Disappointed but not Surprised

The reactions that I have received from my article were almost inline with what I had expected. The one unexpected response came from, ironically, a filmmaker. I was pleased to see that, even though he disagreed, he chose to accept a challenge and not to scoff. The overall reaction has been not to stop and think but to defensively reject.

To stop and think would mean we might have to consider giving up something we truly adore. We have so much time and money invested into theater, movies and television that we view calling into question the industry as a personal attack and the responses have displayed this reaction. This is sad, but I cannot be too discomforted because though I would like to think better, I know that I am susceptible to this type of misplaced response in other ways.

So I cast no stones; I just ask people to question and think for themselves. But that's like asking a sheep to not be a sheep.

For those interested in seeking truth wherever it may be found:

This is Tozer's essay that I quoted in the article : "The Menace of the Religious Movie"

I also came across a blog by Ryan Martin that researched some opinions on acting and theater from the early Church. I would like to add that I attach this blog merely for the research he did and I am not advocating his opinion and I haven't read his entire blog to ensure no theological differences.

I especially found this excerpt interesting in Augustine's Confessions. Read Chapter II.

June Article on the Brew...

My June article for the Brew Magazine is posted. I'm very interested to see the responses I will get. I pray that it is found to be thought-provoking.

Am I a Fascist?

Fascism is an ideology that believes that the world and humankind can be perfected with the sovereignty of a nation or race. The modern origin of this came from Mussolini who believed that he could, for the greater good, restore the ancient Roman Empire. Of course, we know where Hitler and the Nazi party took this form of government and the destructive path they followed.

Why did this ideology fail? The answer is simpler than you might think. It failed for the same reason all ideologies and governments will fail: this world is fallen. This world is not stumbling or tripped up or looking for its footing. It is fallen and all its inhabitants are depraved. It’s a done deal, this place is forsaken, and evil permeates every crevice. Girls get abducted in open day-lit parking lots; students get murdered on campus and genocide shares equal news coverage with basketball games. None of this is new to us, it is obvious and saddening.

When I viewed local and world missions, it was my perspective that we could improve this state we're in and become, on the whole, a more prosperous place with less oppression and poverty if we could only spread the gospel, in truth, to the ends of the earth. We could achieve a better world with the truth of Christ, and the reason that this hasn’t worked perfectly thus far is because various denominations and Christian cults alike distort (to varying degrees) the truth of the freedom that is found in Christ. I value truth and freedom above all things and I was certain this was the answer. To some degree, I still believe that this works and I think history has plenty of evidence to support this.

However, I grossly missed what God is wanting and expecting from me, and in my arrogance I exalted my own potential. God is not wanting me to feebly attempt to repair the sinking ship. What He wants is simply for me to let people know that their ship is sinking and there is only one way off- His Son.

I’m still not sure how I had been so oblivious to this. I had been going about doing the right things with the wrong aim. I've been immersed in World War II history lately, and I began to realize that when you boiled down my ideology it frighteningly had a lot in common with fascism. I was seeking to make this world better by attempting to institute a Christian nation (with more of a grass roots and peaceful approach).

The only hope for anyone is to be woken up and rescued and only God will do it, but he has asked me to be a part of it (that itself is amazing). A better world is a great thought, but it is only a temporary solution. It’s like using planks to try to patch up the Titanic when we should be building a life boat.

War and Peace

"The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You."

This stood out to me this morning as I was reading through the song in Isaiah 26. It probably caught my attention because peace is one of the most elusive of the fruits of the spirit to me. Ok, well let me be honest, rarely can I say that any of them define me, but peace likes to keep a little extra distance from me.

“I was born to go to war, it comes so natural to me…” as Derek Webb sings “I’ve got a poison conscience telling me to go with that.” Is it funny, sad or both that this is the connection I made as I was thinking about the Isaiah text? I think a poison conscience and a disposition to war pretty accurately describes me much of the time. Perfect peace does not.

The peace that eludes me, Isaiah says, is directly related to the steadfastness of my mind. Steadfast - I am a word freak and this is a term that I use but that I wasn’t sure if I had a precise definition. So I sought advice from two dear friends, Merriam and Webster, and they said that it’s being firmly fixed in place. It’s a true definition but as I thought about it, it seems the word is sold short by it.

The definition makes it sound easy, but we know that it’s not; it’s the opposite of easy. This is why Cal Ripken is a baseball hero and marathons are a celebrated accomplishment. And it’s the reason people are in awe of a couple that has been married for 40 years.

To me, steadfast not only connotes being firmly fixed in place, but also what it takes to remain firmly in place. To resist against the things that challenge your ability to remain firm. To be steadfast is to be focused on a goal, but also having broad vision and an engaged mind in order to know what to resist against and how to resist it.

Without effective resistance stamina fails. I have run some marathons and done some things that might prompt people to think I am a man of endurance. But steadfastness is beyond me. My mind is not steadfast on the Lord. This type of steadfastness is as much related to endurance as it is the sober mindedness that Paul speaks of in his epistles.

Without a steadfast mind by way of endurance and sobriety, there is no rest for me. I don’t allow God to fight my wars for me. I don’t trust in God enough to relinquish my command to him. The wars I do fight are in large, causeless.

I must learn to engage my mind more consistently. I must learn to push my thoughts to Christ continuously, so that I may know the battlefield that I am in and that I may know where victory is found. This is what will bring me peace. I have a long way to go.