Up and Coming...

Just in case anyone happens upon my site, I am currently working on a critical review of the film "The Exorcism of Emily Rose." The critique will not only look at the film from a theologically sound standpoint, but it will also include some general research concerning the biblical practice of exorcism.

And as a secondary work on that subject, your humble theologian is also working on an essay concerning the "holiday" of Halloween.

Stay tuned and feel free to give me your own personal opinions/beliefs regarding these subjects before I publish my work.

A Divine Illustration

I love animals, so when my wife and I got married she knew it was only a matter of time before I had her talked into a pet of some sort. Four months after saying "I do," we made a trip down to the local animal shelter to pick out the next addition to our family. And that weekend our feline companion, Lambeau, came to live with us in our Austin apartment. He was only a few weeks old, cute as could be, and easily loved. Drawn to the smell of my wife's hair, we would often times wake up with his cute little face dreaming away on our pillows.

But Lambeau was not the perfect little kitten. He had extremely sharp claws (on enormous paws), and an insatiable urge to bite the hands that caressed his fur. After many attempts with a water bottle, newspaper, tap on the nose, etc, little Lambeau gave no indication that he would ever grow out of this phase. Two years later... he still bites the hand that feeds him. Only now he is full grown and weighs twenty pounds. Apparently, Lambeau is nearly a full blood Maine Coon. These cats grow to be incredibly large, have a playful disposition, and live long healthy lives. My wife is real excited that he is probably going to be with us for the next fifteen years!

Allow me to try and educate you on the habits of this cat. In the morning when we wake up, Lambeau is right at our feet, chirping away and loving on our legs. He follows us throughout the morning wherever we go and lays at our feet. This is the cat that I love. However, pretty soon Lambeau's disposition changes from a lovable purr to a ticked off howl as he begins to get demanding. So, I try to play with him... not interested. So, I give him some food. He eats a few bites and then comes right back to my feet demanding something else and biting my leg as I move to remind me of his presence. So, I try to pet him. Now my hand is scratched from those little knives in his mouth. At this point my wife is ready to kill him, and I am trying to keep him alive as he nips at the feet that protect his little pea sized brain.

So, what is God teaching me through this daily circus of a routine? For one I get a minute glimpse into how God must feel as I go about my day. Sure in the morning I am right at His feet in worship with a fabulous disposition about the opportunities of the day ahead, and yet before lunch I think not of the blessings and provision He showers upon me. At times I am even "biting the hand that feeds me" as I allow my anger or fear to control my attitude over our current financial situation. Forgetting that I have a lunch in the fridge and a roof over my head (not to mention that I am at Dallas Theological Seminary getting the best training in the world) I have the audacity to ask God what He was thinking when He allowed our car to break down to the point where we could no longer fix it. I ask Him, How in the world are we ever going to pay for this training?" as I look at our bank statement. And yet He has provided every single day of my 25 years on this earth.

Just like Lambeau does to me, every day I give God a reason to send a well positioned lightening bolt my way, but He doesn't. Just as Lambeau begs for food or comfort and then walks away when it is given, I too turn my back daily on what God has in store for me - but He still sends blessings my way. I cannot comprehend the patience it must take to deal with me on a daily basis, when I can barely deal with a cat that I am away from for the majority of each day.

My wife jokes and says that Lambeau has been sent by the Lord to punish us for being immature and consuming Christians, but even if that were the case, I welcome His divine illustration because it reminds me how I need to continually be aware of my relationship to my Maker.

"Are you alive?"

Let me tell you a story...

One night a man decided to venture down to a local coffee bar in Manchester, England, to reach out to the youth that frequented the establishment. A clean cut preacher and former Royal Marine, this man was not the stereotypical coffee bar regular. Coming up on the bar he could read the sign posted above the dark doorway. "The Cat's Whisker," it read, and it was a dreary little dive with hardly enough light to guide one's foot. Indeed upon entering the man nearly tripped over a young chap who was intertwined with his girlfriend on the floor.

Without much of a thought, the man immediately asked the young lad, "Are you alive?" With a rather startled expression on his face the boy turned to the gal he was entangled with, and repeated the odd stranger's question to her.

"He wants to know if I'm alive?" he said to the girl. "Well, are you?" she replied back in a dumbfounded manner. Turning back now to the strange inquisitor, who clearly was not a part of this cultural scene, he blurted out, "Of course I'm alive!"

Without hesitation the man prodded further, "Why are you alive?" Equally as stunned by the second question, the young man sat up with an incredibly puzzled look on his face.

"Must I have a reason?" he asked the newcomer.

Gradually the cultural outsider pointed out various inanimate objects throughout the room and asked the young lad if each had a reason for existence. Unable to locate a single object in the room that did not serve some purpose, the man again turned to the fellow, who had by now found his way to a chair, and asked, "Do you consider yourself of greater importance than these inanimate objects?"

Heartily, the young man replied, "Of course, I am a person."

"And yet you say that you do not have a reason for existing," the man replied. Silence...(At this point the conversation of the young lad and the stranger held the attention of the entire bar.)

After a short silence the young man stated, "I am alive because I was born and have not yet died."

"Did you have any control over your birth, though?" the stranger pondered.

"I suppose not," replied the lad, "in fact I guess you could say that I was an accident."

Continuing, the stranger stated, "And do you plan on having any say in how you die?"

"No, I can't say that I will. More than likely it will be an accident as well," answered the young fellow.

"So what I hear you saying is that you believe you were created by accident, and simply live your life until it accidentally ends?" the stranger clarified.

"Yeah, I guess so," finished the boy.

Turning now to the entire scene, the stranger stated, "Well, I don't believe that is the case," and he began to tell all of the youths present in the coffee bar the Good News of Jesus Christ, how it explained their existence, and how it gave them purpose. After he had finished and answered any and every question the young people had, the young man whom he had originally struck up a conversation with abruptly stood up and looked the stranger square in the eye.

"I don't think that you believe a single word of what you just spoke of!" he said to the man.

Taken aback the stranger inquired, "Why not?"

"Because what you just told us, if true, would be the greatest story of all time with more importance to our lives than anything else in the history of the universe. And if that truly were the case, you would have been down here long ago to tell us." With that the young man turned and walked out of The Cat's Whisker.

The stranger, as he says, has never recovered. This is a true story told to me straight from the mouth of the man who lived it. His name is Stuart Briscoe, and he and his wife Jill have made more of an impact on me in the few hours I heard them speak than they could ever imagine.

Lord, let me not keep your story all to myself. Help me to find "The Cat's Whisker" in my life, and give me the courage to run - not walk to it - for the glory of Your kingdom. Father, I pray for this blog, that it may be a fruitful forum where You are honored and where Your Spirit guides the writing, the discussions, and the questions. As tough issues and topics are discussed, help us to follow the writing of Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:14, "...brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, [and] be patient with everyone."

Amen