Racial Reconciliation in Apex: Holy Folly (Part 3)

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

In the previous post, we introduced the concept of the local church as a "theater of reconciliation,"and asked the question, "How do we perform our understanding of Christ's cross?" specifically regarding racial reconciliation in Apex, NC. Because Christ, through his death on the cross, has brought near those who were once far off by His blood. How do we live all this out in our daily lives and local church?

In our final post on this issue next week we'll look at some practical suggestions for reconciliation, but here are a few general categories of response to get us thinking (taken from Vanhoozer's Drama of Doctrine):

1. One concrete way to address this issue is to establish multi-ethnic churches. Vanhoozer writes, "In a world torn by ethnic strife, there is perhaps no more dramatic display of peace won by Jesus Christ than the life of multiracial, multiethnic . . . congregations." The three dimensions of theology also come into play here:
2. Prosaic theology leads to lives of believers "engaging in everyday practices that exhibit and foster social, racial, and ethnic reconciliation, especially in the church."
3. Prophetic theology leads to believers making "financial and cultural sacrifices, not to mention moving out of one's comfort zones," as they live in a theater of reconciliation.
4. Phronetic theology leads to believers dismissing the pragmatism of men's wisdom and living as a community of "holy folly" where the formation of multiethnic communities might seem like nonsense and impractical to outside observers.

How about it? Are you up for being a community of holy folly? For making sacrifices for the sake of Jesus? Are you up for being a minister of reconciliation? In your heart of hearts, are you willing for ABC to be a multiracial, multiethnic local church?

Victor Hugo

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

From a devotion I shared at the AHS Christmas Musical last week:

This time of year frequently combines two things that I really love: Christmas + music = Christmas musicals. The two are a wonderful combination!

I recently came across a quote from Victor Hugo concerning music. Read what he had to say:

"Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent."

It's the truth. Music seems like it comes from somewhere deep within us and really connects on an emotional level. I've met people who like lots of different styles of music, but I've never met someone who didn't care for it at all! Music is a universal language.

You're probably familiar with this, but Victor Hugo is also the author of Les Miserables. Les Mis is the story of a man named Jean Valjean and was written in 1862. It's a powerful novel and quite complex, but I wanted to share one particular scene with you:

Jean Valjean has been in prison for nineteen years for a terrible crime—he stole a loaf of bread. After he has been finally released as a parolee, he comes to a Bishop’s house who takes him in for the night. Valjean repays the Bishop’s generosity by promptly stealing the Bishop’s silverware and silver plates and taking off in the darkness.

He’s caught almost immediately by the police and brought back to the Bishop’s home. But when he arrives something strange happens:

The Bishop shocks the reader when, instead of prosecuting Valjean, he insists to the police that he himself gave Valjean the silver. And then the Bishop freely offers Valjean his silver candlesticks too. It's an extraordinary moment of grace. "Valjean is made an honest man through another man’s sacrifice." Valjean doesn't deserve it in any shape or form, but the Bishop's action towards this hardened criminal embodies both mercy and grace. (And Valjean's life is changed because of it.)

Mercy came when Valjean was not given the punishment he deserved for theft, and grace came when he was given something he didn’t deserve: the candlesticks and the rest of the silver that he stole.

Christmas tells us another story, THE STORY of mercy and grace. It tells us of how God himself came to the world—a world full of death and darkness that had rebelled against him—God came and was born as a baby so that he could rescue our world from death.

Christmas is a story of mercy because Jesus, the God-man, did not come to condemn the world because of our rebellion, but to save the world through his death on the cross and his resurrection three days later. He is God’s great rescue plan.

Christmas is a story of grace because we’re given something we don’t deserve: new life and a new beginning. Freedom. Hope. Peace with God. And it’s all made possible through a baby that was born on Christmas day that would one day grow up and die on a cross to take our place—to those who believe in the name of Jesus.

Resonate

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

I wanted to share a few quotes with you today from Kevin J. Vanhoozer.

The Collins English Dictionary defines resonance as "the sound produced by a body vibrating in sympathy with a neighboring source of sound." I think this concept has a lot of wonderful implications for the church!

Listen to what Vanhoozer writes:

The faithful church resonates the Word of God to the extent that it continues to sound deeply and clearly the divine voice speaking in its holy script. . . . Resonance is not repetition. To live biblically is not to re-create the past but to resonate in the present. The church 'resounds' to God's glory not by replicating the self-same sound again but by filling space and time with booming echoing sympathetic vibrations--sound and shock waves from the big bang of resurrection.

What a metaphor for our church! Let us resonate the Word of God in our present context as we hold out the Word of Life to our community and urge people to be reconciled to God. Let us set off some "shock waves from the big bang of resurrection" in Apex!

Thick Headed and Hard Hearted

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

Have you ever felt thick headed and hard hearted? 

I am mentally raising my hand. And I usually don't recognize it's the case until after the fact; when it is too late for me to do anything about it.

Confession time: I'm extremely thick headed in my marriage. I'll have a plan that I've worked out, but have not communicated adequately, and then when the said plan gets nixed I have a hard time being flexible. (The reason why my plans get nixed is usually because there is a better, more efficient plan that actually makes sense!)

If you feel like I do, you are not alone. The Israelites were some of the most thick headed and hard hearted people around. Just read the book of Joshua sometime.

You know the Exodus 32 story: Moses had been gone some time on the mountain and the people become impatient and demanded Aaron make a golden calf they could worship as the one who delivered them from Egypt. How stupid was that?

It comes as no surprise that God, in Exodus 33, refers to the Hebrew people several times as "a stiff-necked people." (I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want God to think of me in those terms, and at the very least not to make it public for millions of people over the centuries to read.)

"[Go up] to a land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you because you are a stiff-necked people; otherwise, I might destroy you on the way."

Of course, Moses intercedes for the people, and God in his graciousness forgives them.

How does this apply to me? I've heard it said that as a person grows older they either age like a fine wine or they stink like old cheese (that's my paraphrase). God help us to grow in grace and to not become thick headed and hard hearted and stiff necked in our relationship with our Lord and Savior and brothers and sisters in Christ. Instead, teach us to be flexible, bearing each other's burdens, and forgiving wrongs out of love.

May our necks be loose!

The Resistance

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

So . . . the resistance. I was recently introduced to the music of Josh Garrels (you can get his amazing CD for free by visiting his website, by the way!) and he has a song entitled "The Resistance." Here are some of the lyrics: 

"Every mortal breath is meant to bring forth fire;
but only when when the fear of death gets consumed
On the funeral pier.
So let the flames rise higher
Let every man be considered a liar
If he doubts the goodness and faithfulness of God."

Reminds me a little of Hebrews 2:14-15!

Let's breathe fire. Resist complacency and laziness in our walk with God. Death has nothing on us because of Christ. Hold fast like an anchor in the storm.

I found the same themes of resistance and resurrection in a book I read recently, entitled "The Island of the World" by Michael O'Brien (definitely a must read!). It is the story of Josip Lasta and chronicles his sufferings in the former Yugoslavia. He knows first hand what resistance is like, particularly under the Communist Party, and as his life and faith fall apart, you can just feel the power of the Gospel and of forgiveness pulsing in his heart, aching to break out, until resurrection eventually bursts through every pore and his life is changed forever--despite the injustice and heartache he's experienced in his life. 

How are you living out the resistance? As a co-heir with Christ you are free from the slavery of death. You are empowered by the Holy Spirit and resurrection flows in your very blood. Are you breathing out fire in a world that is lost in darkness? Join the resistance and be a part of the movement of God.

The Serampore Compact

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

"If a commission by an earthly king is considered an honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?" (David Livingstone)

You're probably familiar with William Carey, known by many as the Father of the Modern Missionary Movement. Carey, after being called to missionary work in India, became part of the Serampore Trio--joined by Joshua Marshman and William Ward. Together they preached, translated Scripture, began a school, and loved the Indian people with the Gospel.

Three times a year (January, May and October) they would gather together and read out loud what was known as the Serampore Compact of 1805. This document is amazing, and well worth the read (you can see the full text here).

A few highlights:

1. "It is absolutely necessary that we set an infinite value on immortal souls." Is that how I feel about people? The man at the auto shop who works on my car? Our pediatrician? The driver in the car that cuts me off on the way to work? The one who hurts me deeply with false accusations?

2. "It becomes us to watch all opportunities of doing good." Is that how I live my life? Am I constantly looking for and aware of opportunities to love and to serve other people and to point them to Christ?

3. "Let us give ourselves up unreservedly to this glorious cause. Let us never think that our time, our gifts, our strength, our families, or even the clothes we wear, are our own." Have I given myself unreservedly for Jesus to use? Am I only willing to serve and love when it is convenient or when it is not difficult to do so? Do I recognize that everything in my life is a gift from the Great Giver of all Good Things?

Definitely check out the compact when you get a minute!

Tetherball Nightmares

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

I have tetherball nightmares. Seriously. I was reminded of them as I drove through carpool the other day and saw a few kids playing tetherball. There was a girl who was brutally taking a little boy to school. I started to feel the trickle of a tear make its way down my cheek.

Let's start with a confession: I am extremely uncoordinated. (Case in point: if you ever see me trying to clap during a song in the worship service I will not be clapping on the right beat much to the enjoyment of my wife.) 

When I was a kid I used to play tetherball all the time at the Triangle Swimming Pool. It didn't matter who I played, they would hit the ball and I would flail unsuccessfully at it every time it came around the pole. As the ball would pick up speed, the rope would wind tighter around the pole, and my hopes for my first tetherball victory would be crushed yet again. Swing and miss. Swing and miss. Swing and miss. The crushing agony of defeat.

I experienced the same emotions in my early years of being eligible to play on one of the ABC softball teams. Don't worry, I won't mention any names here, but let's just say I probably led the league in strikeouts. That's right, in softball. I was so bad that whenever I even made the slightest sort of contact with the ball my team (and sometimes the opposing team) would cheer for me. But mostly it was swing and miss. Swing and miss. Strike three!

So, that's me opening up and being honest with you. Sharing some of my deepest humiliations with you. Now, let me ask you a question:

When was the last time you led someone to Christ? When was the last time you shared the Gospel with someone who didn't know Christ? I mean, really shared the entire Gospel with them, and gave them a chance to respond?

If you are like me these are not comfortable questions. I can feel guilty and get defensive real quick. But the bottom line is this: if Christ has loved me and I believe He is the only way to have a restored relationship with God why would I ever hold that information back? Now, it's true, I might share the Gospel with a friend and be totally rebuffed or even ridiculed. It might seem like a swing and a miss--just like I used to miss all those tetherballs and softballs.

But in reality, when we share the Gospel, WE NEVER SWING AND MISS. We are being faithful--as ministers of reconciliation--and we leave the results up to God.

So, let's get to it! Let's make a difference in our community as lights that shine in the darkness! Swing for the fences!

In Need of a Skilled Craftsman, Please?

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

Recently, we've been reading through the Book of Exodus and have come upon Chapters 25 and 26 where God instructs Israel in the construction of His Dwelling Place: the Tabernacle. The instructions for everything--framing, the lampstand, the altar, the curtains--are quite specific and complicated, and I found myself chuckling whenever God mentions that a skilled worker or craftsman should be involved with the process. These tasks were not for any ordinary Israelite.

Why do I find this interesting?

I'm not a handyman. I can only shake my head when I read the details involved in constructing the crossbars of acacia wood. Here's the extent of my handiness: I can change light bulbs. I can put in new batteries (generally). Occasionally, I've been known to wield a drill and use a stud finder (although not very accurately). It's one of my great regrets in life and I wish I had the time to go into the great 2008 walk-in-shower-renovation-debacle at the Stam House for your entertainment, but I don't. Suffice it to say, whenever we've bought a new bookshelf I struggle to follow even the simplest instructions when I am well aware that there are some in my family who could go outside in the woods, chop down a few trees, and make a beautiful bookshelf from scratch in the time it takes me to get all the pieces out of the box and get them organized.

I'm sure there were probably Israelites like me. They could gather manna, they could wander, they for sure could do some complaining, and maybe were decent swinging a sword fighting against all those "'-ites" they ran into, but when it came to crafting God's dwelling place with man, He wanted the very best. And the call went out for a skilled craftsman. The neat thing to me as I think about it, is that God was the giver of that particular skill. He was the source of the talent in their craft. He had prepared them in advance for the work that He knew they would do, and He knew they would do it well. And they did! The Tabernacle was beautiful!

Out of God's Reach?

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

If you missed Pastor Tim's sermon on Saul's conversion from Acts 9 this past Sunday you can listen to it right here, but we also wanted to make available to you the action plan for becoming an Encourager/Discipler that was passed out on Sunday morning in case you weren't able to grab a copy. Here it is:

1. Step One: Finding Someone to Help

• I already know who I will help. That person's name is: __________.
• I know someone I hope to lead to Christ. Then I will disciple that new Christian. The person's name is: __________.
• I will pray that God will bring someone into my life very soon. I commit to be watching for that person and to begin cultivating a relationship as soon as I find that person.

2. Step Two: Seeking Resources for Helping
Discipling someone is an important responsibility and one that I would never undertake in my own strength. Therefore, I commit to take the following actions in preparation for this assignment:

• Spend time in prayer each day
• Study God's Word each day
• Attend training that will help me share the Gospel and better understand discipleship

3. Step Three: Committing the Time and Effort to Help
Helping someone will require that I spend time with that person. Depending on the person's schedule, I would be able to set aside one or more of the following times:

• Early morning prayer time one day a week
• Breakfast one day a week
• Lunch one day a week
• One evening a week
• One evening a month
• An hour or two on Saturday or Sunday each week

4. Step Four: Planning Actions to Help
Although simply developing a relationship with someone will be helpful, I will also need to take some specific actions that will help that person grow. I would feel comfortable doing one or more of the following as needed:

• Explain the purpose of and encourage baptism
• Encourage to join a church
• Lead to have assurance of salvation
• Help find answers to theological questions
• Be a prayer partner
• Suggest steps toward spiritual growth
• Help win new Christian's friends to Christ
• Be a good listener and encourager
• Lead in a one-on-one Bible Study
• Call every day or two to encourage

5. Step Five: What Else Do I Need to Do?
What else do I sense God telling me to do as I make plans to be an Encourager/Discipler?

Grace

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

Not sure how you feel about Bono, but in light of this past weekend I wanted to share a few thoughts he once shared about Grace:

"You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics—in physical laws—every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff."

Love interrupts. What a beautiful thing. I love how Thrice puts it as well in their song "Beggars":

All you big shots that swagger and stride with conceit,
Did you devise how your frame would be formed?
If you’d be raised in a palace, or live out in the streets,
Did you choose the place or the hour you’d be born?
Tell me what can you claim? Not a thing - not your name!
Tell me if you can recall just one thing,
That’s not a gift in this life?
Can you see now that everything is grace after all?

Here's the video put together by Adam Davis and friends from this past weekend. Thank you, Jesus, for Grace!

I Run This Universe!

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

Recently, in our chronological Bible reading plan, we've been reading through the Book of Job. Just the other day I saw a video that totally brought to mind these verses where God is speaking to Job in Chapter 41:

Or can you pull in the sea beast, Leviathan, with a fly rod and stuff him in your creel?
Can you lasso him with a rope,
or snag him with an anchor?
Will he beg you over and over for mercy,
or flatter you with flowery speech?
Will he apply for a job with you
to run errands and serve you the rest of your life?
Will you play with him as if he were a pet goldfish?
Will you make him the mascot of the neighborhood children?
Will you put him on display in the market
and have shoppers haggle over the price?
Could you shoot him full of arrows like a pin cushion,
or drive harpoons into his huge head?
If you so much as lay a hand on him,
you won't live to tell the story.
What hope would you have with such a creature?
Why, one look at him would do you in!
If you can't hold your own against his glowering visage,
how, then, do you expect to stand up to me?
Who could confront me and get by with it?
I'm in charge of all this--I run this universe!

Here's the video if you haven't already seen it. Beautiful. Stunning. (Watch it in high-res if you can)

But What Does It Mean?

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

It always frustrates me when I wonder what a lyric to a particular song means and I try to search out the answer from the artist, generally somewhere on the internet. The typical answer is something like this: "It means whatever you want it to mean," or "I don't like to answer that question because I don't want to limit the song to a certain meaning. I want people to be able to interpret it however they like." This suggests that the artist would like their lyrics to speak to everyone and that the meaning changes based on the listener and their particular needs. 

But that drives me crazy! I don't care what I think a lyric means, or that it means something different to everyone, I want to know what the musician intended. What was the context for the song? Why did they write it? There was obviously a reason!

(That's why I appreciate Sleeping at Last. They frequently write on where lyrics and ideas for their songs are born, and I am thankful! For example, the line "hold your breath and count to 28" isn't just random and means whatever I want it to mean as a listener. The line is referencing an elevator ride to the 28th floor that emphasizes how uncomfortable we are when we get on elevators with strangers and there is that awkward silence as we count down the floors till we get off.)

Taking this one step further the same principle applies to the Bible. Have you ever been in a Bible Study where you have read a passage and then gone around the circle sharing what the passage means to you? We have to be careful here because Scripture doesn't mean whatever we want it to mean, or whatever we're feeling at the time, as if it was written in order to meet our felt-needs.

The question we should be asking is what did the author of a particular passage, divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit, intend for his words to mean? There are a lot of factors involved in that discussion, but that is what we're after--what is the author's intention in his original context? With that being said, while there is one interpretation, there are many applications, and that's where we can do our best to apply the meaning of the text to our lives in 21st century America. But those applications should always flow naturally from the meaning of the text.

New Years and the Gift of Gab

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

I'm making a New Year's Resolution. And it has to do with a gift that I was born with (I hope that doesn't sound too arrogant!). You might have heard of this particular gift: it's known as the gift of gab.

This gift manifested itself early. As a child, I could talk my way out of anything. There was once an incident in middle school where I ate some pop tarts that were not mine and somehow talked my way out of what would have been swift and just punishment. My mouth would run at 100 mph as I filibustered and did my best to deflect. I know I must have driven my parents completely mad, and it's probably why, even now, they still look at me and wonder how in the world a beautiful girl married me and I have four kids (technically, the fourth is still being fearfully and wonderfully knitted together!).

I remember in college, going to different spiritual retreats, where I was contemplating my future, and being asked, "What kind of gifts do you have?" or "How will the Lord use your gifts in His Kingdom?" All I could think of was that I had the gift of gab and that was about it.

Now, as I've grown I've matured in my thinking and know that God has blessed me in so many ways. He's allowed me to have experiences that have shaped my life and He's equipped me every step of the journey so far. So, I've been thinking lately, "What kind of legacy do I want to leave for my kids? What do I want them to remember about me?"

I definitely don't want to be remembered as a man who had the gift of gab! That would be depressing. Instead, my New Year's Resolution is to be known as a man who followed Christ radically. What if my kids remembered me as a Dad who followed Jesus with all of his heart, no matter how difficult! That would be awesome! So, how do I get there? Practially speaking, I love David Platt's Radical one year challenge (you can read more about it in his book, Radical):

1. Pray for the entire world during one year.
2. Read through the entire Word in one year.
3. Sacrifice my money for a specific purpose.
4. Give my time in another context.
5. Commit my life to a multiplying community.

So, that's my New Year's Resolution: to be a radical follower of Jesus!

Bonus New Year's Blog Feature: Here's a great song from Charlie Hall on the New Year!

Highway Hypnosis

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor 

Me: "I have no idea where we are."
Kristi: "We're on Bells Lake/Hilltop Needmore/Optimist Farm/etc. Your turn is coming up at the next light."

For some reason, I tend to zone out in my thoughts when I'm driving, especially when I'm traveling those old back country roads heading home (I guess they're not so country anymore, but they used to be). All of those bends and turns in the road tend to blend together and look the same in my subconscious. I literally will suddenly come out of my reverie and have absolutely no clue where I am. Dangerous, I know. I'm sure you're excited to be on the same road as I am. Fortunately, Kristi always knows where we are so if she's with me in the car I'm in luck. If not, it might take me a few minutes to remember where I am, where I'm coming from, and where I'm going.

They warned us about this in Driver's Ed. I don't know how you did it in your day, but I took the one-week class during summer after my Junior Year of High School. In between all of the videos of accidents they showed us, my instructor told us about a mysterious phenomenon called highway hypnosis. It sounded like a bunch of mystical mumbo-jumbo at the time, but I was wrong.

I have been the victim of highway hypnosis over the years many times, and not always on the highways! Country roads, back roads, dirt roads, alleyways, it doesn't matter. The hypnosis sucks you in: the cars flying by, the yellow lines, the trees all a blur.

The concept of highway hypnosis got me thinking seriously about a few verses from Scripture. The first is from Hebrews 12:

"Therefore, since we also have such a large crowd of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of God's throne."

Also, from Proverbs 4:

"Let your eyes look forward;
fix your gaze straight ahead.
Carefully consider the path for your feet,
and all your ways will be established."

I really wish that I was so into Jesus that it would be literally impossible for me to take my thoughts off of Him. That my heart would be constantly in tune with God's heart, and that His love would so consume my waking hours that I would be immune to distractions. Not that Christ would hypnotize me or that I'm out in some la-la land (like I get when I'm driving), but I'm compelled because of the Cross to fix my gaze straight ahead, to carefully consider the paths that I walk on, and to keep my eyes on Him. Wouldn't that be awesome?

The Lazy Blog

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

I have a confession to make as November draws to a close and December peeks its frosty head around the corner: I'm lazy by nature. It's a roaring grizzly bear that I've had to wrestle as long as I remember, although I think that as I've gotten older and matured some of that laziness has been tempered. At least, I hope so! I don't know where it came from; my Dad and Mom are some of the hardest working folks I know. My work ethic must have been a genetic mutation.

Here's an example of my sorry lazy self. When I was in high school I was given the all important job by my Father of mowing the grass on Saturdays. Now, this was back in the day before there was a neighborhood behind my parents' home and our backyard was much larger. (That was my one mitigating comment.) I would literally take our mower and mow a small square in about fifteen minutes and go back inside to cool off for an hour or so. Then I would head back outside and repeat the process. Ad infinitum. What should have taken me maybe two hours would literally take all day. My Dad would come home and stare incredulously at his half-cut grass. (Wait, I do have one other mitigating comment: One time our lawn mower was broken and we borrowed Mr. Jones' riding mower. I knocked that job out in no time and forever lobbied for a riding lawn mower to no avail.)

It really shames me to dredge up those memories, but maybe some of you can identify. The challenge in my life is, how do I overcome this slothful inclination in my heart when I study my Bible? Because really studying the Bible, getting down to the nitty and the gritty of it, is hard work. We went through Living by the Book in our Life Groups this past Spring and Howard Hendricks gives an example of Acts 1:8 when he discusses the art of observation. It's one verse and he mentions that over the years in his classroom students have come up with over six hundred observations on Acts 1:8. Did I mention it's only one verse?! Six hundred observations!

In my Bible study, I have to develop my powers of observation and that requires hard work! It doesn't come naturally to me. My constant prayer has to be Psalm 119:8: "Open my eyes, that I may behold wonderful things from Your law," and 2 Timothy 2:15: "Be diligent to present yourself to God, a worker who doesn't need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth."

Completely Other

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

He is:
the blessed and only Sovereign,
the King of kings,
and the Lord of lords,
the only One who has immortality,
dwelling in unapproachable light,
whom none of mankind has seen or can see,
to whom be honor and eternal might.
Amen.

These words from Paul written to Timothy are powerful and awe-inspiring. God dwells in unapproachable light. Mankind has never seen or can see. He is completely Other. He is Spirit. He is Sovereign and He is Pure and Set Apart.

The beautiful thing is that this God has chosen to make Himself known to us, humankind, through Jesus Christ, the Word incarnate, for His own glory and for His love for us. It's the beauty of Christmas:

The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into our neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish.

No one has ever seen God,
not so much as a glimpse.
This one-of-a-kind God-Expression,
who exists at the very heart of the Father,
has made him plain as day.

A Hard Pill To Swallow

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

I love my grandparents for so many reasons: they are kind, compassionate, loving, godly and prayer warriors. They've really set an example for me in my own life as I try to walk with God. Whenever you need to talk, or just to decompress, you're always welcome at their house to come sit in a rocking chair and visit. I love them dearly.

My Grandmother also has quite the stash of horse pills at their home.

I'm not sure where the horse pills came from. Probably from the traveling horse doctor. I know what they're designed for: horses, not humans. They're some kind of powerful antibiotic, but that's about all I've been told. I also know that whenever someone gets sick and comes over to the house they are offered one of the horse pills. I, myself, have taken quite a few over the years. Let me describe these pills to you: You're familiar with the gel tabs or the yummy chocolate flavored advil or the small and easy to swallow normal pills for all symptoms, I assume? The horse pills have none of these frills. They are easily the size of my thumb. I tried once to cut one in half, but the pill became so jagged that it literally lacerated my throat as I attempted to swallow it down. So, you've got to do it whole. And, let me tell you, there's a lot of gasping and gagging that goes on before that thing goes down your gullet. My palms get sweaty whenever I see one. They are a literally a hard pill to swallow.

And hence the expression: "That's a hard pill to swallow."

On Wednesday nights we're studying the book of Malachi, and the Israelites in Malachi's time had some hard pills to swallow. The Holy Spirit, through the Prophet Malachi, basically tells the people that if they are going to come to corporately worship and just go through the motions with their hearts elsewhere it would be better if they just didn't show up. If they were not going to give cheerfully or out of a heart of joy then it would be better for them not to give at all (that's a New Testament interpretation of Chapter 3). If they were going to come to worship and just do the same thing they had always done because it was what they had always done with no heart change it would be better for them to just close the doors of the Temple.

That's a hard pill to swallow! To think that if we're not living as a New Testament Church--loving the poor, caring for one another, walking humbly with God, doing justice--we'd do just as well to shut the whole thing down and quit playing games and bringing dishonor to the name of God.

So, what's our alternative? What kind of lives do we lead? The Prophet Isaiah says it well:

This is the kind of fast I'm after:
to break the chains of injustice,
get rid of exploitation in the workplace,
free the oppressed,
cancel debts.

What I'm interested in seeing you do is:
sharing your food with the hungry,
inviting the homeless poor into your homes,
putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,
being available to your own families.

Do this and the lights will turn on,
and your lives will turn around at once.
Your righteousness will pave your way.
The God of Glory will secure your passage.
Then when you pray, God will answer.
You'll call out for help and I'll say, "Here I Am."

Dominion and Awe

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

A few years back I was struck by a revelation:

I use the same word to describe how I feel about cheeseburgers and to describe the Creator God of the Universe.

That word would be: "awesome". In fact, I use awesome to describe a lot of other things as well: computers, movies, automatic doors in vans, Mac products, books, experiences and trips, etc. I sometimes use it even if I don't really mean it. How can that be right? How can I describe how I feel about God accurately?

In Job 25:2 we read: "Dominion and awe belong to God." Awe belongs to God, and is due him and to no one else. Especially Five Guys. That causes me to pause and re-evaluate the language that I use to describe a cheeseburger! My prayer and dilemma is perfectly summed up in an old David Crowder lyric:

I need words
As wide as sky
I need language large as
This longing inside
And I need a voice
Bigger than mine
And I need a song to sing You
That I've yet to find

(You can hear the song by clicking here)

Christmas Presents, Bill Cosby and the Gibeonites (The Sneaky Blog)

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

Describing me as a sneaky kid would be an understatement. Case in point: I knew all of my Mother's secret hiding places for birthday and Christmas presents, and there were many. I would wait till she was asleep and then slip out of my bed to either the crawl-space or the laundry room. With stealth-like precision I would tear a little of the wrapping paper away so that I could catch a glimpse of what treasure lay inside. Could it be a new Transformer? I would then try to arrange the present to make it look like there was no rip in the paper or that it had ripped itself naturally when it was set down in its hiding place by my Mother. I'm telling you, I was bad! And I was good at it.

It reminds me of the one Cosby episode where Bill Cosby sees that Claire has baked a cake and he proceeds to partake of said cake while little Olivia watches in amazement. He then tries to cover up the missing piece by adding paper towels and spreading the chocolate icing to make the cake look whole again. Here's the clip in all of its sneaky hilarity!

Speaking of sneakiness, there were some inhabitants of Gibeon in Joshua's day that were downright deceptive. They took sneaky to a new level. Joshua 9 talks about how the Gibeonites heard how Israel had taken down Jericho and Ai and decided (wisely, I think) that they did not want to be obliterated. So, the Gibeonites put on their old, patched up sandles and pretended to have come from a far away land. Israel didn't consult God and established peace with them and made a treaty to let them live (when they really should have killed them all). The Gibeonite's sneakiness saved their lives, and they eventually became woodcutters and water carriers for the people of Israel. Not high profile work, but better than being permanently wiped off the face of the earth!

A Vocabulary Test

Nathan Stam
Children/Communications Pastor

I used to love vocabulary tests when I was in school. I always thought it was cool when the teacher would tell us to exchange papers with someone around us and then we would grade each others' work. Oooooh, I would think to myself, the power that is in my hands!

Did you know the average person has a vocabulary of 20,000 words, but linguists have shown that in that person's lifetime he or she will express four to five million different ideas? The words must be used in many different combinations with many different meanings in order to meet the need.

So, what is your vocabulary like? What ideas do you express with that vocabulary? It's an important question. James, the half-brother of Jesus, wrote in his letter: 

For every creature—animal or bird, reptile or fish—is tamed and has been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who are made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things should not be this way. Does a spring pour out sweet and bitter water from the same opening? Can a fig tree produce olives, my brothers, or a grapevine [produce] figs? Neither can a saltwater spring yield fresh water.

What kind of influences do you allow in your life that shape the way you speak? What kind of influences do you allow in your childrens' lives that affect how they speak?

The best influence on our vocabulary is the Word of God!

Let Psalm 119:9-16 be the declaration of your life and your speech will reflect the calling of God on your life:

How can a young man keep his way pure?
By keeping Your word.

I have sought You with all my heart;
don't let me wander from Your commands.

I have treasured Your word in my heart
so that I may not sin against You.

LORD, may You be praised;
teach me Your statutes.

With my lips I proclaim
all the judgments from Your mouth.

I rejoice in the way [revealed by] Your decrees
as much as in all riches.

I will meditate on Your precepts
and think about Your ways.

I will delight in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.