The Bible is a Drama

Last Tuesday I got to hear N.T. Wright speak, thanks to this event. I had seen the theologian's quotes plastered around the Internet and maybe a little bit of print media, but the presentation shed a bit more light about the man's views, which I generally find myself supporting. The presentation's title indicated that it was going to be a debate...why else would a UT philosophy professor take the stage with him...but as it turned out the philosophy professor was Christian as well, so the result was more of one person asking the other some rather hard questions and agreeing with the answers. A bit less interesting, and not what I, nor my pastor (who ran into me at the local taco shop that evening and invited me to the event), expected, but still worthwhile. In the next few posts I'll relay on some of the more interesting, or encouraging, things that Wright said during the event...I took notes.

For starters, there was the question toward the end of the event of why one should take the time to read the Bible.

What 6 Strings and an Amp Taught Me

In a word? Heart.

There has never been a great guitar solo in which the artist didn't care about what he was doing.  Instead that great guitar solo was, in essence, their life.  It was the expression of emotion in which words would not suffice.  It was the story from their childhood which was too hard to tell.  It was the bad break up in college which they never let go.  It was the celebration of their life.  The guitarist, in that moment, was pouring his life - his heart - into that solo.  Note by note and string by string, he was telling us a story, his story.  

Why 'Modern Day Monks?'

Andrew here.
I wanted to share a little on my perspective of how and why we chose the name Modern Day Monks. Then I would also like to have the other members of our merry band of brothers to weigh in with their insight, reasoning, and doubtless wit to give you, the reader, a look into our rambling thoughts and passions.

Let's Be Real For a Minute

Man it's hard out here and I'm hurtin

Don't need no choir girl flirtin

Don't need no pastor tryna touch on kids

Telling me what I can't wear to church and

No fake cryin, a preacher lyin

Sayin God don't love me if I don't tithe

I need real Him in a real season

I need real faith in a real Jesus

Life get's hard sometimes. I think we all know it.  I think a bunch of us try to ignore it. I think a bunch of us try and manage it.  I think a bunch of us worry about it.  The world is filled with temptation.  The world is filled with sin.  The world is filled with darkness............Great start, huh?

Expectations & Objective Reality

As a member of the so-called Millennial Generation, I've been on the receiving end of numerous articles, blog posts, and sermons regarding the importance of work and just doing something. Just last week I saw an article admonishing young people that any job they do matters, because that's where God put them. There is certainly nothing wrong with that, but it leaves many of us unsettled and anxious, wondering why we have such a hard time accepting things the way they are.

What is sadly lacking in those articles and blogs is a discussion of why we, as millennials, feel so dissatisfied with our jobs. Rather than addressing why we feel the way we do and why we spend so much of our time talking about our frustration and anger, people simply state that we need to find our fulfillment in Christ and realize that anything we do is meaningful simply because we are doing it. Every job matters.

Why?

So, if you all have read the previous posts, I am sure you have figured out we like to ask a lot of questions.  Sometimes I feel like a glorified version of a five year old kid asking "why?" over, and over, and over again.  Well...when you really think about it, "why?" is exactly what we should all be asking.

Recently I had the opportunity to talk with a group of people who all come from different backgrounds and all have different passions in life. I am part of a small group at my church in Colorado Springs where we are reading through a version of the Bible called Books of the Bible.  It is an NIV translation where the chapter and verse numbers have been removed, and the order of the new testament has been changed to make it read as more of a narrative than it would be traditionally.  The goal is to understand the bigger picture of the story of Jesus and how it plays into our lives.

The Sum of All Fears Is 2

Psalm 34:4 "I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears." Yet, just a couple versus down, "Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him have no lack!" Wait a minute...

Fear and Light

Monday evening, something got in my eye such that it hurt when I blinked, or closed my eye too hard. That night, what kept me awake wasn't so much the pain as the intense desire for the pain to stop, or rather the fear that what I was doing was doing lasting damage to my eye. My fear was that what I was doing would have lasting, negative consequences. 24 hours later, I was still having issues. 24 hours after that, my eye was pretty much fine, and I went on with life.

Tonight, before heading over to a nearby coffee shop, I ate at an Asian place. I got a fortunate cookie along with the meal...

Dead at 25, Buried at 80

Recently a mentor at work told a friend of mine,
"Most men die at twenty-five, but are buried at eighty."

I turn twenty-five this year... and I see exactly what he means.
It's being slowly jaded by the futility of most days.
It's about losing your passions, dreams, and ideals.
It's the realization that life isn't more than surviving today.
It's becoming a slave to the daily grind.
It's seeing most of your work being ultimately meaningless.

Do Not Fear, Nor be Dismayed

Fear.  An emotion we all experience at one point or another.  Whether it be fear of spiders, snakes and other terrible animals or fear of commitment, disappointment or the unknown, we all experience it.

Fear can be a crippling emotion.  Some of the most important decisions in life end up being driven by fear instead of being driven by passion.  "I am scared of what will happen if I take this next step, so I am going to go an easier way around."