. We can ask God to stop the disease from spreading. We can ask God to comfort the heartbroken and bring hope to those in despair. We can even ask God to soften our own hearts so we're available to be his hands and feet.
We can send money. Many organizations, including World Vision, are right now accepting donations. Millions of pounds of food, water, medical supplies and clothing will need to be purchased. You can get involved by helping with that purchase.
Perhaps most importantly, we can live grateful lives. Next time you or anyone you know complains about the "stupid weather" you have my permission to smack them with a newspaper and then tell them to read the front page. Oh the things we complain about in Eden.
Most of you who read this thing live in Calgary or Regina, which means you are living in two of the richest cities in North America. Live grateful lives!. And for God sake, don't plug your ears. Educate yourselves, stay in the know. How can you care if you don't?
John
P.S. You may remember Kori and Lisa went to Myanmar just a few months back. Go here to relive their favorite place. And actually, Kori just penned his own reflections on this tragedy so make sure you check them out. As usual they are thought provoking.
It's difficult for North Americans to know what to do in these situations so usually we avoid these kind of things. I can't tell you how many people I know who actually refuse to read the paper or watch the news because they don't want to be constantly reminded of "depressing things like this." Amazingly, when these same people experience tragedies of their own no amount of Emails, Facebooks, Blogs or Bulletins could cover their hardships enough. I don't mean to be harsh here, I just don't think closing our eyes, plugging our ears and repeating "a la la la" is what God's Kingdom Bearers are called to do. I think we're called to more.
Here's some of the more:
Prayer is usally option #2 after "a la la la" and it's a good option. We can ask God to soften the hearts of the Junta. We can ask God to blow open the Burma borders so salvation can roll on in. We can ask God to stop the disease from spreading. We can ask God to comfort the heartbroken and bring hope to those in despair. We can even ask God to soften our own hearts so we're available to be his hands and feet.
We can send money. Many organizations, including World Vision, are right now accepting donations. Millions of pounds of food, water, medical supplies and clothing will need to be purchased. You can get involved by helping with that purchase.
Perhaps most importantly, we can live grateful lives. Next time you or anyone you know complains about the "stupid weather" you have my permission to smack them with a newspaper and then tell them to read the front page. Oh the things we complain about in Eden.
Most of you who read this thing live in Calgary or Regina, which means you are living in two of the richest cities in North America. Live grateful lives!. And for God sake, don't plug your ears. Educate yourselves, stay in the know. How can you care if you don't?
John
P.S. You may remember Kori and Lisa went to Myanmar just a few months back. Go here to relive their favorite place. And actually, Kori just penned his own reflections on this tragedy so make sure you check them out. As usual they are thought provoking.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Living our lives
In the excellent movie Stranger than Fiction, the main character, one Harold Crick, lives his life on a watch. At no point in the movie does Harold attempt to live outside his watch or buck societal norms by refusing to board it's conveyer belt. Harold is content to ride the belt, doing the same thing every day, and never pauses to ask "is this really the life I want to live? "
The first time I watched this movie, my heart pounded. While I share very little in common with Harold, as I watched, I realized that I too boarded the same conveyer belt. . .and it scared the hell out of me. I have watched the movie 3-4 times since and each time the pounding returned, as if my heart was trying to tell me something.
It's funny how easy it is to ignore one's heart. For years mine pounded but I listened to conventional wisdom instead. In many ways, coventional wisdom is little more then "security salesmen hocking fear at the cost of our lives." I have written about this before so I will swiftly move on but it's worth noting again as it explains this.
2 months ago we got off. No more belt riding for the Closes. In an act of pure insanity we decided that we would puruse our dreams instead. As long as we can remember we've wanted to travel the world, experiencing other culture's worldviews and beauty. Like most people, our dream was constructed in a pipe, and like most, we never inhaled. Let me tell you, that first drag was amazing. We were dizzy for days. "We're gonna travel the world?!??!?!?!?" I remember wondering "are we even allowed?" Indeed. Conventional wisdom had done its work.
Since then, we've had our heads buried in travel books, maps and monitors. Apparently the world's a big place. A full year's devotion to its exploration only allows the speediest of travelers a brief peek. It's been a mixture of pain and exhilaration saying yes to some destinations and no to others. Just recently we decided the $1500 wasn't worth it to see Paris for 3 days, especially when, for the same money, we could live in Laos for a month. Pain and exhilaration. We've also ruled out South America, Eastern Europe, Africa minus Egypt, Australia, Japan, and New Zealand to name a few.
That being said, we have said yes to some including England, France, Spain, Italy and Austria this Fall and Egypt, China, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Borneo and Myanmar in 2009. Yes, the same Myanmar in the news right now.
We will spend about 40% of our time volunteering, helping people on their organic farms in Europe and teaching English in Asia. We will school our kids on the road giving them an education that will hopefully change them, and us, for life.
We have 4 months so a lot more planning is still to come but that's the big picture anyways.
We fly out September 20. At this point, we don't have a targeted date for return. One of the things we wish to do is open ourselves up to God and see what he shows us. Perhaps we'll come across a need and wish to stay longer or more permanent. Perhaps not. Either way, we expect this year to change our lives, at the very least forever eliminate life on a conveyer belt.
We'd LOVE for you to join us along our journey, even for a week. Truly, we already have people who are planning on doing just that and we'd love to add your names to the list. Let's experience Planet Earth together!
John and Ang
The first time I watched this movie, my heart pounded. While I share very little in common with Harold, as I watched, I realized that I too boarded the same conveyer belt. . .and it scared the hell out of me. I have watched the movie 3-4 times since and each time the pounding returned, as if my heart was trying to tell me something.
It's funny how easy it is to ignore one's heart. For years mine pounded but I listened to conventional wisdom instead. In many ways, coventional wisdom is little more then "security salesmen hocking fear at the cost of our lives." I have written about this before so I will swiftly move on but it's worth noting again as it explains this.
2 months ago we got off. No more belt riding for the Closes. In an act of pure insanity we decided that we would puruse our dreams instead. As long as we can remember we've wanted to travel the world, experiencing other culture's worldviews and beauty. Like most people, our dream was constructed in a pipe, and like most, we never inhaled. Let me tell you, that first drag was amazing. We were dizzy for days. "We're gonna travel the world?!??!?!?!?" I remember wondering "are we even allowed?" Indeed. Conventional wisdom had done its work.
Since then, we've had our heads buried in travel books, maps and monitors. Apparently the world's a big place. A full year's devotion to its exploration only allows the speediest of travelers a brief peek. It's been a mixture of pain and exhilaration saying yes to some destinations and no to others. Just recently we decided the $1500 wasn't worth it to see Paris for 3 days, especially when, for the same money, we could live in Laos for a month. Pain and exhilaration. We've also ruled out South America, Eastern Europe, Africa minus Egypt, Australia, Japan, and New Zealand to name a few.
That being said, we have said yes to some including England, France, Spain, Italy and Austria this Fall and Egypt, China, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Borneo and Myanmar in 2009. Yes, the same Myanmar in the news right now.
We will spend about 40% of our time volunteering, helping people on their organic farms in Europe and teaching English in Asia. We will school our kids on the road giving them an education that will hopefully change them, and us, for life.
We have 4 months so a lot more planning is still to come but that's the big picture anyways.
We fly out September 20. At this point, we don't have a targeted date for return. One of the things we wish to do is open ourselves up to God and see what he shows us. Perhaps we'll come across a need and wish to stay longer or more permanent. Perhaps not. Either way, we expect this year to change our lives, at the very least forever eliminate life on a conveyer belt.
We'd LOVE for you to join us along our journey, even for a week. Truly, we already have people who are planning on doing just that and we'd love to add your names to the list. Let's experience Planet Earth together!
John and Ang
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