Dear Pope Francis,
I am a fan.
Everything I read about you screams...I follow Jesus. You are literally the most powerful man in Christendom, in fact you are the most powerful man in the religious community period. Well, I mean there is Jesus and those millions of people who follow Mohammed, but hey let's face it, they look to you too.
You care about poor people. You care about living in luxury. You are living with the other people who work in the Vatican, not the papal palace. You are living out what your church, The Catholic Church has demonstrated so well through the years, to take care of people. You tweet. And in those tweets you ask us to pray for you. Pray for you? You and the people of your faith believe that you act "in persona Christi," in the person of Christ for your people. If you wanted to (which it has been done like twice) you could speak from the Bishop's chair and your words would be infallible. Yet, you are asking us to pray for you. That is powerful humility, my friend. Get it, Pope Francis.
Your very Baptist friend,
Will
Protestant friends,
Support his man. Pray for him. Rather you like it or not he represents you to the world. They see him as the face and voice of Christianity, you don't have to like it, but it is reality.
I saw so many things making fun of him during conclave. Making fun of what they do. Stop it. It was all in good fun, but seriously this man could usher in a huge change in the way Christianity is viewed around the world. Please lets join hands and share the gospel instead of dividing further.
Go, be Christ's people. His little c, catholic church. We are all in this together, and not just high school musical style for real.
Again,
Will
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Blessed are the Peace Makers
I was reading my Bible last week and had a particularly heavy heart. Recently I have been asking God what he wants me to do in this thing we call life. I mean, I certainly have my passions. I love kids, I love camp, I love helping those in need but the more and more I learn and grow I have a desire to know what that looks like. It was almost like a brick hit me in the face when the word "peace" was whispered and I could almost hear it. I immediately jumped to Matthew 5 in my Bible and read, "Blessed are the peace makers, for they shall be called the sons of God."
What does that mean? Well, for me it means a lot of things. I am a Southern Baptist born and raised and I go to CBF seminary. I attend a CBF church. I spend my summers working for the second largest Christian publishing company in the world, a SBC affiliate. I really do love both sides. I do. I think they are both full of men and women that love and seek after the Lord, but I don't think both sides see the other that way. I tend to see what they have in common - a magnificent passion for Jesus Christ and his gospel and not how they choose to describe the inspiration of Scripture. Because I see that they both love Jesus.
Today, my facebook wall was filled with red equal signs as people's profile pictures. I read and then hid hundreds (or it seemed like) statuses on the Supreme Courts pending decision on same sex marriage. I heard a lot of things. "Heavy hearts." "Intolerance." "Bigots." And it made me sick. Both of them. I found a lack of grace among both parties. Let me say a few things. First, friends, lets have an opinion. By all means, let it happen. But, let us be graceful in that opinion. Friends that support homosexual marriage, have grace for your friends who don't. They aren't (or shouldn't be) attacking you personally, they are just trying to live out their beliefs. Friends, who do not support it, have grace! Your friends from the other side are warring inside themselves and hurting to try and figure out what God wants of them, shouldn't we all do that?
You see, us Protestants are fixed in on justification by faith alone, no works. But, we fall into the trap so many times, forget St. Paul and Mr. Luther and add things as prerequisites to salvation. You have to believe homosexuality is wrong to be a Christian. You have to believe the Bible is inherrant to love Jesus. We had so much to the Gospel. Some of you are reading this and saying, but the repentance is a prerequisite of salvation, Will. You have to repent to follow Christ. I agree, mostly. I like it better if we say, if we follow Christ, we will repent. Romans 10:9 tells us, "if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead we will be saved." I think if we believe that we will repent.
And the truth will win. What are you so afraid of? Why are you so scared of people believing something different than you? All you need to do is search so hard after truth. You have to run toward it. Dig it out, eat it up. Dwell in it. And the truth will prevail. If you are afraid of different beliefs then you might not be so grounded in the truth to begin with.
I would also like to briefly say that a popular phrase I have heard today is "you can't legislate morality." Well, you can. We have. Should we, that can be a different story all together. I don't think we can force someone who does not follow Christ to live a lifestyle that we live only because we do. That being said, be careful. Just be careful.
Did you notice I got all the way through this post and didn't state my opinion? I didn't say what word I use to talk about inspiration of Scripture and I didn't say where I stand on marriage equality. I will tell you, and chances are if you know me you know what I believe. But, I do want to love and to make peace. Because I think with all our arguing we are hurting the Gospel. And that breaks my heart. My heart is heavy because when people see our arguments and rants at each other they are not seeing Jesus, they are seeing the Evil One. That is completely contrary to the Gospel. It is damaging. It shatters it and tears it apart one thread at a time and I cannot see it anymore. We have to make peace.
We have to get over ourselves. We have to realize there are people all over the world that are dying of starvation and we are arguing over who we can have sex with. We have to realize Jesus is a big, big God and he needs his whole, universal, catholic church to spread the Word. Make peace tonight, friends. Love like Jesus did. Speak truth, yes. But have grace, duh. Go be the sons (and daughters) of God. Go make peace.
What does that mean? Well, for me it means a lot of things. I am a Southern Baptist born and raised and I go to CBF seminary. I attend a CBF church. I spend my summers working for the second largest Christian publishing company in the world, a SBC affiliate. I really do love both sides. I do. I think they are both full of men and women that love and seek after the Lord, but I don't think both sides see the other that way. I tend to see what they have in common - a magnificent passion for Jesus Christ and his gospel and not how they choose to describe the inspiration of Scripture. Because I see that they both love Jesus.
Today, my facebook wall was filled with red equal signs as people's profile pictures. I read and then hid hundreds (or it seemed like) statuses on the Supreme Courts pending decision on same sex marriage. I heard a lot of things. "Heavy hearts." "Intolerance." "Bigots." And it made me sick. Both of them. I found a lack of grace among both parties. Let me say a few things. First, friends, lets have an opinion. By all means, let it happen. But, let us be graceful in that opinion. Friends that support homosexual marriage, have grace for your friends who don't. They aren't (or shouldn't be) attacking you personally, they are just trying to live out their beliefs. Friends, who do not support it, have grace! Your friends from the other side are warring inside themselves and hurting to try and figure out what God wants of them, shouldn't we all do that?
You see, us Protestants are fixed in on justification by faith alone, no works. But, we fall into the trap so many times, forget St. Paul and Mr. Luther and add things as prerequisites to salvation. You have to believe homosexuality is wrong to be a Christian. You have to believe the Bible is inherrant to love Jesus. We had so much to the Gospel. Some of you are reading this and saying, but the repentance is a prerequisite of salvation, Will. You have to repent to follow Christ. I agree, mostly. I like it better if we say, if we follow Christ, we will repent. Romans 10:9 tells us, "if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead we will be saved." I think if we believe that we will repent.
And the truth will win. What are you so afraid of? Why are you so scared of people believing something different than you? All you need to do is search so hard after truth. You have to run toward it. Dig it out, eat it up. Dwell in it. And the truth will prevail. If you are afraid of different beliefs then you might not be so grounded in the truth to begin with.
I would also like to briefly say that a popular phrase I have heard today is "you can't legislate morality." Well, you can. We have. Should we, that can be a different story all together. I don't think we can force someone who does not follow Christ to live a lifestyle that we live only because we do. That being said, be careful. Just be careful.
Did you notice I got all the way through this post and didn't state my opinion? I didn't say what word I use to talk about inspiration of Scripture and I didn't say where I stand on marriage equality. I will tell you, and chances are if you know me you know what I believe. But, I do want to love and to make peace. Because I think with all our arguing we are hurting the Gospel. And that breaks my heart. My heart is heavy because when people see our arguments and rants at each other they are not seeing Jesus, they are seeing the Evil One. That is completely contrary to the Gospel. It is damaging. It shatters it and tears it apart one thread at a time and I cannot see it anymore. We have to make peace.
We have to get over ourselves. We have to realize there are people all over the world that are dying of starvation and we are arguing over who we can have sex with. We have to realize Jesus is a big, big God and he needs his whole, universal, catholic church to spread the Word. Make peace tonight, friends. Love like Jesus did. Speak truth, yes. But have grace, duh. Go be the sons (and daughters) of God. Go make peace.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Remember.
I remember talking with one of my friends way back over Christmas break about my life in Waco. We were talking about the church I attend and various things that I like about it. One thing I said was I really enjoy that we do communion on a regular basis. It doesn't happen once a quarter or twice a year, but about once a month. I love it, I told him. Then he said something really profound that got me thinking....he said I understand communion and why we do it, but it has never really been a super spiritual experience for me.
Fast forward to several weeks ago taking communion at church. As the words were read and the bread broken, I asked myself am I getting anything out of this? Is this benefiting me? Is it edifying me? Then, as I prayed I took a step back and realized...it isn't about me it is about remembering Jesus. Remember.
How often do we repeat similar mistakes and failures in our lives? How often do we neglect the things we have been taught and learned from God? The children of Israel did it. When they finally crossed into the Promised Land they set up a stone, an altar to remember. God told them to tell their children so that he could be remembered. They didn't remember. Instead they sacrificed them to idols.
Isn't that what God sent Jesus to do? To remember? Yes, I think it is. We have the Holy Spirit inside of us and he helps me to remember. When I get so bogged down and tempted by this world I need to reflect and remember. Remember smiling faces looking at me from the steps at First Baptist Church. I need to remember little boys crying after they have accepted Jesus as their savior. I remember community and friendship God has used in my life. I remember where I have come from and where I think God is going to lead me in the future.
But, how do we make that a consistent part of our lives? Several things - first, walk with the Lord. Jesus said you would know his children by the fruits they bear. If we are truly seeking after God we are going to bear fruit. It is going to happen. Consistency is the name of the game. I know no one is perfect, but it has to be an everyday thing. Prayer, scripture and reflection need to happen daily.
Lastly, I'd say we need community. We need people that remind us. That are honest with us. That call us back to those times God wants us to remember.
Jesus said it, "As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, this do in remembrance of me."
Fast forward to several weeks ago taking communion at church. As the words were read and the bread broken, I asked myself am I getting anything out of this? Is this benefiting me? Is it edifying me? Then, as I prayed I took a step back and realized...it isn't about me it is about remembering Jesus. Remember.
How often do we repeat similar mistakes and failures in our lives? How often do we neglect the things we have been taught and learned from God? The children of Israel did it. When they finally crossed into the Promised Land they set up a stone, an altar to remember. God told them to tell their children so that he could be remembered. They didn't remember. Instead they sacrificed them to idols.
Isn't that what God sent Jesus to do? To remember? Yes, I think it is. We have the Holy Spirit inside of us and he helps me to remember. When I get so bogged down and tempted by this world I need to reflect and remember. Remember smiling faces looking at me from the steps at First Baptist Church. I need to remember little boys crying after they have accepted Jesus as their savior. I remember community and friendship God has used in my life. I remember where I have come from and where I think God is going to lead me in the future.
But, how do we make that a consistent part of our lives? Several things - first, walk with the Lord. Jesus said you would know his children by the fruits they bear. If we are truly seeking after God we are going to bear fruit. It is going to happen. Consistency is the name of the game. I know no one is perfect, but it has to be an everyday thing. Prayer, scripture and reflection need to happen daily.
Lastly, I'd say we need community. We need people that remind us. That are honest with us. That call us back to those times God wants us to remember.
Jesus said it, "As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, this do in remembrance of me."
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