Even Kings Die

So it's my day off and I've been up since 7am with Avery, which means not much is on tv so I've been watching the Today show. Michael Jackson's death has dominated the broadcast of course, with the occasional mention of Farrah Fawcett's passing. The Home Improvement reruns can't come on soon enough to provide some relief from this madness.

I do remember the pre-creepy days of Michael Jackson back in the 1980s. I recall in particular one summer trip to Ft. Sumner going to stay at my grandparents lake house. My brother had just purchased Michael Jackson's "Bad" cassette, and we listened to it for almost the entire trip. His music and career has undoubtedly influenced numerous musicians and people. He will always be known as the king of pop, but even kings die.

What has amazed me is the level of hypocrisy that is revealed when something like this happens. The same news anchors who have slammed and labeled Michael Jackson for the past several years (and with reason) are now expressing remorse and sadness at his passing. It's not just the anchors though. A local record store sold out of many of his cds yesterday afternoon when news of Jackson's death spread. "Thriller" quickly rose to the top of the itunes record sales. The question I ask is this: If you are truly a Michael Jackson fan, wouldn't you already own his albums? Funny how death makes people want to react in some way, and so many people react by becoming a fan.

I'm can't rightfully say much about Michael Jackson because I never knew him personally, but it's no secret that this man was peculiar to say the least. He thrived on attention. He loved the throne that accompanied being the "king of pop." He did whatever it took to gain and retain the attention of the public eye. I think it's also safe to say that some of his fans worshiped him. I remember seeing footage of grown women and even men crying at his concerts and growing hysterical when he was within 100 feet of them. Some people will write that off as fanatics being fanatics. I say it's mankind doing what mankind was created to do: worship.

Yesterday will always be a sad day for many because their king is gone. This isn't the first time a king has died and it won't be the last. Elvis, the king of rock and roll came to the same end and people mourned his passing. Countless other kings have come and gone throughout history. I often hear sportscasters call Lebron James "King James". While this may just be a moniker, it's a reality for so many adoring fans. Their king (whether crowned, or idealized) is the one whom they pay homage to. Kings will come and kings will go, but even kings die.

I think we have a fascination with kings. I know that I do. When I read the bible, I love to read about the ancient kings and how they led their people. I particularly love to read about King David, King Solomon, King Josiah, and King Hezekiah. I am even intrigued by the kings who were horrible rulers (King Saul, King Manasseh, etc..) One of my favorite movies is Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. We are interested in kings. Perhaps it's because we live in a nation that gained it's independence from a monarchy. We wonder what it is like to have a king, so we create our own using iconic figures. The one thing that all kings have in common is that they all eventually die.

One of my favorite names for Christ is the King of Kings. While Michael Jackson may be the king of pop, Elvis may be the king of rock and roll, and Lebron may be king James - Jesus is the only person to be able to claim the title "King of Kings." He is above all. And yes, this King of Kings did face death, but He above all kings and kingdoms conquered it. I am thankful that He is my king. He'll never die, He'll never change His image - He doesn't need the spotlight or a throne in order to be King. He is because He says He is. That's pretty stinkin cool to me. Even kings die, but my King lives.

The Pursuit

I love being a dad. This past weekend was Father's Day, and it was my first "official" one to celebrate. I guess technically I was a father last year, but Avery was still swimming in the womb so it was much different. I love that little girl and I am so thankful that she is a healthy growing baby. As all parents discover, life is a whole new ballgame when a little one arrives. It's like someone hits the fast forward button and you have to try to keep up with the action on the screen so that it doesn't freeze up and malfunction. It's complete madness sometimes.

Right now, our day consists of getting up (earlier than we used to), getting ourselves ready, getting Avery ready, taking her to daycare and then off to work. Then after work it's picking up Avery from daycare, going home and hanging out til mommy gets home, then cooking dinner, giving Avery a bath, and getting her ready for bed. By the time we both shower, it's almost time to go to bed and start the whole process all over again. I'm not complaining, because I know that's a familar routine for a lot of couples. It can be a viscious cycle though. Peaceful is not the word that I would use to describe that situation.

Psalm 34:14 says "Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it." This was our Redbud Student Ministry theme verse for Summer 2006. We called it "The Pursuit." Our t-shirts had an old school police car on the back, with the idea of a high speed pursuit. I read this psalm this morning and it reminded me of the need to be proactive. When I think of peace, I don't think of "world peace" where every nation gets along and nobody blows up one another. I think of the peace of God ruling my heart. I think of doing God's will and having the assurance that I am being obedient. Peace is not something that can simply be wished for and received, peace is something that must be sought after and pursued (even if you are one who thinks of peace as being world peace). In the midst of our crazy routine, I cannot expect to find peace through wishful thinking. You'll never find what you're not looking for. I have to be in pursuit of peace.

Life is and will continue to be busy, crazy, and sometimes flat out exhausting. In the midst of raising a child, being a husband, ministering to teenage students, and seminary I must seek peace. I don't want to go through the motions and do all these things in vain. I want the peace of Christ to accompany me in my actions. I want to lay my head down each night knowing that I have done my best to accomplish everything God has asked of me. If I want this peace I have to pursue it. I'll be honest with you, after I read this I thought, wow one more thing that I have to do each day. But Philippians 4:7 says this: "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." By seeking and pursuing peace, I'll actually be lightening my load.

It's one thing to ask for peace, but it's another to have peace. Peace is found in the pursuit. Not really profound, but definitely on my mind today. Peace!

Where's my ladder?

Life has been kinda crazy the past few months, and Chelsea and I have faced situations and decisions that we've never faced before. There have been times when things felt hopeless. I'm always amazed at how God speaks to me in times such as these. I recently watched one of Andy Stanley's messages called "Hope". He said that hope is like a ladder in that we lean it against something we think will support our dreams and aspirations. At birth, we subconsciously lean that ladder against our parents. We depend on them to take care of us. As we grow older, we move the ladder of hope over to our own ability to take care of ourselves. For some of us that means we lean our ladder on talent, looks, popularity, wealth, a relationship, a career.....whatever we think will sustain us and hold us up. If you're a Christian, you involve God by begging Him not to let your ladder fall.

Usually the only time that I think about hope is when I'm feeling hopeless, helpless, or in despair. It's at these times that I realize that the wall I placed my ladder against wasn't as secure as I thought it was. When my ladder falls down, I feel hopeless. This simple illustration really opened up my eyes and forced me to ask the question "Where is my ladder?" The saracasm in me wants to shout back "It's hanging up in the garage!" But what is it that I have placed my hope in to hold me up? Is it my job? my family? an ideal situation? I've realized that I've felt hopeless because I placed my ladder against a wall that is destined to crumble. Paul says in Romans 8:21 that creation is in "bondage to decay." There is nothing in this world that is secure enough to hold me up (and that's not because I'm fat). If I want to put my hope in something secure, I need to move my ladder. I love what Psalm 33:22 says "May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you." Andy Stanley put it this way "May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we lean our ladder against you." I can find hope in a world that is hopelessly broken.

Welcome Sinner

I used to think the word "blog" was more of a bathroom term, but here I am blogging - throwing out my personal thoughts for the world to see. It will probably take me a while to figure it all out, but you have to start somewhere so here goes nothing.

We have a sign outside our church that says Welcome Center. (it's actually inside on the floor right now because we're having some work done to the exterior of our church)

The welcome center is connected to our sanctuary and mainly serves as a place to find information and be greeted by a church member. Riveting information, I know. Anyway,as I passed by this sign the other day, I wondered if there is a church that would be so bold as to put up a sign that said "Welcome Sinner". If we were to place that sign outside of our church would it be false advertising? Is this a place where sinners are welcome? The obvious answer is yes of course because we are all sinners. While that is true, I think we as Christians sometimes develop a mentality that we no longer fall under that category.

In Matthew 11:28 Jesus says: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Interestingly enough God has always been after the riff raff - the ones that society (and the church) rejected. Rahab was a prostitute, Moses was a murderer, David was an adulterer and a murderer, Zaccheus was a tax collector (and a wee little man), and Paul was a Christian hater. The list could go on and on. God uses sinners. In fact, everyone that God has used has met that prerequisite.

The cool part about this is that means God can use me because I am a sinner. The challenging part is that it also means God wants to use people who are not inside our church. It's not about introducing them to our building, our programs, our staff, our church members or making sure they are greeted and welcomed. Sinners don't need a church, they need a Savior. Getting involved in a fellowship of believers will come after they become a part of the Body of Christ. I'll sadly admit that I need to work on this. As a youth minister, I love to have a lot of kids show up, regardless of their reason for being there. I need to be consistently intentional about introducing sinners to the Savior every time I have the opportunity. They need to know that my church is a place where that can happen. Welcome Sinner.