Book Report

I have been reading another great book. It is called Dirty Word - The Vulgar Offensive Language of the Kingdom of God - by Jim Walker.

This is one of those books that really kicks me around and makes me think. It makes me think about the way we do church and ministry. I like people that make me think.

In the book is a passage from a book by one of my hero's, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In his book Life Together, he has a quote:

"God hates visionary dreaming; it makes the dreamer proud and pretentious. The man who fashions a visionary idea of community demands that it be realized by God, by others, and by himself. He enters the community of Christians with his demands, sets up his own laws, and judges the brethren and God Himself accordingly. He stands adamant, a living reproach to all others in the circle of brethren. He acts as if he is the creator of the Christian community, as if his dream binds men together. When things do not go his way, he calls the effort a failure. When his ideal picture is destroyed, he see the community going to smash. So he becomes first a rejecter of his brethren, then a rejecter of God, and finally the despairing rejecter of himself."

Walker uses this in talking about building community. He ask the question, "How do we conjure up authentic Christian community? We don't. Because frankly we cant. He says that it happens naturally. It happens when we are surrendered and humbled. Koinonia will take place naturally.

Challenging.

Poverty

I have been thinking over the words of Jason Upton in his song: Power in Poverty. They are so profound. I want to weep every time I think of them. We chase and chase big, shiny and new. We chase the cutting edge, but what about the poor. A Catholic Priest I heard once really challenged me to invest in the bellies of the poor. We need them. We can never end poverty. Therefore, we always have something to do.

Power in Poverty – Jason Upton

There's a power in poverty that breaks principalities
And brings the authority's down to their knees
There's a brewing frustration and ageless temptation
To fight for control by some manipulation

But the God of the kingdoms and the God of the Nations
The God of creation sends his revelation
Thru the homeless and penniless Jesus the son
The poor will inherit the Kingdom to come

Where will we turn when our world falls apart
And all of the treasures we've stored in our barns
Can't buy the Kingdom of God?

Who will we praise when we've praised all our lives
Men who build Kingdoms and men who build fame?
But heaven does not know their names?

What will we fear when all that remains
Is God on His throne, with a child in his arms, and love in his eyes
And the sound of his heart cries

What a Day

The last 24 hours has been odd. I was called to the hospital to be with a family. The husband had been diagnosed with an aggressive type of Leukemia. He had been fine, started feeling bad, went to the hospital and was admitted. He progressively got worse and worse. By 2 am, he was dead. I have never seen someone die so quickly from this disease. Normally they suffer for a long time. He did not. He and his wife loved each other so much. They were a real example of a loving relationship.

While leaving the hospital I ran into another church member. Her niece was on life support. She was only 28, mother of 2. She died this afternoon. The family is devastated. As one could imagine.

In both cases the doc's and nurses did every thing they could. It seems they pulled out all the stops and tried everything. But the effects of these diseases was too much.

What a day for these two families.