Child Theology

Discussing theology with children is challenging. Their perspectives and my perspectives are different. I want to try and frame things in their understanding, but I don't understand their perspective.

Take my 3 year old. He's the one who sang a prayer that was "God our Father, God our Father, We thank You, We thank You, You smell like a donkey, You smell like a donkey, Happy birthday to You, Happy birthday to You."

The other day he was using the restroom. He hollered for me while he was in the restroom. I go to check on him and he asked me why God created us. Trying to keep things simple, I said because he loved us. He responded with a question, "was it for his own glory?" He has been paying attention when we go over the shorter catechism.

Last night, we were laying in bed and he asked if God had a house. I said that he had all of heaven. He asked if we would have a bedroom in heaven. I said that Jesus said that he was making a room for us in God's house. He then went through everything in his room asking if it would be there. His stuffed animals, the alphabet picture on the wall, the dog, the bunk bed, his brother. I told him, keeping it simple of course, that everything that made Jonas happy would be in heaven. It is true, since the Lord will be there, that is the source of all happiness.

I wasn't trying to win on a technicality though, somethings, I just don't know. What will be in heaven? I know God will be and all believers. Beyond that, I don't know. I had believed that this world would be destroyed. Taking with it the bunk bed, the alphabet picture, etc.. Then God would create a new heaven and new earth. John seems pretty specific about that in Revelation 21:1, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more." But two Sunday's ago, our pastor who has been preaching through the book of Revelation said that the new earth was this earth, but the change would be so radical we would consider it new. Now that was the first time I had ever heard that, and I don't remember his reasoning for it, but it was enough for me to not say with confidence that I know, but that I don't know.

With my son, I think that I understand theology until he asks me a question and I have to answer it like he is 3. Then I don't really know anymore.

There is a saying that if you can't explain something in terms that a lay person can understand it, then you don't understand it well enough. Perhaps if you can't explain theology well enough that a 3 year old can understand it, you don't understand it enough. I can't explain the doctrine of election to him, nor what exactly will be in heaven beyond us and God.

But I do know this is true and plain enough that a 3 year old can understand it. It is why we go over it every night. Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong, they are weak, but he is strong. Yes! Jesus loves me. Yes! Jesus loves me. Yes! Jesus loves me. The Bible tells me so.

Within the Two Binders: Sunday School teachers

My grandma told me that there use to be three binders. One day, my great-granddad decided he no longer needed the Sunday school lessons he wrote and he started to burn them. He burned one entire binder and was working on the second when my great-grandma caught him and took the binders. They were passed down to my grandma and no one has really done anything with them until now.

Reading this lesson makes me thankful I didn't have to hear him make this announcement in church, because it is pretty convincing.

Last Saturday, the Houston Press carried in box type headlines: "HELP WANTED: TO TEACH SUNDAY SCHOOL". "This is a help wanted ad, carried free on behalf on the nation's churches.

It is addressed to men and women who are willing to devote several hours a week to an unpaid job in which they will experience a lot of frustration and failure- occasional moments of triumph that make the whole thing seem worth while.

The job is teaching Sunday School.

American's 275,000 Sunday Schools are beginning their fall term this month.

They count on a record enrollment- probably about 42 million students.

Their biggest problem is recruiting 3 1/2 million teachers."

Last week at our Men's meeting we had a speaker who was well versed in the art of political science. In the course of his talk he made this remark. "That he was firmly convinced that five men who were dedicated and devoted could elect a man to any office in Harris County, provided, they were willing to perform all of the tasks necessary for the promotion of their candidate. Men who disciplined their lives for this one purpose.

Like our speaker of last week I believe that a few disciplined people could turn Harris County upside down for our Lord and Master.

To be a Sunday School Teacher takes discipline. You must discipline your talents, you must discipline your time, you must discipline your actions, and as the ad says, it is often frustrating and discouraging. But Sunday School Teachers should remember that in the story that Jesus told his disciples of the man who went forth to sow. Most of the see was waster, because they fell on hard ground or among weeds. But a few fell on fertile soil & bore rich fruit.

Our Father and our God we know that it is a privilege as well as a responsibility to be called to serve as a worked in the Sunday School. We thank Thee for those dedicated men and women who have given so freely of their time and their talent in its development.

We thank Thee for the Sunday School and for its contribution towards our civilzation and the daily influence that it has exerted on our lives.

As we take up the fall term inspire our hearts and our minds that we will want to be workers in Thy service and that we will not prove ourselves to be irresponsible. Teach us that we may learn to discipline our lives in such a manner that we will realize to the fullest our abilities and capabilities and that we will use them and direct them for the advancement of Thy kingdom.

We ask Thy blessing on our speaker as he brings us the message for tonight. Be with our School Supt., the teachers, the students and all who contribute their efforts for the advancement of this school. 

These things we ask in Jesus name, Amen

Within the Two Binders: Thanksgiving

Continuing through the two binders of my great-granddad's lessons and prayers, I came across what seems to be a Thanksgiving Day prayer.

"THE TWENTY THIRD PSALM"

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
He leadeth me besides the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righeousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and they staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table for me in the presence of mine enemies; thou anoinst my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever."

"Lord, Thou hast indeed been bountiful. As we look back over the years, how gracious Thou hast been, how tender Thy mercy, how warm and constant Thy Love.

Create within us, our Father, that true gratitude that shall make this day of Thanksgiving one of rededication, when we shall not think of how much we can eat but of how thankful we ought to be.

So may we-all across this land today-act as recipients of God's richest mercy and bountiful blessing, as we share with others. May we, in gratitude, get on with the job of creating not only a nation but a world in which men shall have the right to seek happiness.

Help us to make that dream come true in our homes day by day, in street and office and school, and so to live that Thou shalt be able to bless us and bless the nation for which we pray. In His name, who created us a nation, we pray Amen.

Crystal Grottoes

Today, my oldest daughter and I went to Crystal Grottoes in Boonsboro, Maryland.

Admission to the cave is $20 for adults, $10 for kids 11 and under. There are $1 off coupons available on their website and on brochures in the lobby of the cave.

We arrived at the cave shortly after lunch.

The visitors center and where you enter the cave

After we paid for our tour, we waited about 15 minutes for the previous tour to finish and the tour guide to complete her break.

We then headed down the stairs into the cave. Our tour consisted of 4 of us, a couple and my daughter and myself.

The entrance to the cave

At the bottom of the stairs, you turn and enter the cave. The tour guide pointed out where they had blasted into the cave. The cave doesn't have a natural entrance, but miners dynamited into it.

The black marks where they dynamited

The black marks where they dynamited

The tour guide claimed that this cave has the most decorations per square foot of any cave in the world. I don't know if that is true, but it certainly is plastered with decorations, more than any other cave I've been to.

The Crystal Palace

Fantasy Land

The mummy

The string looking thing is a honeysuckle root 45 feet below the surface

Supposedly a dragon

Looking up 55 feet which is 5 feet beneath the surface

In the formation, there is a horse with an elephant on its back with a giraffe on its back

My daughter's favorite feature

Pool

The blankets

My daughter and me in front of the blankets

The tour lasted about 30 minutes. If you are in the area, a nice cave tour to see a beautiful cave.

Pastor of the Restaurant

In Sunday School, we've been reading through John Leonard's Get Real.

This week we are studying Chapter 10, Sow Widely. The chapter is about evangelizing. At the end of the chapter, he talks about a pastor who while walking around the neighborhood around the church is discovered to not know the people around the church. The author tells the pastor "You don't pastor just a church; you pastor a community. Every one of these people, whether they know it or not, are your sheep. Your job is to shepherd them. Don't walk by them without calling out to them, asking 'How are you doing today? How's your family? How's that problem we spoke about last week?'"

It reminded me of a pastor friend of mine who pastored a restaurant.

Now this pastor was an ordained United Methodist elder and was the Senior Pastor of a church. However, he was a widower and devoted long hours to the church and the gym and not to cooking for himself. Just about every night, he would go eat dinner at a restaurant down the street from the church. Anytime he and I ate together, we ate at this restaurant. And anytime I ate at the restaurant separately, I would see him there.

Now though I was friends with the pastor and meet with him several times, I never heard him give his thoughts on that day's Lectionary reading. The only time I was in the sanctuary of his church was for a wedding that he didn't officiate. But I heard that pastor preach many sermons at that restaurant.

Whenever I ate dinner with this pastor, he would constantly be talking with the wait staff, hostesses, and bartenders. He knew who their family was, where they were going to school, and what problems they were having. It seemed the staff would intentionally come by our table just so the pastor would be able to talk with them.

The pastor told me once that though he was assigned to the church, his primary congregation was the staff at this restaurant. I thought the food was really good, Jamaican. A Whataburger or a BBQ place would be good places to be assigned as well.

Tell me the story again

Today at our church, we talked about the empty tomb, we sang about the risen Lord, we prayed in thanksgiving for the eternal life granted to us, but we didn't read the scriptures. The sermon text was from Luke 9 when Jesus asks his disciples who the people say Jesus is. The sermon was fine, even for being Easter and not using the Easter scripture, but tell me the story again of how the women went to the tomb and ran away in fear and joy! Tell me about the great earthquake and the angel! Tell me about how Peter lost the foot race to the tomb after he and the other disciple heard about the risen Lord!

We need to hear these stories again! Every Easter is an opportunity to hear these words again. We should read and say them every year and not just on Easter, but especially on Easter.

May we never tire of hearing this wonderful story, the greatest story every.

Don't spoil the ending!

I'm not a big fan of movies. I haven't been to the movie theater since December 25, 2008, when I saw Marley and Me. When I do watch a movie at home with my family, I read the plot first because I want to know what happens. I don't want the suspense of not knowing what happens.

Today is Holy Saturday. Yesterday we remembered the crucifixion of Jesus. Tomorrow we will celebrate the resurrection of our Lord. But don't tell me that yet! Don't spoil the surprise! This isn't some movie, this is God incarnate coming to earth. Let me seek to understand it more than some movie.

Today is the day of waiting. Christ has died. He promised he would rise, but who can rise from the dead? Today we wait to see if the promise of Christ come true. For the captive souls in hell, today is a day of liberation. But for the friends of Jesus in Jerusalem, it was a day of waiting.

Don't play Christ the Lord is Risen Today, yet! Don't tell me about how the stone is rolled away! Let me consider how it might have been the day after Jesus' crucified body was laid in a tomb. Let the suspense hang in the air a little longer.

Tomorrow we will have time to sing Low in the Grave He Lay, and proudly sing He Arose, He Arose, Hallelujah He Arose. Today, let me be a sad, because my Lord and my God is dead.

Within the Two Binders: Prayers of our Father

Continuing through the binders full of my great-grandfather's lessons and prayers, I came across one prayer which I think he wrote during the Cuban missile crisis. It's plea to God is appropriate just about everyday on the calendar though.

We know, our Father, that at this desperate hour in world affairs, we need Thee. We need Thy strength, Thy guidance, Thy Wisdom.

There are problems far greater than any wisdom of man can solve. What shall our leaders do in such an hour? 

May Thy wisdom and Thy power come upon the President of these United States, the Senators and the Congressmen, tho whom we have entrusted leadership. may the responsibility lie heavily upon their hearts, until they are ready to acknowledge their helplessness and to turn to Thee. Give to them the honesty, the courage, and the moral integrity to confess that they don't know what to do. Only then can they lead us as a nation beyond human wisdom to Thee, who along hast the answer. 

Lead us to this high adventue. Remind us that a "might fortress is our God", not a hiding place where we can escape for an easy life, but rather an arsenal of courage and strength, the mightiest of all, who will march besides us into the battle for righteousness and world brotherhood. 

May we never record from our feeling of helplessness and our need for Thee. 

In the name of Jesus our Lord we pray

Embrace your heritiage

As Christians, I think it is good for us to remember our heritage in the old testament.

At dinner each night, our family reads from the Bible. We use a reading schedule our church puts out. Right now, the daily readings are from Exodus. I usually try to include some context, so the other night I asked my kids how the Israelites got to Egypt. We ended up walking through the story from Joseph being sold a slave to Moses leading the Israelites across the dry ground of the Red Sea.

At bed time, I usually read a chapter to my oldest daughter. Last night we started the book of Esther. I didn't realize that Purim was next week, but I did teach her to boo whenever the name of Haman is read.

I think it is important that we learn the stories of the old testament, remember what our God has done, understand our heritage, and remember that it all points to the promised one, mashiach, Jesus Christ.

Within the Two Binders: Christ Tempted by Satan

My grandma sent me two binders that contained Sunday school lessons written by her father, my great-granddad, Clodius McCollum. I've been reading through it today and came across this one which was only a page.

Painting, "Christ Tempted by Satan" by Georg Cornicelius.

In the original of this wonderful painting the eyes are red, with lack of sleep, not black, as they appear in the reproductions. His hair is a bit disheveled by the wind, because for days now, He has not thought of food, or sleep, or His personal appearance. And while His face rests upon His right hand, as one often instinctively does in deep thoughts, His left hand has gripped His wrist with muscular tension that indicates something of the intensity of His inner absorbing struggle. 

If thou art the Messiah, is the problem that Jesus took with Him when He was driven by the Spirit into the wilderness for self-discovery and self mastery, following that unusual experience as His Baptism when a voice out of Heaven said, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased" 

"Some one has said that "character is what you are when you are dead sure no one else is looking". The bitterest battles are fought, won or lost, within personality and not outside of it. Like Jesus, all of us fight our greatest battles with the evil forces that are all about us, alone, and within our own inner selves.

Speaking for God

A friend of mine posted this picture on his Facebook page.

It bothers me.

Not the abortion part. No problem with calling the murder of children a sin.

But the part where they speak for God. "God will not bless a nation that destroys its children."

Who are we to speak for God like that? Are we saying that God will bless a nation that commits adultery or lusts or kills adults or looks upon others with disdain? Are we saying that abortion is an unpardonable sin? Are we saying that America is judged as a whole instead of each individual for his or her own faith and actions?

All these things bother me about this photo.

Evangelicals for Jesus

Election years are tiring. It is especially tiring when you culture is pandered to and misconstrued in order to win votes.

Those who identify as an evangelical are assumed to be right-wing conservatives. Pulling up a few headlines dealing with evangelicals we find Why Evangelicals Support Trump, Why are Evangelical Votes so Ambivalent About Ted Cruz?, and my favorite, 3 questions evangelicals should ask about Donald Trump. The 3 questions article proposes the following questions:

1. What is known about Trump's personal life and morality?
2. Where does Trump stand on moral and social policy issues of concern to Christians and to which the Bible speaks to clearly?
3. Are the love of money and pride legitimate issues to weigh when considering support for a presidential candidate?

When Ben Carson endorsed Donald Trump for the Republican nomination, his campaign chairman, General Bob Dees wrote "In all candor, some of this critical dynamic reminds me of Passion Week which began with Hosannas from the people, and ended with “Crucify Him.” Yet Christ had not changed, just as Dr. Ben Carson has not changed his devotion to God, his fundamental policy convictions regarding the right path for our nation, or his undying commitment to Save America for Future Generations." Somehow people disagreeing with Dr. Carson's endorsement of Trump is comparable to the crowd choosing Barabbas over Jesus before Pilate.

I don't think evangelicals should care about any of those 3 questions from the perspective of being an evangelical. They are fine questions, but hardly the most important ones for an evangelical. We should not be equating a political election with the death of our Lord and Savior for our sins.

An evangelical should be concerned first with the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, not the kingdoms of this world. Remember what the Psalmist penned, "He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision." The kingdom that we as Christians belong to is not the kingdom of the United States. When Jesus is questioned by Pilate, he says "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place." Our kingdom is not to be ruled by people, elected or appointed, but by Jesus Christ himself. As the voices in Heaven cry out when the 7th trumpet is blown, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever."

It is frustrating to see our politics has been used to divide the Church, the Body of Jesus. Being a born-again Christian is now a politically charged term associated with Republicans. Despite that Democrat then Presidential candidate Jimmy Carter was the first to state he was a born-again Christian, to compete in the Republican party, you must cite your faith.

But even worse, is that arguments are made that if you are a Christian, you can or cannot support certain candidates. Paul encourages us to pray for all people, especially our leaders. He does not specify that we should only pray for leaders, politicians, and candidates that we support, but all people. Paul was dealing with leaders who sought to seek out and kill Christians, yet he still encouraged prayer for them. This is most certainly only done by the power of the Spirit.

Let's not allow politics to define our faith in our God. We should love God first and foremost, and love our neighbor as our self. Not because they agree with us politically, but because they too are made in the image of God.

This election is not God's ultimate redemption plan and is not to determine who will reign over the kingdom we as Christians belong to.

Let it snow!

We moved to Maryland from California this past summer. We just recently went through our first major snow storm, winter storm Jonas. Now the naming of winter storms seems to be solely to generate ratings, but that was the name of the storm.

We had a prelude to the storm a few days before with a heavy dusting of snow. We of course ran outside to see it.

We ended up having just under 30" of snow over 2 day period.

We stayed home

We built snowmen

    

We shoveled

    

We went sledding

 

We made real snowcones

    

We had snowball fights

   

We had a blast.

Save the best for last

I was recently reviewing some old Bible study lessons I had written. Some were for a men's breakfast I attended for 2 years while living in California. Going through them, I felt my teaching improved over time. That's expected; practice makes perfect. But I did feel my last one was my best.

The scripture was from the Sermon on the Mount.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 5:43-48

I started by talking about my family's participation in a church prayer vigil the previous weekend. As a family, we spent 1 hour in our church's chapel praying for the church. We started by singing songs. Everyone in the family picked one song we sang. My youngest son who was 2 picked Bah Bah Black Sheep. We then listed out all the things in the church we wanted to pray for. When we were discussing the nursery, my oldest daughter said we should pray for things like bouncy seats or things the little children might like. I thought, hold on, we got more important things going on in the nursery than to pray for bouncy seats! But in thinking about the purpose of prayer, my daughter understood it better than me.

I then introduced the specific passage by saying “My name is Clinton and I am in the business of hating our enemies,” as I am in the military. I punted on the specific contradiction with that by saying we would not tackle the issue of Christianity and the military that week, though any Christian in the military should be able to answer the question “how can you be a Christian and in the military” as our business is killing.

I then moved into breaking apart the passage. Jesus opens with saying that we had heard taught  ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ I then sought to prove that the concept of hating your enemy wasn't some old testament teaching that Jesus was revising by citing a few passages from the old testament.

When you come upon your enemy’s ox or donkey going astray, you shall bring it back.
When you see the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden and you would hold back from setting it free, you must help to set it free.

Exodus 23:4-5


If your enemies are hungry, give them bread to eat; and if they are thirsty, give them water to drink; for you will heap coals of fire on their heads, and the Lord will reward you.

Proverbs 25:21-22


Do not rejoice when your enemies fall, and do not let your heart be glad when they stumble, or else the Lord will see it and be displeased, and turn away his anger from them.

Proverbs 24:17-18

I noted that the writer of the proverbs seems to indicate that the Lord is in a position where he can judge. To show why we weren't in that position, I used scripture showing that we were once enemies of God.

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. But more than that, we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Romans 5:6-11

I then discussed how love is a verb. One will have to decide how you love your enemies, but it is more than just saying, “I love my enemies.”

Jesus then says to pray for those who persecute you.

I talked about how the night of September 11, 2001, I went to Breakaway, a college Bible study at Texas A&M. Instead of a normal lesson, the leader said that we would break into prayer groups. In small groups of 3 or 4, he led us in praying for the victims, their families, our country, our leaders, our military. He then ended it with having us pray for the attackers. I had zero desire to pray for them. But I did. And I left feeling better for it.

I gave current examples of who was persecuting Christians around the world. We then went around the group, praying for those who persecuted the Church. We then left.

I liked it because it had the least amount of teaching, but focused on the application and immediately used the application.

Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, even while in Bible study.

Look before you cut someone off

I was driving while talking to my wife on the phone. I was looking for an exit and didn't realize it was backed up for a mile. Having passed the end of the line, I looked for a gap and slid over into the line to exit. My wife on the phone said "someone in a truck with a Texas A&M sticker just cut me off..."

Check the details

When I told my mom, a United Methodist deacon, this story, all she said was "Always double check the details."

At church this morning there was a baptism. The pastor was holding the baby and said his normal words to the parents and congregation. Then, while placing his hand in the bowl of water in the baptismal font, said, "I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost... HEY! I have a problem! I don't have any water!" He held up the empty bowl to show. An elder quickly jumped up and grabbed the glass of water from the pulpit and provided it to the pastor. The pastor apologized and continued on.

I thought it was pretty funny.

God smells

Psalm 145:8-9 tells us "The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made." Let's hope his mercy is over even the children.

My children normally do a simple prayer at dinner to the tune of Frere Jacques that goes "God our Father, God our Father, We thank You, We thank You, For our many blessings, For our many blessings, Amen, Amen."

The other night my 3 year old sang "God our Father, God our Father, We thank You, We thank You, You smell like a donkey, You smell like a donkey, Happy birthday to You, Happy birthday to You."

Halloween

Today at church during the sermon, our pastor made mention of Halloween. He mentioned that some churches have fall festivals or other alternative activities. He said that because of this, many of our neighbors walk by our empty, dark houses while they are trick or treating.

He said this wasn't appropriate. We as Christians are called to interact with our neighbors, even those who are not Christians. We are called to be in the world. We are not to be holed up in a Christian castle avoiding all other people.

He said that we should participate in our society's trick or treating tradition. He said giving out tracts would ensure noone would come by. He instead recommended giving out the best candy on the street so that all your neighbors will come by and you can meet them. By doing this, we can meet our neighbors and develop relationships to enable us to share the gospel.

Our society treats Halloween as a time for children to dress us in costumes and go get candy. This is nothing that a Christian should fear. But I'm not going to give out full size candy bars. That's too much money. I'll stick with the fun size snickers bars.

Basic Theology

I enjoy theology. I enjoy debating the merits of different theological perspectives. Calvinism vs Armenianism, covenant vs dispensational, pipe organs vs guitars.

Theology is good for us. It is studying our God and knowing more about it. It involves spending time in the Word, in prayer, and in studying who God is and what he has done, is doing, and will do. It is good for us. But at the end, I am willing to let it all go for nothing but Jesus Christ and his death for my sins.

I cling to this as my most basic theology. It is the foundation everything else is built upon. The house may burn, but if the sure foundation of Jesus and his death will remain, I am safe.

I once was discussing creation with someone who strongly subscribed to 6 day creation. Their argument was that if you didn't take the creation literally, you believed that death came before sin, and therefore their is no need for a savior. Now I could come up with arguments of how the effects of sin could be felt before sin, since the effects of Jesus' death were felt before his death in the saving of the faithful before ~33AD, however, a stronger argument is found in what if you are wrong? In this perspective, if one wrong on creation, then their entire faith collapses.

In theology, one should be OK with being wrong in things. We are dealing with things beyond our human understanding. Jesus told Nicodemus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?" When looking at theology, we are dealing with God himself, the alpha and omega. Our theology may be wrong in some areas. Be OK with that, because you placed your hope, your salvation, your all, on the death of Jesus and not the beliefs of man.

Why we should love our neighbor

When asked the greatest commandment, Jesus responds with two, saying they are similar. Jesus said to his questioner, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Jesus quotes both of the commandments from the old testament. The first quote is the Shema Yisrael. "Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might." The second is from Leviticus. "You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbor, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord."

So as Christians, little Christs, we are called to love our neighbor. Therefore, we love our neighbor because God tells us too. That's a pretty good reason, but as humans, we aren't good at doing what we should just because we are told too.

John gives us an interesting justification for loving others. " We love because he first loved us." We love our neighbor as Christ loves us only because God loved us first and moved us by the Holy Spirit so that we could love as Christ loves.

But even deeper than that, there is an intrinsic reason for loving other humans and valuing them, no matter who they are. They too, were created in the image of God.

Moses records in Genesis 1:26-27, "Then God said, 'Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.' So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them."

The word image in Hebrew is tselem, meaning image, likeness (of resemblance).

A key in the Genesis 1 passage is that humankind is made in the image of God, not just Christians or Jews, or specific individuals, but all humans. Regardless of who the individual is, they are made in the image, the likeness, of God. They have a resemblance of the creator of the universe.

This gives the individual value. To be made in the image of the creator places value on the creation.

For the Christian, this is the starting point of dealing with any other human being. No matter who they are, you are dealing with someone who was made in the image of God. That makes loving them the default option.

Love your neighbor, they too are made in the image of God.

Is your gospel enough?

Andrew White is the Vicar of Baghdad, the pastor of St. George’s Church in Baghdad. He has multiple sclerosis. He is in Iraq seeking to make peace through love. He is currently working with refugees from the ISIS occupation.

Says he has been "hijacked, kidnapped, locked up in rooms with bits of finger and toe and things." He has "been held at gunpoint, been attacked – the usual thing."

Follow is a little more about him from a bio sheet.

Now he experienced faith under fire but most of all, love. His church has been seriously damaged by bombs and rockets. He has soldiers and 35 security people around him, he wears body armour to church as it is outside the green zone. He has seen many of his congregation killed and kidnapped. The children suffer terrible loss, injury and devastation. He sometimes has to leave because of threats to his life. He has been kidnapped. However he knows that most people in Iraq have no choice but to stay. Rich and powerful have left. The poor have to stay. This life can only be endured with love. He and his congregation love the Lord and each other. He says ‘we knew that Jesus was all we needed when Jesus was all we had left’.

Does your gospel give you the strength to endure that? If not, you need a better gospel.

Have mercy on me, again

In the gospel of Luke, a story told by Jesus is recorded.

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

I appreciate the tax collector. Some days, that's all I feel I can say to my God. Though I am a new life in him, some days I feel the only thing I can say is have mercy on me, Lord, for I am a sinner.

Jesus said he went home justified. But I doubt he came back day after day to the temple saying "thanks for having mercy on me, unlike that guy." I bet when he came back, he continued to say, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" And every time I bet Jesus said to those around him "this man went down to his home justified."

There is hope for even us sinners. Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am a sinner.

The Big Sur

We lived on the Monterey Peninsula. On the south side of the peninsula is Carmel. South of Carmel is the Big Sur.



We spent a lot of time in Big Sur. I'll attempt to capture our favorite parts.

Camping
We've gone camping in the Big Sur a few times. Our favorite place is along the water at Kirk Creek.

Kirk Creek Campground is a National Forest campground, but is run by a private contractor.

They do take reservations; however, half of the sites they leave for first-come first-serve.

We arrived on a Tuesday in the summer about 9:30AM. A first drive through didn't reveal any open sites, so we decided to make a stop down in Gorda at the store to pick-up a few supplies. Returning about 10:15 found an open spot.

The Kirk Creek campground does not have running water, so make sure you are prepared for that. You can get water from another campground just a few miles south near Sand Dollar Beach.

The great thing about Kirk Creek is every campsite over looks the ocean.

Beach below Kirk Creek campground

Beach below Kirk Creek campground

Kirk Creek Campground

Sunset from our site at Kirk Creek Campground

Our second favorite campground is Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. It is located in a red wood stand along the river. Kids enjoyed playing in the river. They also have ranger programs, so we hit up the morning junior ranger program for story time and arts and crafts.

We've camped at Limekiln SP, It is under a bridge and is real narrow. The sites are pretty close together as well. Since we had all our kids, they were able to play with lots of other kids.

There is also camping in the mountains. I've only stayed at the Boy Scout camp, Camp Pico Blanco.

Beaches
Most people like Pfeiffer Beach. Most of the time, it was cold and windy. Not my favorite beach. But it does have an arch and purple sand.

It is tricky to find the first time. It is located 2 miles down a one lane road. To find the road, drive south on CA 1 past the Big Sur Ranger Station. Sycamore Canyon Road is on the right, the sharp turn. If you reach the post office, you've gone too far.

Arch at Pfeiffer Beach

My favorite beach is Sand Dollar Beach. It is day use only. Like most beaches here, there is a steep dropoff to the beach, but it is worth it. There is a cave on the north end of the beach. There is also a sign about the whale migration that marks the location of the USSR.

Trail to the beach 

Trail to the beach

Sand Dollar Beach

If we wanted to go to the beach without the long drive, Garrapata SP has a good beach. It isn't marked on the highway, but look for gate 17 or 18. Park on the shoulder of the highway and follow the trail down to the beach.


Always be on the lookout for waves. Sneaker waves can come up on the beach and turn what looked like a great beach spot into the ocean. We've been on the receiving end of one of those and got lucky, but it could have been disastrous.


Food
There are several nice restaurants in Big Sur. I've never eaten at them! I've only eaten at one place down there.

The River Inn is located in the village of Big Sur on the Big Sur River. There is a restaurant there with great food. There is also a gas station (you pay a premium for gas in Big Sur) and a bus that sells ice cream. Behind the inn is a great grassy yard on the river. Kids love to play in that yard and play in the river. There is also a general store with a good selection of supplies and wine.


Other
Wildlife is abundant, but you sometimes have to look for it. Whales while driving were a common site. Keep an eye open for their spout. Deer are common. I did see a California Condor once. It was just below the road and when it took off, its wingspan was larger than a car. I did see its yellow tags, but couldn't make out the number.

There are lots of trails in Big Sur, as much of it is the Los Padres National Forest. One trail I did was the Rocky Ridge and Soberanes Canyon loop. A tough trail that starts along a creek, goes through red woods, then peaks out on a mountain overlooking the Pacific.

The coolest place in Big Sur is Julia Pfeiffer Burns SP. They have a waterfall that drops into the ocean. There is a parking lot, but you have to pay for it. Park along the edge of the highway and follow the trail to the observation area.

Cove at Julia Pfeiffer Burns

McWay Waterfall

McWay Waterfall

McWay Waterfall

The Bixby Bridge is a well known Big Sur landmark. There is a pullout on the north side of it for viewing.

Bixby Creek Bridge

Because parking on the highway is free, you will see lots of cars parked around the state parks. There are also a lot of bicyclists. The road is narrow and the shoulder lacking in most places. Be mindful of them.