Rooting for the Laundry

I know it's cliché, but my Mom warned me about this. She really did. She actually warned me as a child about the dangers of letting myself become a Red Sox fan.

I was 9 years old in 1986, when the Red Sox were 1 strike away from breaking the 68 year old curse* that no one had even heard of until 4 years later. I had just played my first year of Little League. I watched every game I could that summer, which wasn't really that many, since we didn't have cable. I was highly impressionable as a new baseball fan. It was a tragically traumatizing experience.

I've had many favorite players over the years. Sadly, players come and go, but the true fans are still there, rooting for the laundry. The past couple of years, I've gone to Fort Myers for the week of St. Patrick's Day to take in a few baseball games and enjoy the Florida sun. This year, I had to forgo that trip due to the impending arrival of my son. Instead, we are joining a large contingent of Sox fans from the Sons of Sam Horn for Opening Day festivities in Arlington, TX. We actually have tickets to all 3 games of the series. Here is a look at the view from our seats.


*Disclaimer: No, I do not believe in curses and no, I can't stand Dan Shaughnessy.

The Incredible Foresight of God's Plan

What were you doing at 5:11 this morning? I was hitting snooze on my alarm ... I'm trying to get back into the habit of going to Men's Bible Study Breakfast on Tuesday mornings at Levy. It's a great start to the day... but if you know me at all, you know I'm NOT a morning person. Most of the men who attend are old enough to be my grandfather ... but that's one of the neat things about it. I'm a youth volunteer so on Sunday mornings, evenings, and Wednesday nights, I'm in the teen class. It's great to have this opportunity to study the Bible with peers and (even better) elders in the faith. There's just so much insight to be gained.

We've been studying the book The Most Excellent Way: Overcoming Chronic Issues That Divide The Church by Eldred Echols. I've been pleasantly surprised. I think I expected it to be a lot drier than it has been. The basic premise of the book is that all issues that divide the church can be overcome if we are truly treating each other with the love of Christ. (Incidentally, the same holds true of marriage, but that's another story.)

As we were discussing the resurrection this morning, a thought struck me. Think about the following passage from Matthew...

¹⁰ The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?"

¹¹ He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. ¹²Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.¹³ This is why I speak to them in parables:

"Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand."

¹⁴In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

'You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
¹⁵For this people's heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.'

¹⁶ But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. ¹⁷ For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.

Matthew 13:10-17 (NIV)

I can just imagine Jesus telling his disciples this, knowing full well that even though he tells them they've received the "knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven," they (the disciples) still don't understand them much better than the general masses. How many times do we, reading through the scriptures with the benefit of hindsight, think "How could the disciples be so thick-headed? They STILL don't get it!" I've often wondered why Jesus didn't just spell it out for the disciples, remedial-style ... until they understood God's plan for salvation. This is where it starts to get interesting...

Remember back to the upper room, when the disciples were huddled together behind locked doors out of fear that the Jews were going to come for them next. The resurrected Lord appears to them ... and suddenly they were transformed into fearless evangelists, bent on sharing the gospel whatever the cost, even if it meant losing their own lives ... the very reason they were hiding in fear when Jesus appeared.

Because the full mystery of God's plan was lost on the disciples while Christ was alive, the "Eureka!" or "Ah-hah!" moment that came when they realized the full implications of the resurrection was staggering and convicting. It forced them to reconsider all of the teachings of Jesus and the prophesies about Him in a new light. (Luke 24:31-32) Their eyes were finally opened and they reached a level of understanding that only comes through hindsight. God understood this aspect of human nature... and his plan accounted for it.

Lastly, from a 21th century perspective, it adds powerful evidence of the resurrection. How else can you explain the transformation of the disciples? From a psychological standpoint, it just doesn't make sense without the resurrection. Two thousand years later, we can still look back at the reaction of the disciples and be encouraged that our faith is not misplaced, and also be armed with a powerful tool for evangelism. Do you think Matthew and Luke understood as they penned the words of that particular story, that they would be so important 2,000 years later? All part of the plan.

¹⁶ All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)

Good Tunes

Picked up a couple of new CDs today ... Lifesong by Casting Crowns and Grace Like Rain by Todd Agnew. I actually intended to purchase Todd Agnew's new CD, Reflection of Something, but they were out of stock. Looking forward to the Todd Agnew show in Hot Springs April 22nd. Lastly, I picked up a copy of C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity. I'm almost finished with The Screwtape Letters now.

Fatherhood

I got a great email forward from my sister. In light of this week's new addition to our family, I thought I'd share a portion of it. It's a joke, but it's reassuring when your two year old daughter just won't listen.

Whenever your kids are out of control you can take comfort from the thought that even God's omnipotence did not extend to God's kids. After creating heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve. And the first thing He said to them was:

"Don't!"

"Don't what?" Adam asked.

"Don't eat the Forbidden Fruit." God replied.

"Forbidden fruit? We got Forbidden Fruit? Hey, Eve, we got Forbidden Fruit!"

"No way!"

"WAY!"

"Don't eat that fruit!" said God.

"Why?"

"Because I am your Father and I said so!" said God, wondering why he hadn't stopped after making the elephants. A few minutes later God saw the kids having an apple break and was angry.

"Didn't I tell you not to eat that fruit?" the First Parent asked.

"Uh huh," Adam replied.

"Then why did you?"

"I dunno," Eve answered.

"She started it!" Adam said.

"Did not!"

"DID so!"

"DID NOT!"

Having had it with the two of them, God's punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own ... thus the pattern was set and it has never changed.

But there is reassurance in this story. If you have persistently and lovingly tried to give them wisdom and they haven't taken it, don't be too hard on yourself. If God has trouble handling His children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you?

Peer Pressure

Peer pressure sucks, but so does Xanga. The real question is: Will my blog suck any less here? Don't count on it.