Status Whoa! 3.9.11

This week's offerings were somewhat sparse, both for Go and Woe posts. I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or not: are we, as Christians, as aware as we ought to be of the potential of the platform available to us on FB? I didn't have a lot to choose from on my newsfeed, and no one submitted anything from their own newsfeed...so that makes me wonder if good, conscious use is being made of FB statuses that belong to Christians.

Or perhaps it is that all my friends found out that their status could very well end up on a Woe post, and decided not to post at all for fear of that? But why not? No one is going to make fun. We just want to think carefully about our posts and see if we can increase the quality as well as the quantity of Christ-exalting, gospel-preaching posts.

Just a reminder: you can't submit your own status, but you can submit a friend's. Just email statuswhoa.holdfast@gmail.com. If you think the status is a GO!, then submit the name along with the text of the post. If you think it's a Woe, then don't submit the friend's name, just the text.

This week's Status GO! Post showed up on my newsfeed on 3.6.11, and was posted by my friend Michelle Lee:

"The danger of self-esteem is that it tries to persuade us that we are good enough, capable, and worthy. We need the gospel precisely because we are not good enough, capable, or worthy. Salvation does not give us a righteousness of our own that we can esteem. Salvation gives us Christ’s righteousness that we might worship Him with reverent, grateful awe." Brad Hambrick

Congratulations, Michelle, and keep up the good work!

Status WOE for this week was a quote from a sermon by a person named Allen Hood:

 "Jesus hates religion because it keeps people at a distance in their pretend righteousness."

I checked scripture, making as thorough a search as I know how (since I don't know Greek or Aramaic, it's possible I missed something). Jesus never said anything about religion, one way or the other. So isn't it a bit presumptuous in the first place to say He hates it when He didn't state that? I don't know, maybe it's just me.

I did notice, however, that scripture defines pure religion which is undefiled before God. Would Jesus hate something that is undefiled before God? It also defines worthless religion. If, perhaps, "religion" was defined as that which is worthless in the above quote, we might be able to make a case for Jesus hating it.

What about the reason given that Jesus supposedly hates religion? Does religion (all religion, mind you) keep people at a distance? At a distance from what? From each other? From Him?

About the only part of this statement I can appreciate is the "pretend righteousness". Now, Jesus DID hate that, and spoke about it often. But that isn't religion...or at least it isn't ALL religion.

Seems there's "religion", and then there's "religion", dontcha know.

I don't know Allen Hood from beans, but I sure would like to offer him a better idea about what Jesus hates, and what religion is, and whether there's good religion, and what's so awful about pretend righteousness. Can I get some help here?

find the good...and HOLD FAST!

Changes

Disclaimer-- no Obama jokes are quoted or referenced, nor were any harmed in the making of this post!

It's just that I was thinking about change this week. Things were rocking along quite calmly in my world--just normal stuff. Get up. Go to work. Come home. Do some housework. Enjoy the family. Go to bed. Get up…

But under closer inspection a few changes are noticeable. Nothing big. Just here and there a metamorphosis of some existing habit or repeated event or attitude that makes a small ripple, which in turn creates other small ripples, which in turn eventually end up changing the shape of the waterline on the shore.

I've noticed this before. Years ago when I was much younger and home schooling all four of the children, it was often necessary to change our schooling schedule. Sometimes it was a change just for a day. But sometimes a larger and more permanent adjustment would become necessary: maybe one child was struggling more with math and needed more of my attention just then, or perhaps the baby's nap schedule changed which caused the school schedule to need adjustment.

At first this bothered me. I had set the school schedule, and thought that proper discipline required that it remain the schedule for at least the whole year!  But of course, this ability for the schedule to serve the family, rather than the family serving the schedule, is one of the primary beauties of home school. I soon learned to use this to our advantage, and indeed, when school or house work became more drudgery than challenge, would shake up the schedule just to infuse some excitement into it!

My mother loves adages, maxims, truisms and proverbs, and has several of her own of which she frequently reminds us. One of them (I think it's her current favorite!) is:

"You can't be sure of anything in life except change!"

Because I'm a musician, when I pondered this, it seemed to me that change in our lives can be similar to pieces of music. For instance, a great and happy change in our lives might sound like Beethoven's 9th symphony, final movement, also known as Ode To Joy:

Or perhaps a something like this:

And then, of course, a change which seems to us to be a tragedy might sound like:

Or this:

Or perhaps:

(the bad guys get all the good music. Just sayin').

But mostly the changes in our lives are more like this piece from  Steve Reich:

Small changes. Over time. Hardly perceptible, but eventually the entire composition is completely different from what it started out to be. It's still your life. It still feels "normal". But it not the same. Nothing really bad happens...and nothing really good. But altogether it's a nice sound.

"Ok", perhaps you say; "That's very nice philosophical thinking, Esther. So what?"

I suppose there does have to be a "so what?" doesn't there? But isn't it obvious? If what my mother says is true, and we can be certain something will change--if not today, tomorrow, and if not then, then next week--we have an advantage or two!

1. We don't have to be surprised or stressed when change occurs.

2. We can remain prepared for change, and flexible and adaptable enough to take advantage of opportunities as they occur

3. We can look for ways to change proactively (like making changes in a schedule just because it brings a spark of newness to the situation)

As Christians, we have wisdom from God on dealing with change. In fact, scripture counsels us to be prepared for change! (Hey...maybe my mother knows what she's talking about, eh?).

‎Do not boast about tomorrow,

‎for you do not know what a day may bring. Proverbs 27:1

‎For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

     ‎2     a time to be born, and a time to die;

          ‎a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;

     ‎3     a time to kill, and a time to heal;

          ‎a time to break down, and a time to build up;

     ‎4     a time to weep, and a time to laugh;

          ‎a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

     ‎5     a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;

          ‎a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

     ‎6     a time to seek, and a time to lose;

          ‎a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

     ‎7     a time to tear, and a time to sew;

          ‎a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

     ‎8     a time to love, and a time to hate;

          ‎a time for war, and a time for peace. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

‎8 So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many. Ecclesiastes 11:8

     ‎13     Consider the work of God:

‎who can make straight what he has made crooked?

‎14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.

‎15 In my vain life I have seen everything. There is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his evildoing. 16 Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time? 18 It is good that you should take hold of this, and from that withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God shall come out from both of them.  Ecclesiastes 7:13-18

          ‎“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,

‎to whom belong wisdom and might.

     ‎21     He changes times and seasons;

‎he removes kings and sets up kings;

          ‎he gives wisdom to the wise

‎and knowledge to those who have understanding;  Daniel 2:20-21

And providentially, scripture also tells us how (and gives examples of how best) to react to change (huh. Who knew?):

‎17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17

14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other… Ecclesiastes 7:14

     ‎10     Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?”

‎For it is not from wisdom that you ask this. Ecclesiastes 7:10

‎20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” ...10 But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. Job 1:20, 2:10

‎Blessed is the man

‎who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

          ‎nor stands in the way of sinners,

‎nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

     ‎2     but his delight is in the law of the Lord,

‎and on his law he meditates day and night.

     ‎3     He is like a tree

‎planted by streams of water

          ‎that yields its fruit in its season,

‎and its leaf does not wither.

          ‎In all that he does, he prospers. Psalm 1:1-3

‎Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. James 4:13-16

Thinky Things

What I learn from all this is that yes, change is inevitable, but it is also a gift. And it is not a gift to be taken lightly. A Christian cannot be prepared for change without daily preparation: when the change occurs, it is too late to prepare for it then!

The question is: am I preparing? How do I prepare? Psalm 1 seems a good place to start--'delight in the law of the Lord'--because when the seasons change, the roots will be deep and undisturbed. The music may change...but the Composer and Conductor are still the same.

As changes come in your life, be a tree and...HOLD FAST!

Status Whoa! 3.2.11

And we have a W-I-N-N-A-H! It was a great joy to keep tabs on the statuses that came across my newsfeed this week, looking for Status Go! Posts--there were more than I imagined there would be!

Status GO! Winner for this week is Timothy Stone, whose quote by Randy Alcorn crossed my newsfeed on 2.25.11. Actually, Timothy had several goodies, but I tried to choose the one that would be the clearest to an unbeliever. The status read:

From Randy Alcorn on FB.

There is an all-inclusiveness in the “all things” of Romans 8:28. “But surely not that horrible event… Not the cancer. Not the car accident. Does Romans 8:28 include suffering?” Actually, that’s exactly what it’s talking about—suffering. “All things” means “all things.” If God could not use something to contri...bute to the ultimate good of his child, then he will not permit it to happen

Congratulations to you Timothy! You get the "Status Whoa! Status GO! Award", for not hiding your light under one. I've posted your award on your FB wall!

Status Woe winner for this week:

God loves you and me!

Well, really? It's funny, because it was a question about who God loves that really put my understanding of the Doctrines of Grace (i.e. Calvinism) into high gear. A rather crusty sort of Calvinist fellow heard me say something similar to the above (it was "I know Jesus loves everybody"), and challenged me on it.

So...how can this be made better? Turn this into a Status Go!

God bless this week to...Hold Fast

My Cottage

Several weeks ago my two younger daughters and I sat at breakfast one morning, and commented on the fact that this particular breakfast was a "cottage" sort of breakfast; hearty and simple, but not without a touch of elegance. Having said that, we took off on an imaginary flight of fancy and "built" our little cottage in the country. Mine had dark wood floors, a sweet (and neatly made-up!) iron bedstead, and a half door which often stood open to catch the airs wafting from the countryside carrying the fragrances of the herb and flower garden just outside.

Now don't get me wrong. We love our house here--in fact, we've often laughed over the fact that having painted it in the way we did when it was built, we love it so much that we cannot imagine it any other colors. I really am blessed to have my dream house! So it's not discontent that caused us to take our moments together at breakfast to fancifully build our cottage.

Probably it was more the idea of the thing--sort of like having your own fairytale, where you are the good and wise prince or princess of your own domain, independently wealthy and able to do many of the things you are really unable to do in reality.

But that little bit of imagination has become a tool in my sanctification toolbox!

Be it known that I am not a good housekeeper. In my mind there are at least forty things that would be better and more enjoyable uses of my time than housekeeping. However, I do like a clean house. Certainly it is good for my family, but it also benefits me: my mind is clearer and less burdened, my attitude happier and more content, and I am freer to do those other things which I would rather do. So I am always looking for ways to "trick" myself into doing a better job of housekeeping.

Even though I love my house, I have been living here for several years now. My human nature has turned what used to be exciting and new into that which I do not appreciate as much simply from familiarity. I don't see the clutter as well, or the dirt (unless someone shows up at the door unexpectedly--isn't it amazing how that will make all the smudges, smears, clutter and dustbunnies jump to attention?). I've learned to live with some of the less efficient and therefore messier ways of doing things that need just a little change.

If you've ever been blessed to have a new house, either by moving or building, you may recognize that for awhile you see it differently than your old living quarters. It is clean and new. Everything seems to sparkle a bit.  You notice when a little dust or clutter accumulates, and you are motivated to dust it or pick it up to keep the "new" feeling. But after a time: maybe a few weeks, or months, or even years, the sparkly new feeling kind of wears off. Someone in the family may get the flu or a busy season will hit at work, and a little dust doesn't get dusted and few items don't get picked up. You promise yourself you'll deal with it soon--but "soon" is corrupted by the tyranny of the urgent, and the problem snowballs. Maybe you are a great housekeeper and this never happens to you, but still, you notice that you don't perceive your house or apartment the same way you did when it was new.

That morning at breakfast, the idea of the cottage really took root in my mind. For a few days I enjoyed mentally furnishing it and imagining a different, more earthy and carefree life in it. And then one day shortly afterwards as I was driving home from work, I realized that imagining my house AS that cottage gave me a new perspective on the housekeeping. Again I felt the motivation of keeping it "new " and neat as a pin. And when I arrived home I channeled that energy into just a few moments of extra housekeeping before collapsing from my workday. The next day I did it again. Having my little cottage in order was an idea that gave me a delicious sense of delight and peace.

I haven't kept this up everyday, but the results can be seen in my house and yard. Slowly things are looking better. I don’t promise that it will continue to improve, and I'm fairly certain that my personality will not change completely and turn me into a neatfreak, more's the pity.

Thinky Things

I don't want to over-spiritualize this little mental game I play, but I think it parallels our sanctification close enough that we can learn something from it about ourselves and about God.

So here are some thoughts:

1. Imagination is often denigrated by Christians, but has such potential for good purpose by God. He created us with imagination, after all!

2. Cooperating with God in our sanctification means using every tool He offers us. If it is the imagination of a sweet little cottage in the country to encourage us to redeem the time and bless our families with better housekeeping, we should use it, and thank Him for providing it.

3. The happiest news about sanctification is that it is not all up to us! God says HE will be faithful to complete the work He began in us. So we cannot fail! Who wouldn't be willing to cooperate in a venture if they knew for a fact that they could not fail to have success?!?!

4. What does YOUR cottage look like? Is it a cottage, or a grand manor? Perhaps it is something entirely different? I'd love to hear your flight of fancy!

5. Have you some tools in your sanctification toolbox that could benefit others by sharing them here? We'd love to hear them. 

To those tools and the good use of imagination...HOLD FAST 

Facebook--Status Whoa!

Recently several Facebook (FB) status quotes have come across my newsfeed over there on which I felt compelled to comment. It wasn't that they were bad, really. These people are my friends, and I know that they meant well by their status quote. But the quotes failed to communicate the full thought, and as a result actually ended up communicating another thought entirely, especially considering that non-Christians also read these quotes we make in such a public forum.

Some of my friends on FB have requested friendship multiple times. Why? Because they join FB, then they cancel their membership. Then they join again, only to cancel again a few days or weeks later. Sometimes they give an explanation, seeming to be confused about whether FB is a godly use of time.

It seems that as Christians, we need to do some careful thinking about Facebook and other social networking options. Many articles and blogs have been written about this subject: at the bottom of this post you can find two links with thoughtful articles to help you understand the pitfalls as well as the potential of social media like FB.

The Big Announcement


There are several aspects to FB, but I want to focus on status posts--and I want to do something to encourage the use of FB status posts as a tool for witnessing and edification. To that end, I've come up with Status Whoa!

Status Whoa! Will be a series of blog posts (hopefully weekly, but we all know how that has worked out for me in the past) highlighting some of the best (Status go!) and worst (Status Woe) Christian status posts to come across the newsfeeds.

Rules and policies for Status Whoa!

All posting and recognition decisions will be made by me--no appeal. It's my blog, we do it my way--but I think it will be fun anyway! My own statuses are, of course, disqualified.

Quotes have to be from statuses of real people--not videos or links, not from ministries or businesses. They can, however, be quotes of quotes--in other words, someone could post a great status quote and acknowledge that it actually originated with Spurgeon, for instance.

Types of status quotes I'm looking for:

Status Woe: Quotes that demonstrate unsound or unclear theology…they'll be posted on the blog along with my commentary and the comment section left open for suggestions of how to improve the status so that it becomes a Status Go!

Status Go!: Quotes that demonstrate sound, clear theology that pointedly communicates truth in a winsome, clever, or humorous way.

Since encouraging Status Go type quotes is the main part of my goal, I'm asking my readers--yes you!--to submit your friends/family statuses to be considered for a Status Go blog post--you cannot submit your own status. Simply message me on FB or email statuswhoa.holdfast@gmail.com. Be sure to include the quote, and the name of the person who posted it  so that proper recognition can be made! If chosen, I will post a notice on the blog, and on my facebook profile as well as notifying the person who submitted the status--all in an effort to recognize in public a person who is benefiting the Kingdom of God by their use of social media. If the person is on my friends' list, I'll post a notice on their facebook wall.

Status Woe type quotes may be submitted, but with no names attached. As noted, we'll work here on the blog to turn Status Woe posts into Status Go! Posts.

More people are watching your newsfeed than you think. Are they getting the gospel?

Thinky Things

Here are the links to the articles mentioned above:
http://www.challies.com/christian-living/how-and-how-not-to-use-facebook-for-ministry
http://www.internetevangelismday.com/social-networking.php

Ready? Set? Go! (and don't forget to...

Hold Fast...

Art And All That

No Part No. because we're done, remember? Because, as you can see below, it's being discussed in the blogosphere. A quote from the article, with the link following:

So let's have pastors who love the arts and do not need a title to tell the world that they do. And let's have pastors who study hard, pray hard and love artists. Let's pray for opportunities to reach those in the arts community.

And let's take in plays like Albee's to remind us of what we were. Let us not do so in a Pharisaical way. Rather, let us weep that plays like this are written simply because they so viscerally capture what lurks in all of us. But let us rise from the theatre and sing for joy because Christ has set us free. Your local pastor, who probably is not a pastor for the arts, can tell you all about it. Pay him a visit.

On Being Afraid of Virginia Woolf

Christian Parent: What Are You Thinking?

Perhaps a better title might be "Christian Parent:  Are You Thinking?", but I'm trying to be nice, here, having come across several mentions in the past week concerning "crusty" Christians who are ever-so-smart and critical and yet not very winsome. 

Besides, being a Christian parent...and I mean a Christian parent in the strictest sense of the word: a believer, regularly attending church, studying scripture to inform your life and specifically your parenting, and cooperating with the Holy Spirit to root out the sin in your life...is a difficult thing these days, and mercy ought to be extended.  The choices are legion and challenging:  preschool or not? Homeschool?  Private School?  Church-with-age-graded-Sunday-School?  Family-integrated-Church? Homemade baby food? Once-a-month-cooking? The list of decisions is enormous and overwhelming.

So adding yet another facet of consideration to the Christian parents' insomnia-inducing list should be carefully weighed against it's potential fruitfulness. Yet I find I must offer this question for meditation: are you training your children for battle?

A Christian's battle with sin and self lasts until death.  So it makes sense, as a parent, to carefully train our children to come to grips and succeed in mortifying these tireless enemies in every possible teaching moment we are granted in their lives. It is vital that you concern yourself with your children's readiness for something besides reading! They must be ready for battle, and you have a responsibility to train them.

A couple of years ago I was speaking with a homeschooling mom who was concerned about her teenage son.  She explained that he was starting to engage the world a bit, and she didn't feel he was making good choices.  When I questioned her further, the issues she was worried about seemed rather trivial to me:  this son was 17-going-on-18, plenty old enough to decide the issues she mentioned on his own.  As our conversation continued, she revealed more about the parenting this young man had received, and I realized that yet again a child, although carefully homeschooled, had failed to be trained for battle.

This is not the first instance I have heard of or witnessed of this failure.  The parent, attempting to protect the child from [fill in the blank with your choice of the following:  "low self-esteem", "sin", "the world", "the flesh", "the devil"] shields the child from every danger, injury, encounter and consequence possible.

Listening to this mom continue explaining her parenting methods I heard a familiar story.  "I don't understand why he isn't making good choices. We never let them play with any of the neighbor kids. We carefully controlled their environment so that they didn't develop a taste for "the world". I remain their primary teacher so that they would always have information provided to them through the proper worldview. I never let them sleep over at anyone's house."

These parents, in their diligent desire to protect their children, made every decision FOR them.  Instead of building a solid foundation of scriptural principals, then allowing their children to make decisions for themselves while they were still at home in a safe environment where they could learn from their mistakes without life-altering consequences, they prevented them from having to make any major decisions at all or having to rely on any principles of scripture carved in their own hearts.  The result is a family of children who are completely unprepared to make scripturally-based decisions as they grow up and leave home.

And when they leave home, they often leave the Church and Christianity.  Nancy Pearcey, in her article "How Critical Thinking Saves Faith" summarizes a recent study by Fuller Seminary on teens who become "leavers" in college:

The study indicates that students actually grow more confident in their Christian commitment when the adults in their life -- parents, pastors, teachers -- guide them in grappling with the challenges posed by prevailing secular worldviews.  In short, the only way teens become truly “prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks” (1 Pet. 3:15) is by wrestling honestly and personally with the questions. 

Do enjoy the whole article.

Recently I treated myself to a good read:  I happened to pick up an old (very old!) volume of "Reader's Digest Condensed Books".  I noticed the publish date of 1960--and since that is the year I was born, it held a little more interest for me.  I chose to read the title "The Lovely Ambition" by Mary Ellen Chase.  In it was the following quote concerning the raising of children--and allow me to point out that the book was published in 1960, but it discusses "50 years ago" from the perspective of 1903!

"Fifty years ago people were rarely made aware as they now are of the necessity for adaptation--or "adjustment," perhaps I should say, in the tiresome, shabby terminology of today.  They just took things as they came along; and, of course a more stable world was immeasurably helpful in the process.  Children took things, too, in part because parents respected their children enough to allow them to learn what life was really like in order that they might assume its obligations with a natural robustness and buoyancy, sadly mistrusted in many families nowadays.

At all events I have always been grateful for that extraordinary summer of 1903.  It had its consoling, reassuring features as well as it's alarming ones, and it contributed lavishly to the richness and the mystery of human experience." (emphasis added)

Thinky Things

Christian parent:  are your children prepared or being prepared to assume life's obligations with robustness and buoyancy?

Even if they are very young, each time they have an opportunity to make a decision for themselves, it is also a teaching opportunity.  Your job as a parent is to allow for as much of that learning to take place as is safe and reasonable:  i.e., can you pick up the pieces afterwards?  Will they learn a valuable life lesson from the consequences of their decision?  Do you respect your children enough to allow them to learn what life is really like while you are there to help them cope with the consequences, and while you are there to structure the tests to their age level and ability, while you are there to provide a scriptural foundation from which they can make decisions?  Are you allowing them to grapple with the questions they have about life and spirituality, or are you not sure you, yourself know enough to help them?

This applies whether it is a decision the child makes is one of obedience ("Johnny, you must clean your room.  If you do not, then you may not enjoy a movie with the family tonight"--and stick WITH that, because it is training Johnny to mortify his sin so he can face that in a bigger way later on in life:  for instance, getting up to go to work to earn money to feed your grandchildren) or one of wisdom ("Jane, do you REALLY want to go outside without your coat on?  All right then, it's your decision").

Train your children for the battle against sin and self.  Train them for the battle for the Kingdom of God.  This training is absolutely vital to their spiritual and emotional health and to their eternity.  It's not easy--oh, it's much easier to make every decision for them.  But the sacrifice will result in children who can face what life throws them with godliness and equanimity.

Art And All That Part The Last

Yes, indeed, I think it's quite time we put this subject to bed.  More and more I am noticing that it is being dealt with on an extensive level in the blogosphere and in Christian circles:  smarter and more spiritually knowledgeable people than I are wrestling with it in a good manner, and I am confident that progress will begin to be made in putting the Arts in their proper place in our worship of God.  Yet there is one last caution that I'd like to leave my readers with--as I promised the last time I wrote here:

Coming up next:  the not-so-good attitude that is beginning to display itself among us...

By "us" I mean Christian artists. 

From last time you may remember that I referenced  the article (insert link) Artists Build The Church from (insert link)  The Gospel Coalition's blog.  Consider the following quotes from that article:

Though successful in his work, Youngren’s real desire was to plant a church in an urban hub that would cherish art as revelation and value artists as spiritual leaders.

Youngren hoped to plant a church that could specifically minister to artists and clear a place at their feet where the entire congregation could sit and learn from them.

In most evangelical churches, many view artistic expression as being merely supplemental to other forms of revelation and understanding. Its centrality to worship is muted.

God is in the sublime, but the sublime is often only accessed by artists. To inadvertently push artists into the margins, then, is to limit a congregation’s experience of God to the finite realm of mediocrity. Artists ought to be central to any church body, because they can reinforce these unseen truths in people’s souls. Guerra is well aware of his responsibilities as an artist and does not hold their power lightly. “It’s a gift to participate in the searing of truth in people’s lives,” he says.

See if you note an underlying message here, as I do:

"cherish art as revelation"

"clear a place at their feet"

"Its centrality to worship"

"sublime is often only accessed by artists"

"artists ought to be central"

"it's a gift to participate in the searing of truth in people's lives"

And hear these words from Mako Fujimura, in his  Letter To North American Churches:

"Instead of having quality artists at the core of your worship, we were forced to operate as extras; as in “if-we-can-afford-it-good-but-otherwise-please-volunteer”, Extras."

"Meanwhile, in the institutions called museums, concert halls and academia, we are asked to be gods."

"Artists have skills and power that a dictator is afraid of, or want to use; and you, the church, unwisely neglected them."

These quotes and many others have me quite concerned that the pendulum could easily swing too far in correcting the neglect of True Art in the church, and end up deifying Art and The Artist:  indeed, it seems that this is an underlying theme in the work of John Guerra and Mr. Fujimura's thoughts as expressed in the articles referenced.  Too easily are our hearts given to idols, and I sense a temptation toward a "priesthood" of artists in the church.

That would be a tragedy.  Art belongs in the church in a much more fundamental and acceptable way than it has had heretofore.  But to elevate it beyond a scriptural emphasis would only set up another idol for our hearts to gravitate toward.  Art is not revelation:  Art is based on revelation:  the revealed Word of God in Jesus Christ.  The only feet we should be sitting at to educate our spirituality are the feet at which Mary sat (Luke 10:39).  The sublime is accessible to us all through our relationship with the Father.  Artists are not central to our worship:  Art is a medium of worship and always will be because the Great Artist gave it as such--but it is the Great Artist Who should be central.

Mr. Fujimura asks the following in his letter:

"Do you not know that the first people known to be filled with the Holy Spirit were not priests, kings or generals, but artists named Bezalel and Oholiab, who built Moses’ Tabernacle?"

Yes, Mr. Fujimura, your facts are correct.  However, please note that it was not Bezalel and Oholiab (Exodus 36:1)who were ordained as priests.  In fact, after they built the Tabernacle, they are never mentioned again in scripture.  They fulfilled their callings and followed God's instructions to create an atmosphere that allowed people to be pointed toward the One True and Living God.

And that was all.  No tabernacle set apart for the worship only by artists.  No letters to the people requesting more respect and attention for artists.  No special classes taught by artists so that people could truly understand the art they used in the tabernacle.

They just fulfilled their callings faithfully and obediently.

May we all do the same.

Thinky Things

Here is a link to a more balanced Q & A session which, I think, puts Art in it's proper perspective.  The host is none other than Shai Lin, Christian rap artist.  I encourage you to listen.  And then, consider following the following good advice from the Gospel Coalition blog article:

"Anyone can submit to beauty and art by simply learning to appreciate it. Learn how to read a novel or a poem. Learn how to listen to music and experience a painting. Support the artists in your community not just spiritually but also financially. Seek out creative and unsolicited ways to do this. Attend a [Christian Musician] concert or buy their [album]. Purchase a painting or attend a friend’s show."

Follow this advice not because you want to support artists, even Christian artists...but in order to worship more fully The Greatest Artist. 

And Hold Fast...

‘But I’m borrred!’

As a mother, one of the best strategies I learned early on was delegation.  So, this week, when things got really busy and I started to feel overwhelmed, I reached into my bag of tricks and came up with that old standby--after which I called my oldest daughter and asked if she had anything she was just itching to tell the world.

Because, you see, I know my children. They all got WORDS...and lots of them.  They got it honest...that's all I'm sayin'.  So, for the very first guest blog post here on the HoldFast, I present to you a piece written by none other than the one responsible for the name of the blog: my daughter Lacy Burnett.  (And thanks, love.  You done me proud!)

Recently, my husband and I were watching a show in which a main character is dealing with therapy sessions that just don’t seem to be working. “It will help you to write down everything that happens to you on a blog,” says his therapist, to which he replies hopelessly, “Nothing ever happens to me.”

Of course, this being a TV show, 30 seconds later all sorts of things start happening to him, and he is extremely happy with the change.

Unfortunately, it’s just a show, and while we certainly understand his boredom and rejoice with him when things get exciting, everyone knows life just doesn’t happen like that. Life is routine, and boredom and discontent are a constant temptation.

But I argue this is often worse for Christians. We, after all, are the ones meant to experience exciting, thrilling things, similar to the stories of David, Moses, and Paul in our holy book. We’re the ones who are supposed to have the power of the Holy Spirit after all, and what good is that if it doesn’t make life interesting, right?

Too many Christian authors don’t speak against this notion, or else, they directly endorse it.

One example is in one of the most popular Christian books today, Jesus Calling. Author Sarah Young states in her introduction: “I knew that God communicated with me through the Bible, but I yearned for more.” The rest of the book consists of messages she believes God gave to her, outside of the Bible, accessorized here and there with verses, and written in first person.

What happened? Why wasn’t the Bible, the book God gave over thousands of years and filled to the brim with more than we could possibly understand about Him, not enough? Why did she feel she needed to put more words into the Creator’s mouth?

She was effectively saying “Nothing ever happens to me in the Bible.”

Of course I can also understand that feeling. When I was little, my siblings and I learned quickly that the words “I’m bored” or “I have nothing to do” were dangerous! Mom or Dad would start to smile and say “Well, we can fix that...” and if we didn’t run to find something to do quickly enough, we’d get stuck with some chore we definitely didn’t want. So we figured out how to entertain ourselves, for the most part, and even thinking of the words “I’m bored” automatically spurred our minds to think of something to do.

That still works, and just this past month I’ve found that God needed to use it with me again.

Until recently I’ve been unemployed, and with all the housework done, the meals experimented with to the limit of my poor husband’s patience, and the dog brushed within an inch of her life, I found myself sitting at the computer thinking “I have nothing to do...” Promptly the wheels started turning, and God brought to mind some Bible chapters that I was far behind on reading. The temptation then was, “But that’s not what I want to do!” and that laid bare my real problem.

See, I’d forgotten something very important: that life isn’t about me, it isn’t here to entertain me. My job is to glorify God, and that means there is always, always, something to do. While God promises us rest, the Bible never condones idleness of mind or body for it’s own sake, and there is so much written in the Word that we can be doing for the one who died for us. Sometimes it’s reading and studying, sometimes it’s working to remember and perform everyday tasks that slip to the bottom of the list because they aren’t “fun.” Sometimes it’s having fun, finding something to laugh about or to learn. Sometimes it’s doing something for someone else, volunteering, or finding a creative way to bless those closest to us.

But sadly, while reading more of Sarah Young’s book, I noticed that “Jesus” tends to be very focused on the reader. Everything is focused on bringing the reader into “My Presence,” which is described as a euphoric sort of experience that Christians ought to be having all the time.

But nowhere in the Bible does Jesus encourage this constant search for a mountaintop experience. Instead, we are told to pray without ceasing, to be thankful, to love one another, “aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands” (1 Thess. 4:11). Sometimes it’s those “boring” things, the routine things, that, when done with the right heart, glorify God the most.

Art And All That Part X

I don't know how many more Art And All That posts there will be:  I am noticing that more and more blogs, sermons, and Christian Artists are talking about this subject, and doing a much better job than I am.  I expect that I will finish up my own work in "stirring the pot" on this subject soon.

Interestingly enough, I recently found out (with the assistance of my son-in-law, who apparently spends time scouring the internet for blog fodder for me, his mother-in-law!), that there is now an evangelical protestant church in Chicago whose target audience is artists.  The inspiration for The Line church came from an article by none other than Makoto Fujimura--I told you he was someone to watch!

The Line church is set up a little differently than usual.  The result of the vision of Aaron Youngren, former corporate climber at Amazon, with a deep desire to experience a church where artists were spiritual leaders.

Being an artist in his own right—a musician and a writer—Youngren had long struggled to reconcile the seemingly off-kilter role the arts had played in his own church experience, and he hoped to correct that at The Line.  Youngren hopes that part of the ministry of The Line will be affirmatively answering the question

"Can the art that is present in the world be redeemed and be a part of the church?” By “redeemed,” Youngren doesn’t just mean hung up on the wall, but fundamentally changed from the core so that, as he said, “everyone can respect it and see it right alongside the rest of art and know that it’s different.”

To accomplish this goal and target artists as a missional "tribe" for the purposes of reaching them with the gospel, Youngren looked for a "mature Christian, theologian, and public artist" to bring onboard as artist-in-residence.  The church supports  Jon Guerra, a musician with the band Milano, and he receives a modest living from them just to create art, though he does often lead worship on Sunday mornings.

This is a novel approach, and I think a good move toward recognizing the importance of art.  Several other points are made in the article which I'd like to point out before I take up the matters that concern me.

Regarding the question concerning redeeming art referenced above, the article states:

Many churches in Youngren’s past had been aware enough to ask this question, but answered it negatively, believing refined art is not appropriate for a church setting. “In other words,” Youngren said, “We can turn the amps up, we can make it sound more modern, but when it comes to things like abstraction, impression, and subtlety, we think they are best left outside the corporate church setting.

This is a failing in our churches and our worship.  In my experience, our God expresses Himself as often in abstraction, impression and subtlety as He does in fact, certainty and practicality!  Scripture is clear about this, stating that no one has an excuse for ignorance about God because God's Art proclaims it! (Romans 1:20)

Another great point emphasized in the article is contained in the following quote:

The church should foster imaginations, but they must be wise imaginations. At The Line, artistic excellence is always paired with spiritual maturity. Becoming more Christ-like, not just better artists, is its main priority. “If we ‘re not doing the hard work of studying Scripture and taking care of our own spiritual lives, why in the world would people listen to anything we put out?” Guerra asks. “There needs to be a well from which we are drawing, and that well needs to be rich in the truth so that we aren’t given to vagueness or heavy-handedness.”

Well, Mr. Guerra, I can answer your question ("If we're not doing the hard work of studying Scripture and taking care of our own spiritual lives, why in the world would people listen to anything we put out?")--non-Christians are willing to listen to or look at pretty much anything that stimulates their sensuality.  Unfortunately, too many Christians don't care enough about the theology behind the art to be properly discerning about it, which is one of the reasons we are in this mess--and that's what leads to the vagueness and heavy-handedness.

 So, yes, I agree with the premise in the above quote.  Christian Artist...what is your goal?  Is it a priority for you to be more Christ-like?  Or have you decided that your art is more important than your theology and your prayer life?

And Les Rorick, a 25 year old actor who began to attend The Line, says a most profound thing in the article:

“I always gave worship leaders a huge latitude of grace, thinking that, as an evangelical, the text is more important than how it sounds. But now I’m in a process of finding a balance in that. Finding that the sound is an expression of other attributes that are important, like goodness and beauty.”

And lastly, and encouragement to embrace True Art and support Christian Artists:

Submitting yourself to this tribe is not limited to attendance at The Line, or churches with a similar elevation of artists. Anyone can submit to beauty and art by simply learning to appreciate it. Learn how to read a novel or a poem. Learn how to listen to music and experience a painting. Support the artists in your community not just spiritually but also financially. Seek out creative and unsolicited ways to do this. Attend a Milano concert or buy their new EP. Purchase a painting or attend a friend’s show. By supporting artists, you are co-collaborators with them in creativity and truth-searing. And remember that, as Fujimura pointed out, “the first people known to be filled with the Holy Spirit were not priests, kings, or generals, but artists named Bazelel and Oholiab, who built Moses’ Tabernacle.”

Thinky Things

So far, so good.  These are all great ideas and thoughts about True Art as we have defined it.  I encourage you to meditate and comment on these. 

Coming up next:  the not-so-good attitude that is beginning to display itself among us...

Read the whole article on The Line here.

Thinking Poor

Two scenarios:

Scenario ONE

It is 25 years ago, and my husband and I are in the sewing shop surrounded by exciting fabrics and notions.  We are speaking to our friend who owns the store as she shows us sewing machine models.  The model I have been using is a verified antique bought for me by my mom when she found it on sale and in working condition: we now have two children who are getting older, and we need a more reliable, more modern machine.

We are poor.  I cannot tell you how poor.  The reason we are in this shop in this town is because my husband just got laid off in the great oil bust of the late 1980s, and we have taken the separation money and have moved to his college town so he can finish his degree.  Making clothes is still cheaper (at this time) than buying them, so investing in a sewing machine is a wise purchase.

We look at all the models, even those priced very much higher than we were planning to spend.  Finally we decide:  not the cheapest model, and not the most expensive.  We choose the model from the expensive line that is most likely to be repairable by my husband himself, should it break.  Our friend the shop owner comments on how blessed she is by my husband's attitude in laying out so much money for a sewing machine.  I remember the warm feeling I had as my husband shared with her that he believed in buying the best you can afford because it would last longer and cost less in the end, AND that since he would have done that in buying tools for his garage, he wanted to make sure I got the best tool we could afford for the house.

(I am fat.  She was thin and beautiful.  But I will never forget the day she told me she didn't think her husband would stay with her if she gained any weight.  That's a story for another day…)

Scenario TWO

I know a couple where there are no children in the home, the husband has a great job which pays well.  They are older, and have taken good (maybe too good!) care of their money over the years.  They are not hurting, not by any stretch of the imagination.

However, in their pantry you will find stacks and stacks of ramen noodles, bought on sale.  On every chair in their home you will find a stack of newspapers containing coupons which the wife will try to go through and diligently cut out every coupon and find every sale.  They do not need any more ramen noodles, but they will buy them anyway, if they are on sale--because they are cheap.  They each carry cell phones, but they are used, old models which have not been upgraded in years, and which do not work half the time.  The husband refuses to upgrade to a phone plan which allows texting: If the wife uses more than twenty texts a month, her husband has words with her--her best friend cannot answer the few texts she receives from her because her friend has asked her not to use up her texts by answering.

In their very nice suburban home, which they bought new and have lived there for 12 or 15 years, there are a few problems:  in one case, there are several windows that have become loose and allowed water into the walls, which are now molding and rotting.  The wife tried to explain this to her husband several years ago when all that would have been needed was for the windows to be changed out.  But the husband could not bring himself to spend the money.  Now, however, there is water damage that will cost a lot more than just the replacement windows.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I could go on.  There are more than two scenarios to illustrate this principle.  Sometimes it seems like I am surrounded by this kind of thinking!

We at our house call this kind of thinking "thinking poor".  There's a pun in there, for those who are wise enough to see it.  And being poor does not necessitate thinking poor.  In fact, in the end, thinking poor causes poverty, I'm convinced of it.

Here's how it works:  thinking poor causes the purchase of the cheapest possible option, no matter the construction or condition of the item.  If it's a couch, you buy it from WallyWorld because they are supposed to have the cheapest stuff:  it says so right there on the t.v.  But...in three years that WallyWorld couch is going to be trashed because it was cheaply made.  You're going to end up back at WallyWorld for a couch AGAIN.

Let's say that instead you do one of two things:  you do without a couch for a time, save up your money, and purchase a little bit better model of couch at the local furniture store down the street.  No, it's still not the best, but it's better than what you had, and it's of good construction.  OR, perhaps you go to the local flea market or thrift shop, and you invest the time necessary to find a good, used couch which is built really well.  In both cases you've invested in more than just a couch.  You've invested in your self-discipline, you've invested in local businesses, and you've invested in an item that will be less of a liability.  This kind of thinking will clearly not lead to poverty.

Compare the futures of these two options:  one will continually be back at WallyWorld purchasing "new" but badly built couches every three years.  The other will pay a little more, but the couch will last MUCH longer.  In the end, the second option is the one that actually MAKES money!

Over time, I have watched many people fall into the trap of thinking poor and I have pondered what goes on "under the hood" of this process.  The best I can come up with is a deep root within the person of a quality you may be surprised to discover:  self-pity (which is a branch of pride, by the way).  Yes, I really believe that self-pity may be at the bottom of a lot of bad purchasing decisions.  Consider this:  the person wants something, but resents the fact that they are "poor" (poor being a variable dependent upon the definition of the person themselves, and not on any objective standard) and feels cheated by life because of it.  So they purchase a "new" item, which makes them feel good about themselves, but they have to purchase it of the cheapest variety because they don't believe their circumstances would ever be better or that they can do anything about it.

In the case of the couple above, they were too "poor" to replace the windows in the home God gave them, but now they discover that they are actually going to be even MORE poor after having walls torn out and replaced along with the windows!  And think about what their decisions concerning cellphones show about them:  they may think they are being wise to keep old phones and ask their friends not to contact them.  But what price are they paying in their relationships because of this?  We may never know:  but I know that it feels somewhat offensive when my friend is allowed to text me, but I am not allowed to text her in return.  A very tiny investment in better phones and a texting plan would repay them many times in relationship credit.  Not only that, but that husband could love his wife by showing how he cares about her friendships--and it would cost so little.

Now, here's a disclaimer:  I am not saying that everyone should ignore their bank balance and their living circumstances and just buy the best of everything for themselves because they deserve it!

I've been poor most of my life--or at least poor as compared to American standards.  I have yet to really miss a meal or spend a night without a roof over my head.  But I have had to watch my money carefully, and there were times in our lives when I would have been taking food out of my children's mouths if I had decided to buy a coke.  So I do know what it's like to be living paycheck to paycheck, not able to afford any extras.

The opposite of "thinking poor" is not "thinking rich".  It's thinking right!  Do the math!  Think through the problem using your head, not your self-pitying heart.  Delay your gratification long enough to purchase an item that will last for awhile and will in that way actually help you get your feet under you--rather than buying an item that is instead going to be a liability and keep knocking your feet out from under you at the worst times.  Buy some ramen if you must, but save some of that money for vegetables:  you can never replace your health, and eating ramen all the time will rather destroy that precious commodity.

Here's another example:  don't shop at the Dollar Store, or any of it's many permutations.  Or if you feel you must, go in there and compare prices.  Just once, look at the price of what you buy in there and then head out to the local grocery store or WallyWorld.  Check the price on the same item.  Dollar Stores are not cheap!  People tend to shop there because it seems like a good concept:  everything is a dollar, right?  Except that what is stocked there is often of the cheapest, most worthless quality, and the price can actually be higher than in other stores in the area.  If you must shop there, be very sure that you have done the math and are buying the best you can afford at a reasonable price.

Another point to be made, and at which I've already hinted, is that thinking poor is not limited to money.  In fact, what I find is that people who think poor about money invariably think poor about just about everything.  Take, for example, the couple and the issue with the phones:  they are not thinking at all about what a cellphone is really for.  They are only thinking about how much the cellphone costs--which is not what cellphones are about.  And what about the coupons?  They are not thinking at all about the items they really need and will use, but rather about their cost.  The wife will use hours of time going through some of those papers and cutting out coupons for things which they will buy but never use, simply because they are on sale.  Her investment of time is not benefiting the Kingdom of God or her family, but rather the opposite.  Consider also their home:  in every chair is a pile of these papers.  Taking the risk of tossing a few coupons that could save them a few cents would make their home so much more pleasant to live in:  would allow them to use their home more often for godly hospitality.  What price are they paying?

1. Think through purchasing and other decisions without self-pity

2. Consider ALL the "costs" involved--not just the money.  Time, stress, relationships, ministry, replacement/repair; all these are costs!
3. Do the math--all of it.

Apply this to coupon shopping, for instance.  First of all, make sure that shopping with coupons is not a way of saying "poor me, I'm so poor, I can only afford what I want if I shop with coupons."  Be careful also that it is not a way of being prideful; "I am a good shopper because I save money by shopping with coupons".

Then, consider all the costs involved:  yes, that coupon may allow you to purchase 6 cans of minestrone soup for a dollar: 12 if you can borrow the newspaper from your neighbor who never uses coupons, and take it to a second store to get another deal.  But your family HATES minestrone soup!  And what about the time it took you to cut out all those coupons?  Is it possible there was a better use of your time?  If not, then fine.  But be sure.  And what about the gas involved in going to BigLots for bread and cooking oil, WallyWorld for Hamburger Helper, and Kroger for hamburger?

This is one reason I do not shop using coupons on a regular basis.  I have shopped around my area, found the establishment which generally has the best prices on most items which I normally buy at the best quality, and I restrict myself to shopping there.  It does not cost me precious time searching for or cutting out coupons (time which I could be spending with my kids), gas and travel time (driving from one establishment to another to get the best deals on all the different items I use), nor stress and frustration.  It's a good deal in more than just cents!

Thinky Things

So far I have yet to mention scripture at all concerning this subject.  Allow me to just list several below that I think are applicable.  If you don't agree or you can't see how one applies, leave a comment saying so and I'll try to explain.

Lastly:  ask yourself this:  what if God thought about His sacrifice for your salvation the way you are thinking about your money or time expenditures?

Proverbs 6:10–11

Proverbs 26:12

Proverbs 26:16

Ecclesiastes 5:10

Isaiah 55:2

Matthew 6:24–34

Matthew 10:16

Matthew 25:24–29

Matthew 26:6–13

1 Timothy 6:10–11

Hebrews 13:5