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http://church20.blogspot.com/2008/07/free-ticket-and-gas.html

http://yourtown4jesus.com/2008/07/17/the-florida-revolutionwow/

http://yourtown4jesus.com/2008/07/17/we-need-a-hero/

http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/edstetzer/2008/07/thinking-about-m

Whenever I come to Orlando, I end up thinking about life and ministry.

Today was a day like that. After I finished teaching class, my daughter and I did a little tour and I shared with her part of her dad's (and her mom's) journey. She seemed interested, but it might have been the promise of ice cream along the way.

I was born and reared in New York and list that as "home" on forms that ask. However, Orlando has a lot of memories for me. I lived here as a teenager and had some significant milestones during those years:

1. I came to Christ in Orlando.

2. I was discipled here (in a new church plant as a teenager).

3. I met my wife in High School. We were high school sweethearts and even went to the prom together.

4. My sister died here (in 1987).

5. I grew greatly in my faith through, and in some cases because of, those things.

So, today I went by my old house (which was just torn down), the restaurant where I had my first date with Donna, my sister's memorial garden, and some other meaningful places with my daughter.

Being in Orlando makes me wish it was a simpler time when I did not have to worry about books and research, the challenges of denominational structures, who has this-or-that agenda, what event I was speaking at next, or what I had to say (or not say) at the next place.

I miss those days when things were simpler and it seemed that the big concerns were loving God, growing in faith, and helping others do the same. I am sure it was not as simple as I remember, but coming to Orlando makes me wish it was.

Being here makes me want to go back in time, grab a guitar (yes, I play, though not well), and go start a church with nothing but God, a Bible, and a mission...

So, pardon my musings. It was just a good day. It reminded me of what really matters... and it prompts me to adjust some things in my own life today and over the next few months.

I am currently in the middle of a series of posts titled, “All Mixed Up, Don’t Know What To Do”. However, the Lord has been teaching, and speaking to me through prayer, community, and one of my mentors about the authority of the Gospel in the upside down kingdom of Jesus. I will pick back up with the “All Mixed Up” series very shortly…

In the I.G. community here in our neighborhood we have committed to walking the streets every Friday morning at 7am to cover our neighbors in prayer. God has given us a desperate heart for this hood, and it’s sanctification. This is where we live, and we feel influenced to seek it’s welfare through deep relationships with those who live here as well. As we were walking the streets, and praying this past Friday the Lord gifted us with a beautiful realization about His authority, His Gospel, His Spirit that lives in us, and what that implies for those of us who call Jesus our Savior.

In man’s kingdom the word authority has a particular meaning. Many of us, myself included, are a bit rebellious by nature, and have had “issues with authority” throughout most of our lives. (The words of my amazing Dad!) Some of us relate the word to a husband & wife in the context of marriage, though often times not Biblical. We think of teachers, police officers, judges, managers, and bosses as having authority. Many of us are under the authority of someone, but also have authority over others. Regardless of which of the above examples we subscribe to the underlying theme is that of a power, or influence over others through control. The dictionary definition of authority is, “the power to determine, adjudicate, or otherwise settle issues or disputes; jurisdiction; the right to control, command, or determine.” Whether accurate, or inaccurate this is the view many of us have in regard to the word authority. The thoughts we have on words like authority are the result of our upbringing, culture, technology, country, education, and so much more. Sadly, this default meaning for the word authority we have acquired has tainted our ability to understand the authority that Jesus speaks of in His upside down kingdom. This is something that we will forever be handicapped by as we seek to pursue ushering in the kingdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven.
When Jesus walked the earth He challenged all the norms, thus we have the phrase “upside down kingdom”. There are many examples of how Jesus did this throughout scripture, but we will focus on His view of authority. As we saw earlier, man’s idea of authority stems from influence by control. We can all agree that our bosses have some degree of authority over us. They control, or influence the way we do things in many ways. A police officer has the authority to pull us over, ticket us, or arrest us. Jesus submits a different idea of authority in His upside down kingdom.

What if authority was not through control, or causing someone to submit to us, but rather something that was naturally awarded us as a result of love and service? For example, I submit to Christ, and His authority in my life as a result of His love for me. Jesus extended grace to me, and served me on the cross. My response to His actions are a willing submission to Him, and His authority in my life. He does not have to twist my arm, control, persuade, bribe, or compensate me to gain my submission to Him, which is not the case for most relationships we are in where someone has authority over us. We submit to our boss’s authority because he will fire us if we do not. We submit to our teachers because they have the ability to fail us. We submit to the police officer because he has a gun, and to the judge because he can put us in prison. Jesus’ authority is not a result of control of, or power over our individual lives. His authority in our lives is a result of us responding to Him, who He is, and what He did for us.

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Mark 10:45

This is how the triune God chose to gain authority “over” His children; by being under them. (Kneeling to wash the feel of His disciples & accepting a punishment for people who didn’t deserve it to gain them access to the creator of the universe.) He did not put His thumb on our heads, and push down. He came to serve us, and die for us to complete a task that we ourselves could not; He raised the bar, and set the standard for how we are to live. That is the authority He has in my life. My deep appreciation for His grace causes me to submit to his authority. He did not force authority, or control.

This is the authority that we are invited to have in the lives of our neighborhood if we emulate the actions of Jesus. The Jesus inside of us kneels down to serve, and “wash the feet of our neighbors”. We serve, love, and build a relationship with those who live around us. We, through humble service, earn a voice in the lives of those we have grown to love; those who have also grown to love us. We have now not only sought to share the Gospel in words, but with the actions of our lives. Hidden agendas are non-existent, and ulterior motives nowhere to be found. Through modeling the life of Jesus we have now, by accident, gained authority in the lives of our new friends. Actually, the Spirit of Jesus living in us has now gained authority by our obedience, and submission to Him.

These realizations are what led to our prayer for the neighborhood this past Friday morning. As we walked down Lorilyn Ave. I prayed that the Gospel, and love of Jesus would have authority in the lives of those who live in this neighborhood. I prayed that we, by the power of the Spirit of God living in us, would be made able to love and serve the people in this neighborhood in such a way that would cause them to respond appropriately. I prayed that the authority of Jesus, His Spirit, and His Gospel would reflect the upside down kingdom. We do not desire to have an oppressive, controlling, consequence fueled, and forced authority in this neighborhood. We begged the Lord to show us ways that we can come not to be served, but to serve our neighbors. We truly believe that as we move forward and reflect the upside down kingdom of Jesus that it would place a bent towards Jesus in the hearts of those who do not know Him as Savior.

“Jesus, may Your Gospel have authority & power in this neighborhood not through control, but through your followers humbly living out that Gospel. As we live a Spirit led life, may it gain a supernatural authority, presence, and voice in the lives of those who do not know You as Savior. Amen.”

http://dualravens.com/ravens/?p=228

Throughout Christian history there has been quite an interest in men and women who did great things, whether in this world or within their soul. These men and women weren’t seeking self-satisfaction. Rather, they were truly seeking God and his work in them and in this world. The interest in such people often insisted they be viewed as saints, objects of devotion if not worship. Biographies written were often filled with stories of great victories, moral pronouncements, heroic stands. Little was said that would suggest these people had real personal histories or daily struggles or lived in complex times.

Glossing over the negatives, and thus the whole truth, these biographies were meant more as inspiration than history–inspiration for those already walking in their footsteps, devoted to the cause and method.

A Persistent Peace: One Man’s Struggle for a Nonviolent World is such a book, though oddly enough not one written by a later disciple but rather written by the man himself, John Dear. This fact makes the book curious to review. I do not share his views on pacifism, yet I am sympathetic to them, and was very open to being convinced, enlightened and taught. I was curious how he formed his views, how he wrestled with the Catholic Church’s official teaching, and in general the overall story of a man who has been on the frontlines of peace protests for the last thirty years.

I was disappointed, however. A Persistent Peace is a history of the icon, John Dear S.J, and even more the story of the names and places involved in the Peace movement since Reagan.

But we never really get to know the man, John Dear. The gift of an autobiography is that we can see not only the events, but also the internal perspective, wrestling, frustrations, development of the subject. John Dear seems to open up, but often only in ways that bolster the sense of his superiority. People around him don’t understand him. They are bored or angry or confused. Dialogue is pontifications of his teaching to the ignorant, even hateful, opponents or less ignorant friends. This is coupled with a hero worship of sorts, in which Dear seems to reveal himself most by talking about the people he wants to be like. But, all throughout it seems a lot of the real John Dear remains hidden, hidden because it seems he is still unwilling to be truly transparent about who he is and where he came from.

In the foreword, Martin Sheen writes, “I suspect that much of John’s character was formed, as it is for all of us, during adolescence, that critical period when every level of physical, emotional, physiological, sexual, and spiritual development begins to emerge.”

I suspect this too. Only A Persistent Peace gives nothing of this. We begin with John in college at Duke. We are given only the barest glimpse of his family life, which is decidedly upper class and filled with powerful influences. Indeed, he mentions his father and mother only in passing again and again, often as sources of introductions for people he proceeded to lecture about peace issues.



So, we don’t really ever get to see the man, only the image of the peace activist seeking the way of Jesus in this world as he sees it, fighting against the benighted masses who disagree, not only with the goal but also the method–public protest and nuisance. This is not a review to argue such tactics, however, I can’t help but think that being empowered because of arrests for public behavior is entirely different than the martyrs arrested for their message. Speaking the message is perfectly fine and accepted, a fact I think grates against those who seek to find identity within a pampered martyrdom.

Because of this I was disappointed with the book. We are left with more of a polemic than a story, again and again told rather than shown. Which places me outside of the target audience, to be sure, which is almost certainly the choir of people who already celebrate the message, goals, and tactics of John Dear as being the true expression of a “faith that does justice”.

Giving this a star rating was difficult even still, because I realize for many this is precisely what they want and need. Hagiographies were popular, and still are, because people need heroes presented in a certain light and need the empowerment that comes from seeing their causes as black and white, good versus evil. I give it three stars because I do not share the initial assumptions and was seeking a history of the man rather than a story of places, and celebrities, and events that make up the Peace movement. I wanted to learn about the man, not the symbol.

Here is a quote that I think would best help readers to determine the worth of this book. John Dear upon arriving at the Pentagon says, “it was the center of death for the whole planet, its prime purpose to organize the empire’s killing sprees at the behest of the multinational corporations and their politicians.”

If you agree with this, then you will see this as a five star book, speaking truth to power, and modeling heroic activism. If you disagree, you will find this book likely confirming what you like least about the Peace movement, even if you happen to agree with many of their ideals.

This is not particularly an interesting or insightful autobiography. It compares poorly as such to the recent works by Jurgen Moltmann about his life in theology, A Broad Place: An Autobiography, or Billy Graham about his life in evangelism Just As I Am: The Autobiography of Billy Graham. Both were significantly more open and self-aware, maybe because both of these were written much later in their lives, after retirement and after perspective had given them added insights. Nor does this come near the masterpieces that are The Long Loneliness or The Seven Storey Mountain.

This is a book for the choir. If you’re wearing the robes then have at it, enjoy it, for it is certainly written with passion. It is also a good history of the last decades of the Peace movement. In fact, I wish Dear had not styled this a story of one man’s struggle and instead more honestly made this a book of many people’s participation.

As such, I’m left thinking Dear is trying to impose himself as a major figure, seeking the identity of his heroes Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Bobby Kennedy, but falling flat despite his many arrests and popularity within a certain segment of particular activists. He wants to be seen and applauded and affirmed.

Which makes me wonder what his life was like before Duke and with his family. Which makes me also wonder if maybe he really should have become a Franciscan after all.

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/DreamAwakener/~3/337808323/this-week

Jesus is given to the world. He was chosen, blessed, and broken to be
given. Jesus' life and death were a life and death for others. The
Beloved Son of God, chosen from all eternity, was broken on the cross
so that this one life could multiply and become food for people of all
places and all times.

As God's beloved children we have to
believe that our little lives, when lived as God's chosen and blessed
children, are broken to be given to others. We too have to become bread
for the world. When we live our brokenness under the blessing, our
lives will continue to bear fruit from generation to generation. That
is the story of the saints - they died, but they continue to be alive
in the hearts of those who live after them - and it can be our story
too. - Henri Nouwen

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/DreamAwakener/~3/336830986/a-theolog

http://www.kezrush.com/2008/07/girl-effect.html

http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/edstetzer/2008/07/edstetzer-20.htm

As you can tell, the blog has undergone a major redesign. When LifeWay upgraded our blogging platform to the most recent version of Movable Type, I decided it was time to give the blog an overhaul and knew Tim Challies was a guy I wanted to talk to. Tim is an uber blogger, an author and a professional web designer.

I wanted a unique, professional look that is easy to navigate and Tim really delivered. We are still building a few pages, but everything else is complete. I am very pleased with what Tim has done here and I hope it makes your visit more enjoyable. For those who need a little help understanding the "interweb" and the features of this blog, I've put together a brief guide to the blog that may be of help.

Navigation

The navigation at the top of the blog of the page will take you to general information concerning Lifeway Research, the Lifeway Research Team, my speaking schedule and the blog archives. You can find all my blog series in the sidebar, as well as a link to the books I have written.

Recent Comments

The "Recent Comments" section in the sidebar lists the six most recent comments left by blog readers on various posts. It's a quick and easy way to see where the conversation on the blog is taking place. If you leave a comment it will show up here. For comment guidelines please see the end of this post.

Twitter

What is Twitter? Think of it as a way to peek into my world, see where I am, what I am doing and what I am thinking as it happens. You can see the most recent "tweets" (brief posts, typically written from my cell phone) in my sidebar, but it's even more fun to sign up and follow on Twitter. You can follow me or subscribe to my Twitter at www.twitter.com/edstetzer.

The example to the right is a little tame, but today's twittering of the ICRS is here with about a dozen pictures and "commentary" here.

Article Series

Important topics that receive a number of posts are collected together in one place for easy reference. You can find them listed by topic in the sidebar. Click the topic link and you'll be directed to a page containing links to all the relevant posts on that topic.

Facebook

I'm on Facebook as well. Facebook is a social networking site that connects people all over the world, allowing for varying levels of interaction. If you are on Facebook, look me up here.

Noteworthy Items

You'll notice in the sidebar a section titled "Noteworthy Items." These are blog posts and articles around the web that are interesting, thought provoking, and worth a read. I am not endorsing everything linked, but consider worth thinking through and potentially discussing. You can find of my Noteworthy Items here.

Comment Guidelines

You will see this at the bottom of the articles now:

You are welcome (and encouraged) to comment on the blog, but be sure your comment relates to the post. Feel free to discuss the topic, but do not denigrate individuals. You may use HTML to style your comment. Comments are moderated and usually appear within 15 minutes of being posted. Regrettably, Ed cannot personally respond to most comments and questions.

I would love to hear any feedback from you and suggestions are welcome (perhaps for version 2.1!). Thanks for being a reader!