Crisis!

My favorite part about this economic crisis is that the average American has absolutely no idea what is going on. In fact, not just the average American, but almost every American! Heck, I only have a dim idea of what's going on.

Isn't that great? There was an awesome line in The Onion today. They do these fake man on the street interviews where they ask people what they think of current issues. Well, they asked a man what he thought about the defeat of the bailout bill. Here is his response:

"Congress really let the American people down, or really stood up for them. Honest to god, I got no freakin' clue anymore."

That's kind of how most people feel right now, isn't it? I guess it is actually not that funny that we are in the midst of crisis that nobody understands. But good news...I am pretty sure that though this crisis is dire, that sovereignty yet reigns. Also, worse case scenario is a total breakdown of all society, resulting in a return to the basest animal instincts as the rule for life. There will probably be some excellent evangelism opportunities in the midst of that.

I'm only half joking.

Just to share the wealth

Don Allen's Five Principles for Spiritual Leaders

1. A close connection with our leader...

Maintain your intimacy with Christ, seek after him daily.

2. Live a life worth following

Paul said, "follow me as I follow Christ."

3. Serve (by deeds and prayer)

Both are vital.

4. Motivate others to develop their gifts and abilities to fullest potential.

A good leader motivates others to develop without fear or envy.

5. Articulate a clear and compelling vision.

The vision must be clear, like Jesus's, but open-ended, to accomadate the gifts of all those underneath you.

A contrast

Hurricane Gustav and Ike have devastated Cuba, causing some 5 billion dollars in damage. Over 200,000 are homeless.

Meanwhile, on Wall Street, the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the near collapse of AIG has left many upset. Some have even lost jobs. Also, the stock market is lower, so some people may have lost money.

The US government has generously offered aid to each. The bailout package for Wall Street is an estimated 700 billion.

To the Cubans, the Bush administration offered 100,000 dollars. Not kidding. They later upped the number to 5 million.

Prayer

So, I'm reading through this book by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones called "Preaching and Preachers." Pretty much vintage Lloyd-Jones, aka, he says in twenty pages what could be summarized in about three paragraphs. But I read him because he will occasionally startle you with an almost life-changing insight, out of nowhere.

In the chapter entitled "The Preparation of the Preacher," he casually dropped a John Wesley quote. Here it is: "I don't think much of a man who doesn't pray four hours a day."

Tell me, is that realistic? I'm not sure. I think we could pray more, but four hours a day? Man!

Internal Dialogue of Abraham Upon Receiving the Instruction to Sacrifice His Son

First, let me say first, always first, that God has spoken, God has instructed. His words are true, and they will always be true. When he speaks I cannot but obey, so it was in the past, so it is now. I will not waver, I must not waver.

But what does this mean? How can this be? Frame my questions, O Master, O Lord, that even in them I may not sin against you! Is it sin to wonder though, what it is that you are doing? Or why you do this?

Let me return to what I said before, that the promise God gave me will always be firm in my mind. What did he say? He told me: "It is through Isaac that your offspring is to be reckoned." Did I mishear him? No, it could not have been clearer. This is what I have built all my life around, this initial action of God towards me, this motion, free and independent of God, while I still wandered in the land of my father, ignorant, still half-enthralled by the idolatry of my father's house (though not of my father). If free, than they can be trusted, they can be built around. What was his first promise to me, that through me he would create a mighty nation? Now look at me, rich perhaps, blessed in my household, but I have never felt like anything but a stranger here, still living in tents now after 40 years, no closer to the land, to possessing it.

But I see, I see, in the future a city, a city with foundations. It remains in my head, not in my head exactly, but by some capacity God has made, it is represented unto me and I see it, the eyes of my heart see it. It was made by God. He was its architect. It is beautiful.

How can I reconcile such promises? The Lord says he will make a nation from me! Then when I doubted his words and acted on my own to fulfill these promises, he spoke again. It is through Isaac, this boy, this precious thing, this hope of the world. I know that is what God means, remember the words of the promise, Remember them Abraham! It is the world that is being blessed through me, this is what my father told me, that ancient promise our father Adam received. And this boy is the promised one.

I must kill him? I must take his life? I do not understand.

The promises I know are true, because the one who spoke them is faithful. I will hold to these promises unswervingly. My master will bring forth from Isaac a nation, and I will kill Isaac. Though I do not understand the union of these two things, I do not need to. After all, what can God not to? God can raise the dead, he can bring back my son, my hope, the one on whom all these things rest, can he not? Is it through death that the promises will be fulfilled?

There is comfort there. I have to repeat it many times, for ever this flesh is weak, this flesh doubts. I will act, I will obey. God is faithful.

Lebron

The man, despite growing up in Cleveland, Ohio, a city with both a baseball team (the Indians), and a football team (the Browns), cheers for two of the most band-wagon-y and annoying franchises in all of sports. That's right, Lebron is a Yankees fan, even going to a playoff game in which the hometown Indians were playing the Yankees, in a Yankees cap!

Then on Sunday he was on the sidelines of the Dallas-Cleveland game.

Gross! I think it should be illegal to be a fan of both the Cowboys and the Yankees. It makes no sense geographically. In my mind, it casts serious doubts on the mans character.

Political

I am going to blog about politics a little bit.

I just re-read that sentence and threw up a little in my mouth.

1. Focus on the Family briefly had on their website a video with a guy talking about how he was praying for it to rain during Obama's open air speech at Invesco Field. It made him and every Christian involved in politics look like an idiot. I question the priorities of anyone who thinks the church should be concentrating its efforts on such an insignificant display of partisanship.

2. But do you want to know what political activist most blatantly claims to know what the Bible says about every political issue? That would be Jim Wallis. You should read his articles sometime; from them, you would think he has a direct policy line with God. Interestingly enough, the man who links his opinions on issues the strongest with the Bible is the one the left likes the most.

3. Moving into issues of hypocrisy, most Christians have been attacked for defending Sarah Palin with regard to her daughter's pregnancy. There is a very real lack of understanding here, which is credited to partisanship. If this was a Democrat, surely the right would be attacking the moral decadence of her daughter, and her failure as a parent. Right?

Yeah maybe. But it just shows how little the world understands grace, repentance, and forgiveness. Moral failure is not to be attacked absolutely, since "there is no one who does good, no one who seeks God."

4. That being said, Palin is a bad pick I think. She is inexperienced, she's got five kids, she's fought to get something like 260 million in earmarks for her city of 9000 people, and also, how the heck can she raise five kids and be vice-president? One of them is special needs! That women should be chilling at home taking care of her children, who need her. Am I right?

5. But I think I was still vote for McCain. If I needed any convincing, it was the anti-war protesters who somehow made their way into the Republican convention. They were so proud of themselves, as if they were some how making actual points rather than drawing attention to themselves. The earnest self-righteousness of the left makes me sick. Not that the right is much better, and I hate the conflation of politics and religion, the mixed-up-ness of it all.

And that is more forthright about politics than I have been in years.