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Tuesday, December 24, 2019
One Trip to Kenya 2019 Book Tour raises almost $10,000 for ECPK
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Advent Calendar
“Wow! That sounds like fun!” I smiled. “Do you know what Advent means?”
“No.” she said, “Maybe ‘surprise’ or ‘count down’?”
“Because of all the little surprises in each window counting down to Christmas!” I laughed, “Good guesses. But it means something even better. Got another guess?”
Baffled she shrugged her shoulders.
“Advent means,” I said, “someone very special is coming.”
She clapped her hands again. “SANTA!” She shouted as she ran out of my office to get back to work on an Advent Calendar filled with 24 surprises counting down the nights until the day humanity pauses to remember the birth of a baby.
Advent. God arrives on Earth. A baby born to a teenage mum. Jesus.
You know the story.
At hundreds of Carols by Candlelight programs right around Australia, Aussies will sing of the ‘Holy Night’ when ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing’ in the ‘Little Town of Bethlehem’ that ‘Joy to the World’ arrived ‘Away in a Manger’ answering the call of humanity to ‘Come, O come Emmanuel.” That first Advent of God on Earth was something to sing about. So much so that we are still singing about it two thousand years later!
Emmanuel means ‘God with us.’ And He is. You have a friend closer than a brother. A Father who loves you more than you can imagine. Jesus arrived as a helpless baby to show that God was willing to be vulnerable for us. He loves us enough to become one of us. We needed Him. So, He came. Emmanuel.
Please, don’t let Christmas be hijacked by the story of an old guy in a red hoodie who delivers Kmart kitsch. Tell the story of Jesus to your children. It’s part of your story. You’re already singing about it. That first Christmas is a surprise worth remembering with a month-long count down. It’s the joyful chapter in the story of a God who loves His children. It’s the Advent that rebooted humanity’s Calendar.
Monday, December 02, 2019
Anthropocentricity...
God, however, is love. He is the embodiment of love and He embues the universe with His love. When creation steps away from God's love disunity ensues.
Humanity is a prodigal son, rocky soil, Israel, Cain, Eve. We need God's love. Jesus is God's love incarnate. He became like us so we could see what God was up to. So we could see His love with our disbelieving eyes and touch his wounded side.
God became man so that man could see God. God knew (knows) sinful humanity can only see Him if He dresses like us, walks like us and dies like us - because we are so self focused. He became one of us so that we could become one with Him.
We are selfish. God is love.
Jesus showed we can live unselfish lives only when we know God is Love. Knowing yourself is not the key to a full human life. Knowing God is. The self-centred life leads us to psychosis. The God-centred life leads us to love others.
God's "Plan A" is love. It always has been and always will be. It was our choice that made His love look like death. Not His. It's our inability to comprehend His love that makes us think he had any other choice.
Thursday, November 14, 2019
The Suffering Sabbath
God's love is, of course, beyond comparison. But we humans
require comparison for understanding; the combining of things we understand to comprehend something new. There are few truly new ideas. When
they crop up, they are shot down until they are comparable or combinable with
something we already understand. God used the feeble and faulty love we have for our
children to set up the paradigm of his Love for us. Both the Father and Son are
merely metaphors we can understand through comparison. Abraham and Isaac is one
such manifestation of this metaphor of comparison.
Understanding the Love of God is the end goal of the Great
Controversy. Lucifer sought this understanding and lacked it. We, likewise but
with lesser ability - sin-bound as we are - wished to understand God in all His
glory. So, the Father begat a Son and sent Him to live among us as one of us
and to die for us as One beyond us.
“Father make them one as we are one,” Jesus
prayed. It is a revelation of Divine love in dusty sandals. He walked our roads
as one of us and calls us to walk His road as one with Him. Since that life,
that death and that re-life, God calls us to the life liveable only when we
enter His love, although we barely understand it.
I do not think we dwell often enough in the darkness between death and resurrection. And yet, this is where we live. We want the forgiveness
He offered by taking our place. We want the life He promised by
returning to life. But, what of the dark
day? The Sabbath of fearful trial living between the call to death and the gift
of life? How long did Abraham walk alongside his son believing he was about to lose
him? For the disciples, it was a Sabbath. What a dark Sabbath indeed. A Sabbath
without a Saviour. A day without understanding.
Then the Son arose. A new day dawns. Oneness reveals. The
story deepens. Love lives. The metaphor thickens. Death dies. Father and Son
is One. Revelation in resurrection.
The great cosmic conflict - life and death - is explained
on the Road to Emmaus (See Luke 24:13-35). That must have been the most invigorating conversation
humans have ever had with God. Does not your heart burn within you just
considering that day, that walk, that conversation? Until the breaking of bread
reveals, again, oneness. More inclusive. More reaching. More embracing. “Take
eat, this is my body broken for you.”
Forever, the cry of God on Abraham's mountain: "It is enough" is completed by the Cry of God on our mountain: "It
is finished."
Monday, November 11, 2019
Kanye West - JESUS IS KING
I preached at a youth church in Melbourne a couple of weeks ago. Before the sermon, one of the fit blokes interviewing me said, "Last question, what do you think of Kanye West's new album JESUS IS KING?"I spent the next few minutes telling them a few of the best things about Kanye's new album and his new found faith in Jesus.
1. People are talking about Jesus - Get on that ride!
2. Kanye reaches millions - pray for him.
3. Kanye is a baby Christian - be gentle with him. The lyrics in the album are simple, direct and passionate - just like a new Christian. It's not advanced theology but new faith. He's talking in his language about his experience. Just like we did when we first met Jesus.
4. Kanye has plans - Just like we did when we were new Christians. We know what we did with them. Some successes. Some failures. In the future, however his plans pan out, treat Kanye as you want to be treated.
5. We should not be among the naysayers - Christians should be 100 percent possitively engaged in the lives and ministry of other Christians. We are the body of Christ. Kanye is a huge set of hands for Jesus right now. He is a supersized mouth for Jesus (as are most new Christians!) and also like other baby Christians, Kanye is a sensitive body part that needs extra care.
6. Jesus is King - Follow Him.
7. Jesus is Judge - He just asks us to love people.
Saturday, November 09, 2019
Reading the Book of the Law
Read Nehemiah 8:1-12
Was this a new idea when the people asked Ezra to read the Book of the Law? (Deut 31:12)
No, it was part of their culture, faith and national identity. The people wanted to be who their ancestors were. They wanted the old Jerusalem back, the Old Israel, The Old God who went before them.
What was in the Book of the Law that was read? What was it?
Their story of God’s interaction with the nation of Israel. Identity and Faith.
Do you think they read the 5 books of Moses and explained it before lunch?
No, they would have had featured texts and teachings each day.
Continue reading (Nehemiah 8:13-19) to see this in action (and to see a great reason for yearly campmeeting!)
Who was invited to this 7th month reading ritual? Deut 31:12
Men, women, kids, visitors, neighbours.
“Those who could understand.”
Who is missing in Neh 8:2? Where is the alien?
Driven out during the building phase. What does this suggest about their seperation from their neighbours? (It was likely a tribal response rather than a God commissioned act)
What was the result of this day of reading the Book of the Law? (Neh 8:8)
They heard their own story and what it meant to be the people of God. True Israel’s identity.
The origional purpose of the 7th month reading was to bring the story of God to people. It would tell the visitor who these people were. Jewish children would hear the source material for how their parents lived and lead. The parents would receive reinforcement and renewal in their purpose and identity. Israel’s identity would be clarified and recommissioned.
Done regularly, this Reading of the Law would create and maintain a people of God ready to serve Him and trained up to parent the next generation. What had the century without Jerusalem and a temple done to the Israelite community?
Left them without understanding, identity or purpose.
In Neh 8, what was the reason the people wanted the Book of the Law read to them?
They want to know their own story. The people want to know who they were meant to be. There are no ‘informed parents’ in this scenario. They are asking for guidance.
What type of reading are we needing today?
Have we forgotten our story?
Are we parenting with purpose?
Are there people among us who are new to the faith?
Do we need to tell our story more intentionally?
When we hear the Book of the Law read and explained into our lives, what is a proper/expected/reasonable response to hearing the old story and realising your place and identity in God’s Kingdom? (Neh 8:9-12)
Hearing the Law brings conviction
Weeping brings change
Rejoicing brings community
The Spiritual leaders (Nehemiah, Ezra, Levites) instructed the people in three areas. What were they?
Head – Understanding the Law (leads to conviction and weeping. Clear reading and intentional interpretation is foundational in the Kingdom of God.)
Heart – Joy as a response to Conviction (many people will not do this on their own. They will look for the next area that needs change and continue weeping as they see their own endless sinfulness. A spirutal leader commands celebration of the wins - both small and large.)
Home – Celebrate at Home (Making our homes centres of celebration, sharing, eating and joyfulness will strengthen the core of God’s kingdom – our families)
Do our spiritual leaders do this? Where are we strong? Where are we weak?
Was this a new idea when the people asked Ezra to read the Book of the Law? (Deut 31:12)
No, it was part of their culture, faith and national identity. The people wanted to be who their ancestors were. They wanted the old Jerusalem back, the Old Israel, The Old God who went before them.
What was in the Book of the Law that was read? What was it?
Their story of God’s interaction with the nation of Israel. Identity and Faith.
Do you think they read the 5 books of Moses and explained it before lunch?
No, they would have had featured texts and teachings each day.
Continue reading (Nehemiah 8:13-19) to see this in action (and to see a great reason for yearly campmeeting!)
Who was invited to this 7th month reading ritual? Deut 31:12
Men, women, kids, visitors, neighbours.
“Those who could understand.”
Who is missing in Neh 8:2? Where is the alien?
Driven out during the building phase. What does this suggest about their seperation from their neighbours? (It was likely a tribal response rather than a God commissioned act)
What was the result of this day of reading the Book of the Law? (Neh 8:8)
They heard their own story and what it meant to be the people of God. True Israel’s identity.
The origional purpose of the 7th month reading was to bring the story of God to people. It would tell the visitor who these people were. Jewish children would hear the source material for how their parents lived and lead. The parents would receive reinforcement and renewal in their purpose and identity. Israel’s identity would be clarified and recommissioned.
Done regularly, this Reading of the Law would create and maintain a people of God ready to serve Him and trained up to parent the next generation. What had the century without Jerusalem and a temple done to the Israelite community?
Left them without understanding, identity or purpose.
In Neh 8, what was the reason the people wanted the Book of the Law read to them?
They want to know their own story. The people want to know who they were meant to be. There are no ‘informed parents’ in this scenario. They are asking for guidance.
What type of reading are we needing today?
Have we forgotten our story?
Are we parenting with purpose?
Are there people among us who are new to the faith?
Do we need to tell our story more intentionally?
When we hear the Book of the Law read and explained into our lives, what is a proper/expected/reasonable response to hearing the old story and realising your place and identity in God’s Kingdom? (Neh 8:9-12)
Hearing the Law brings conviction
Weeping brings change
Rejoicing brings community
The Spiritual leaders (Nehemiah, Ezra, Levites) instructed the people in three areas. What were they?
Head – Understanding the Law (leads to conviction and weeping. Clear reading and intentional interpretation is foundational in the Kingdom of God.)
Heart – Joy as a response to Conviction (many people will not do this on their own. They will look for the next area that needs change and continue weeping as they see their own endless sinfulness. A spirutal leader commands celebration of the wins - both small and large.)
Home – Celebrate at Home (Making our homes centres of celebration, sharing, eating and joyfulness will strengthen the core of God’s kingdom – our families)
Do our spiritual leaders do this? Where are we strong? Where are we weak?
Hands - After Head/Heart (hearing and being convicted by God's word being expounded to us) experiences we take them Home where we celebrate in our comfort zone. This creates conversation about the convictions of the Head and Heart which we experienced. These conversations among friends and family generate choices which are applied in our daily lives.
A regular cycle of communial Head/Heart teaching and Home/Hand application creates a growing group of Kingdom dwellers who are becoming more like their King each day. This is why it is so important to participate regularly in a Bible reading/teaching church and ensure your home celebrates the joy of the Lord by eating together and applying your Biblical convictions.
Adventist Thought Question:
How does this Bible study impact your understanding of Sabbath and Campmeeting?
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Resilience Resources
This post is intended to be found and used by the chaplains attending the Korus Connect resource sharing days. Anyone else who finds it – More POWER to ya!
I’ve created these two resources to provide opportunities for students to share their own story. Every time we restory our lives, we build resilience!
I use these every day.
20 Resilience Questions and Workbook
This resource set targets stories from home. Our primary resilience givers are the significant adults in our lives. The more stories we know from their lives, the more options we have available to us when we face tough times. Resilience researches say these 20 questions predict resilience. What could be more useful than encouraging kids to learn these stories. Lots of parents have commented how much they enjoyed going through the workbook as a family.
The “Do You Know” Resilience Scale
Resilience “All About Me” Workbook
Getting to Know You Jenga
These questions are targeting stories from the lives of the students. Grab yourself a Jenga game from a 2nd hand store or spend a bit more ($8 at Big W) and stick these questions on the blocks. This is every kids favourite game in my office because it’s all about them! And it’s safe danger. Knocking the tower over is stressful and then hilarious! A good game of high-stress Jenga can lead to a fantastic conversation about how we handle stress in our lives.
“Towering Resilience” DIY Jenga Questions
I’ve created these two resources to provide opportunities for students to share their own story. Every time we restory our lives, we build resilience!
I use these every day.
20 Resilience Questions and Workbook
This resource set targets stories from home. Our primary resilience givers are the significant adults in our lives. The more stories we know from their lives, the more options we have available to us when we face tough times. Resilience researches say these 20 questions predict resilience. What could be more useful than encouraging kids to learn these stories. Lots of parents have commented how much they enjoyed going through the workbook as a family.The “Do You Know” Resilience Scale
Resilience “All About Me” Workbook
Getting to Know You Jenga
“Towering Resilience” DIY Jenga Questions
Thursday, August 01, 2019
Disciples are Mentors
The Christian life is about being a disciple making disciples. That means you are following someone and leading someone at the same time.
The apostle Paul said, "Follow me as I follow Jesus." He had enough grip on his faith that he could 'see' Jesus even though Jesus was no longer walking the earth. Paul never saw Jesus in the flesh. He met him on the road to Damascus and, after a bit of straightening out, followed Jesus from that day forward.
If you want to be great disciplemaker, it helps to think of yourself as a mentor. A good mentor has someone in front of him, alongside him and behind him. Three people to hold you accountable for your direction and momentum.
If you would like to be a mentor and are looking for a free and useful guide, I recommend Max7's Mentoring Booklet free to anyone and everyone. In the booklet you will find steps to take to become a great mentor and strategies to apply to ensure your mentoring is godly.
Jesus said, "Go therefore making disciples." That's a call to mentoring!
So, get to it. Find someone to mentor you and someone you can mentor in the principles of the Kingdom of God.
The apostle Paul said, "Follow me as I follow Jesus." He had enough grip on his faith that he could 'see' Jesus even though Jesus was no longer walking the earth. Paul never saw Jesus in the flesh. He met him on the road to Damascus and, after a bit of straightening out, followed Jesus from that day forward.
If you want to be great disciplemaker, it helps to think of yourself as a mentor. A good mentor has someone in front of him, alongside him and behind him. Three people to hold you accountable for your direction and momentum.If you would like to be a mentor and are looking for a free and useful guide, I recommend Max7's Mentoring Booklet free to anyone and everyone. In the booklet you will find steps to take to become a great mentor and strategies to apply to ensure your mentoring is godly.
Jesus said, "Go therefore making disciples." That's a call to mentoring!
So, get to it. Find someone to mentor you and someone you can mentor in the principles of the Kingdom of God.
Wednesday, July 17, 2019
Sabbath Giftedness
In response to my post "Sabbath: The Day and Way" a friend on Facebook said:
I love how you said Sabbath was not given to establish WHEN we worship. That's so true and I've been thinking about that a lot lately, because ever since I've taken on roles at Church as a teenager up until about a year ago, Sabbath has always been THE LEAST restful day of the week for me. After a stressful/hectic Sabbath morning, I'd spend all afternoon recovering from a migraine - there was never anything nice about Sabbath for me except for Mum's home-cooked Sabbath lunch! A year ago I got sick (am still recovering) and had to back off from all my commitments and all of a sudden, Sabbath became an amazing day and I saw it in a completely different way. I'm now trying to figure out how to be involved without losing the true meaning of Sabbath... One of the thoughts I had was, is it OK to keep Sabbath on Saturday, but attend Church on Sunday instead, since Sabbath wasn't given to establish WHEN we worship as a Church?
My Reply:
Over the past 5 years of not being a pastor, I have thought the same thing! I've come to two conclusions:
1. Sabbath is about rebuilding relationships. With God (worship/reimaging) and with mankind (talking/eating). This takes different forms for different people. Some people find no stress in leading worship, preaching, teaching, etc. Other people are drained by it. Whatever rebuilds relationships on Sabbath is what you should be doing. Religion has nothing to do with Sabbath. No church, denomination or faith owns the Sabbath. Sabbath was made for all mankind. To heal us. To reconnect us.
2. Spiritual Gifts are given by the same God who gave us the Sabbath. If using your spiritual gifts destroys your sabbath bliss (rest/blessed) one of the two is being wrongly applied. Try using your gifts on another day and let Sabbath serve God's original purpose. There are gifted organists, singers, preachers, teachers and others who participate in Sunday churches and rest on Sabbath. Imagine the joy it must bring Jesus when He sees us fulfilling His prayer for us in John 17:20-23.
Another thing I have learned is that God alone knows the heart. God alone judges rightly. Whenever we judge the actions of others (especially in spiritual matters!) we risk being judged ourselves because we do no know the heart. Trust God's leading. Go. Serve. Love. Live for Christ as one who willingly sacrifices self to serve others - in whatever way the Spirit leads you.
I love how you said Sabbath was not given to establish WHEN we worship. That's so true and I've been thinking about that a lot lately, because ever since I've taken on roles at Church as a teenager up until about a year ago, Sabbath has always been THE LEAST restful day of the week for me. After a stressful/hectic Sabbath morning, I'd spend all afternoon recovering from a migraine - there was never anything nice about Sabbath for me except for Mum's home-cooked Sabbath lunch! A year ago I got sick (am still recovering) and had to back off from all my commitments and all of a sudden, Sabbath became an amazing day and I saw it in a completely different way. I'm now trying to figure out how to be involved without losing the true meaning of Sabbath... One of the thoughts I had was, is it OK to keep Sabbath on Saturday, but attend Church on Sunday instead, since Sabbath wasn't given to establish WHEN we worship as a Church?
My Reply:
Over the past 5 years of not being a pastor, I have thought the same thing! I've come to two conclusions:
1. Sabbath is about rebuilding relationships. With God (worship/reimaging) and with mankind (talking/eating). This takes different forms for different people. Some people find no stress in leading worship, preaching, teaching, etc. Other people are drained by it. Whatever rebuilds relationships on Sabbath is what you should be doing. Religion has nothing to do with Sabbath. No church, denomination or faith owns the Sabbath. Sabbath was made for all mankind. To heal us. To reconnect us.
2. Spiritual Gifts are given by the same God who gave us the Sabbath. If using your spiritual gifts destroys your sabbath bliss (rest/blessed) one of the two is being wrongly applied. Try using your gifts on another day and let Sabbath serve God's original purpose. There are gifted organists, singers, preachers, teachers and others who participate in Sunday churches and rest on Sabbath. Imagine the joy it must bring Jesus when He sees us fulfilling His prayer for us in John 17:20-23.
Another thing I have learned is that God alone knows the heart. God alone judges rightly. Whenever we judge the actions of others (especially in spiritual matters!) we risk being judged ourselves because we do no know the heart. Trust God's leading. Go. Serve. Love. Live for Christ as one who willingly sacrifices self to serve others - in whatever way the Spirit leads you.
Monday, July 15, 2019
Sabbath: The Day and the Way
Biblically, in both OT and NT, it is quite clear that "Sabbath" refers to the 7th day of the week. Saturday. Most of us can count. :)
But, Sabbath was not given to establish 'when' we worship but 'who' we worship and 'who' we are. To crown creation week, God shows up and visits with His image bearers.
In Gen 1 and 2 there are two reasons presented for creation.
1: To remind us we are God's image bearers and Sabbath is the day of reimaging.
2: To remind us we are one as God is one - bonded in flesh and spirit with our spouse and God.
Creation is about Identity and community.
Sabbath is about 'who' God is. He's the Creator of all that is. Created in His image, we Sabbath to remember His creative power and be recreated by Him each week.
Sabbath is also about 'who' God's people are. We are not human doings. We are human beings. Sabbath is a day for being in the presence of God. Resting in Him so He can set up shop once again within us.
The ultimate definition of Sabbath was seen in the Sabbath 'keeping' of Jesus. God in the flesh dedicated the 7th day to worship and justice. He made a Sabbath habit of going to synagogue. He also made a Sabbath habit of healing the broken. Worship and Justice. He lived what He preached. The two greatest commandments, according to Jesus, were "Love God. Love each other." These ultimate commandments were most evident in His life on the Sabbath.
So, when is the Sabbath? Day 7.
What is the Sabbath? A day of worship and justice.
Why Sabbath? Because you bear His image and it needs buffing up regularly!
Dear Dragonhordling,
I have been into the dragon's lair and dined with him. I believed for a time that his loot and his fire were my own. He's generous like that.
But then I saw the Knight in shining armour. He fought the dragon to claim rights to me. He won that battle, long ago. Now He rides in every day and checks to see who is peering out from under the dragon's wing - who might glimpse Him today. Daily, at sunrise, He calls to every dragonhordling, "Follow me."
One day, I did.
One day, I pray you will as well.
Life with God is an epic tale but truer than any truth we may claim and name. We mere mortals barely glimpse His reality. But that glimpse is enough.
"Follow me." He promises, "Life will never be the same."
Follow Him and reality will be more than quirks and quarks. It will be imbued with meaning, purpose and freedom from the dragon's cave we once believed to be all that.
Continue your quest. See you at Sonrise!
Sincerely,
Dave
Tuesday, June 04, 2019
Kingdom Needs
True followers of Jesus will approach need the way He did.
To start with, he always asked what was available.
If there was little, he blessed it and fed thousands.
If there was nothing, he healed the sick and broken.
If there was less than nothing, he raised the dead.
When little was offered, Jesus prayed for a blessing.
When nothing was offered, Jesus praised the person's faith.
When death was offered, Jesus gave life.
Jesus brought the Kingdom of God to the world. And this Kingdom was revealed in the inverse amount to what the seeker brought. Death - life. Faith - healing. Little - much.
At the other extreme, Jesus had a dire warning about wealth. In matters of the heart, Jesus said, it's easier for a camel to climb through the hole in a needle than for a wealthy man to enter the Kingdom of God.
Those who know their need are able to accept the Kingdom's welcome. Those who are accustomed to paying their own way find the place uncomfortable and unwelcoming. Not because it is. But because they make it so.
Monday, April 01, 2019
How do you do life?
There is no such thing as a self-made man. Or woman. Each person on Earth is a unique individual shaped by the culture, subculture, family and faith they live and breathe within.
As a Christian, I became aware that I was different at an early age. As a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, it was in my teens when I realised just how different. I went to a Seventh-day Adventist boarding school and had friends there who were not Christian. They were there to reform while I was there for the music. The Rio Lindo Academy choir and band visited my church a few times in my childhood and I knew I wanted to go there to play the saxophone in the band and sing in the choir.
While a student at Rio Lindo, along with music, I learned all kinds of things that weren’t on the school curriculum. I learned you didn’t need to be 21 to drink alcohol - you just needed alcohol. I learned cigarettes were not just something my Grandma kept in the top of her kitchen cupboard, they were available from a guy at the back door of the gym. I learned sometimes boys got girls pregnant and those girls left school while the boy got pats on the back and special privileges from the boys dean. And I learned, in all of the above and more, everything you become later in life starts with the choices you make now.
In the summer before my Senior year, I went to live and work in Maui, Hawaii. I found a job on Front Street in Lahaina encouraging people to get their photos taken with macaws. They were beautiful birds and tourists flocked to see them. The trick was getting people over their fear of the claws and beaks. Once they allowed the bird on their arm, they always wanted a Polaroid. That was the job and I loved it.
When my shift finished at 4pm, Mike’s shift would begin. During the transition time, we became friends. Mike came from a very different world than I did. He saw as normal and desirable all the things I was raised to avoid. And he quickly became more and more sure that I was from a different planet.
Mike had one primary goal in life and he kept a list. Mike was attempting to have sex with a woman from every country on Earth. He was serious about it. He’d been travelling for a few years, from country to country, ticking nations off his list. Until he arrived in Maui and realised it was a traveller's Mecca and if he stayed put the ladies of the world would come to him. One night, Mike asked me if I wanted to join him on a Catamaran with ‘some ladies’. I declined. After a few questions, Mike came to a startling realisation and asked what was to him a deeply troubling question, “You’re not a virgin, are you?” When I said I was, he promised, “We will change that!” I laughed and explained it wasn’t something I wanted to be changed.
A week or two later, Mike invited me to a bar for drinks after work. It was Friday night and the the entire staff from the bird stand would be there sharing laughs and liquor. I explained that I didn’t drink. He assumed this was due to my age and said he knew the bartender and it would be no problem. I explained my choice not to drink and he said, “Ok, well just have a glass of milk or something.” Then I explained the Sabbath to him. As a Seventh-day Adventist, I choose to give 24 hours - from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday - to God each week. I spend these hours with God, my church family and friends. Mike shook his head in wonder.
The next week the owner of the birds, Casey, happened to stop by while Mike and I were chatting. Casey was a hippie. He drove a combi-van, had long hair and talked in long drawn out syllables even for short words. Mike started teasing Casey about his hippie diet. “Dave, did you know Casey only eats rabbit food?” I smiled and said, “Mike, I’m a vegetarian, just like Casey!” Again, Mike shook his head.
A few days later, as we were chatting, Mike pointed out a friend walking on the beach. “Oh, I want to introduce you to someone.” The beach was across the busy street and past a wooden dividing fence. Mike stood on a chair, cupped his hands, and shouted over the crowd, “DUUUDE!” His friend blocked the sun from his eyes and squinting, looked at Mike - as did everyone else in the busy outdoor shopping area. “DUDE! This is the guy I was telling you about!” Mike gestured to me as he continued shouting, “THE VEGETARIAN VIRGIN WHO DOESN’T DRINK!!”
Time stopped. I looked for a hole to climb into or a tree to hide behind. Everyone was staring. At. Me.
Mike’s friend ran up the beach, jumped the fence, crossed the road and sprinted toward me. As he got close he raised a hand above his head like he was going to hit me. Instead, he brought it down, palm up, and said, “Put her there!” I warily slapped at his hand in the way cool guys do. He accepted my low-five, put his hands on his hips and rocked back on his heels. “Dude, is it true?”
“Um, is what true?”
“Do you really refuse alcohol, meat and the ladies?”
My eyes shifted around the courtyard to see who else was looking. Mercifully, people had moved on with their lives. I looked down at the ground, embarrassed, “Yeah, it’s true.”
The next words out of his mouth were completely unexpected. “Dude, how do you do it?”
All my life I’d had to explain why I don’t do these things. Never had anyone framed the question in the reverse. “Do what? I don’t do anything!”
He laughed. “No way, man. Respect! I could never be that strong. How can you be so strong?”
I told him about my family. “I’ve been raised this way. I’ve never thought of it as strength. It’s just the way we are.”
“Dude, it’s strength.” He put his hand out and I shook it, “I’ve got nothing but respect for you.”
Character and Resilience
Over the 30+ years since that perception altering conversation, I have been studying the development of character and resilience. Both are products of our culture and values. We are truly unique - each and every one of us - shaped by the environment we grew up in and the choices we made in our formative years. Most of what we are as adults was shaped and set-in-stone before we left home.
I spend a lot of time talking to kids and parents about how to define and develop both character and resilience. Here’s my take, in a nutshell:
Resilience comes from relationships. Every child needs a minimum of five significant adults with whom they have experiences and share stories. Believed stories are stored in the same part of the mind as personal experiences. So, the more stories our children hear from significant adults, the more resilience material they have for life’s difficult patches.
Character - a combination of our thoughts and feelings - is formed by boundaries and routines. Like the wall around a building, our character is stable when we know and trust the boundaries. Everyone is comfortable leaning against a solid wall, no matter how far the fall is on the other side of it. Likewise, we trust ourselves when we have well-tested boundaries. Those boundaries are designed and defined by our routines and rituals. Every time an athlete runs around a track, they increase their ability and belief to succeed in their sport. When they ritualise that run around the track - doing it day in and day out - they create permanence of strength and character. Every time a person of faith practices their faith - every prayer, every time of worship - they increase their trust and reliance in the foundation of their faith. Every time a child lifts their arms up to their parent and is lifted up, their trust and reliance on that parent is encouraged and empowered. Our boundaries and routines provide the foundations and building blocks for our character.
Our identity is formed by three boundaries we live with and within every day of our lives. These boundaries are shaped in our childhood and never questioned by most people. They form our identity. Imagine a target with three rings. The bullseye is your identity. It is encompassed by three rings. The first ring has “person” written in it. The next ring has “world” written in it. And the final ring has “universe” written in it.
World-view
Because we are all aware of the concept of “worldview” let’s start with the middle ring. Our worldview is shaped by the world in which we grow up. In the west, success is reached by the person who aspires, focuses, trains and achieves their goals. To someone embedded in a western worldview, it may come as a shock to hear that in the past all of humanity and still today, most of the world, live by a different rule of success.
Community, to those outside the western worldview, is where success is decided and defined. A community rises or falls based on the interactivity of the people within. One person’s success or failure means little overall as long as the family, the village, the culture is maintained. I call these two worldviews: Me vs We.
“Me” says “I made this. It’s mine.” Selfishness is ingrained. Sharing is praised as an act of personal altruism.
“We” says “We made this. It’s ours.” Sharing is ingrained. Selfishness demeans the community and is shunned.
“Me” says “I am created in God’s Image.” Being like God means self-control and self-esteem.
“We” says “We are created in God’s Image.” Being like God means working together to empower others and create a better world.
The Biblical worldview, the one to which Christians are called, is contrary to the self-focused western worldview. Community is more important than the individual. Our purpose in “image-bearing” God to the world is accomplished in and through relationships rather than personal achievement.
Your worldview creates a boundary within which your identity and character form.
If you live within the “Me” boundary, your routines and rituals will focus on your need to achieve, improve, acquire and increase wealth and experience. You will find meaning in owning more than you need and using your worth to build more worth, even negative-gearing it to allow you to wrap your tail around an even bigger pile of treasure. You will feel completely justified behaving in selfish and self-righteous ways because you’ve earned it yourself and clearly, you know best!
If you build your life within the “We” boundary, you will seek first to build relationships. Your time and energy will focus on giving and accepting love. You will see others as your investment portfolio. As you mentor people your community will strengthen and mature. As you focus on your relationship with God - growing to love and treasure Him as you are loved and treasured by Him - you will become more loving and lovable. God’s Kingdom is a place of family, future-proofed through meaningful conversation, friendships and acts of compassion.
Resilience, which comes through relationships and shared story, can be developed in both worldviews. In the “We” worldview, resilience is a natural byproduct of spending time in community. In the “Me” worldview, resilience is a gained through family, team sports, the educational system and paid mentoring.
Person-view
What does it mean to be human? What is a person?
The modern world has sold us a concept of human nature that is broken and incomplete. We are taught by the media, movies, superstars and science books that we are, at our very foundation, sexual beings. Our identity is built on our physical attractiveness. We are valued by others and thus value ourselves if we are sexy. We spend our lives building bodies that are sexually attractive or layering ourselves with flattering clothing - or both. We find our place in life, where we belong, with people like ourselves. The law of fitness governs our survival as individuals and as a species.
The truest and purest view of the person is that we are spiritual beings. The Bible starts by saying we were created in the Image of God. A person is a spiritual being. God is Love. You are designed to be loved and to give love. I say this is the truest and purest person-view because as those who have been truly loved know, at its foundation, love is not a sexual thing. Humans who have experienced true love know there is no greater joy than being unconditionally loved. When we love and are loved with a heart love - in our spirit - we are truly living as we were created to live. We are spiritual beings.
If your person-view boundary is of humans as sexual beings, you will have routines and rituals which focus on beautifying and perfecting your body, objectifying yourself to earn respect as a worthwhile person. You will spend time and energy participating in pursuits that value others for their success at sexualising themselves. Your children will learn from your words and actions that they are most valuable when they are physically attractive.
If your person-view boundary is of humans as spiritual beings, you will have routines and rituals which are internal. You will practice and participate in reading books, spending time in prayer and meditation, attend religious services, and do acts of service. Your time and energy will be spent on heartfelt activities. Your children will learn from your words and actions that they are most whole when they are growing in spirit and involved in service to others.
Resilience, which comes through relationships and shared story, can be developed in both person-views. Other people and their stories will be taken on board, reinforcing your particular view. These mentors and their stories will lead you deeper into this way of thinking.
Universe-view
What is the Universe? Where did it come from? How did it get here?
The question of origins has interested us for as long as recorded history goes back. Religions formed around the question. Science attempts to answer it. It is the primary human question. Starting with the middle-ground in which we live, the world we can see and experience, the focus of the question zooms out and in, both approaching infinity. The bigger questions start with our solar system, reach beyond our galaxy and grasp at the edges of the known universe. The smaller questions zoom in and parse us - our cells, atoms, protons, quarks and quirks. But, overall, the question remains: What is it all and where did it come from?
The modern scientific world we live in has thrown a red herring into the approach we use in explaining the universe. This red herring swims not just in secular camps but religious ones as well. It is a product of modernity and in this sense, universal. Our ever-present passionate interest in nature has become an impassioned plea toward the saving of nature. Just as in days-of-old, our society has turned it’s universal question into a religion. Save the planet. Our nature to love and be loved draws us inexplicable toward loving the planet. If you ask most people caught up in saving the world why they think this way, they will argue that they are not in it for themselves. Saying things like, “We don’t need to save the planet just for our own needs, it’s just the right thing to do. We’ve done this damage and we should undo it.” They are expressing their inbuilt unexplainable desire to love that which is greater than themselves.
Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with caring for our planet. It is a good thing to clean up our mess. But, the red herring remains. And Christians are just as guilty of it as the scientific world. We preach green sermons. We organise outreach programs for our youth in which we better and beautify nature. And we argue about the Earth like it’s the end of the world. We even call it science, Creation Science. Many Christians feel they need to defend the planet - it’s age and birth - from those with different origin beliefs. So much so that many Christians make a passion of it and some make a living at it. Arguing about creation.
And here is the universal problem. The red herring is the focus on the created rather than the Creator. I believe we have a God who created everything, created us in His Image and then called us to love and be loved. At the foundation of this belief is God - our Loving Creator. I worship Him. Not the stars. Not the Earth. Never does the Bible try to prove God’s existence. It assumes it. Never does the Bible try to prove God’s creative power or process. It assumes it. When we take our mission or method from anywhere other than our Creator and His Love, we become part of the problem rather than the solution.
If your universe-view comes from creation, you will have routines and rituals focused on the wellbeing of planet Earth. You will spend your time and energy discussing and defending a theory of origins or saving the planet. You will be passionate about saving the planet. You may also be driven to decry those who believe differently.
If your universe-view is based on the Creator, you will have routines and rituals which lift Him up in worship and draw yourself and others toward Him. You will spend your time and energy glorifying and glorying in his presence and purpose for life - to love and be loved. Your views of God and his Word will inform your desire to care for others and the planet. You will, like your loving Creator, engage and embrace others in compassionate conversation.
Resilience, which comes through relationships and shared story, can be developed in both worldviews. There are many groups of creation-focused people who are deeply engaged in common purpose and meaning. They are not, however, necessarily connecting to God or through God to others in Love. Shared experiences and stories are present within both universe-view boundaries. One ensures God alone is worshipped - lifted up as the Creator of life and love.
Conclusion
Thinking back on that handshake and passionate plea, “How do you do it? Where do you get your strength?” I now have some answers. I was right that my family was the source of my views. But, now I am able to explain it.
A follower of Jesus lives and breathes within a different reality than someone who doesn’t know Him. Not because their reality is inherently different but because it is perceived differently.
God is love. His love compels his followers to love those around them. Not because its our job but because it's our response to His love. Being loved by our Creator in whose image we are created we connect as spiritual beings in loving, creative relationships with the rest of humanity. All in the desire to see God fully known for all that He is.
God’s people are those who recognise where they have come from. Or, more importantly, Who they have come from. Created lovingly in the Image of God by the God of Love, we are formed by Him to be in relationship with Him and those He created. When we show love to Him it is called worship. When we show love to each other it is called compassion.
Building our character within boundaries that speak of His love will shape us more rightly in His image. Viewing the person as spiritual, the world as relational, and the universe as a gift from the Creator we can build routines and rituals that embed these truths more deeply within us. Spending time with like-minded people in community and worship will give both us and our children resilience that relies on the experiences and stories which grew out of God’s love.
That is how we do it.
By building on the firm foundation of the God of Love.
By flourishing within boundaries created by His Love.
That is where we get our strength.
As a Christian, I became aware that I was different at an early age. As a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, it was in my teens when I realised just how different. I went to a Seventh-day Adventist boarding school and had friends there who were not Christian. They were there to reform while I was there for the music. The Rio Lindo Academy choir and band visited my church a few times in my childhood and I knew I wanted to go there to play the saxophone in the band and sing in the choir.
While a student at Rio Lindo, along with music, I learned all kinds of things that weren’t on the school curriculum. I learned you didn’t need to be 21 to drink alcohol - you just needed alcohol. I learned cigarettes were not just something my Grandma kept in the top of her kitchen cupboard, they were available from a guy at the back door of the gym. I learned sometimes boys got girls pregnant and those girls left school while the boy got pats on the back and special privileges from the boys dean. And I learned, in all of the above and more, everything you become later in life starts with the choices you make now.
In the summer before my Senior year, I went to live and work in Maui, Hawaii. I found a job on Front Street in Lahaina encouraging people to get their photos taken with macaws. They were beautiful birds and tourists flocked to see them. The trick was getting people over their fear of the claws and beaks. Once they allowed the bird on their arm, they always wanted a Polaroid. That was the job and I loved it.
When my shift finished at 4pm, Mike’s shift would begin. During the transition time, we became friends. Mike came from a very different world than I did. He saw as normal and desirable all the things I was raised to avoid. And he quickly became more and more sure that I was from a different planet.
Mike had one primary goal in life and he kept a list. Mike was attempting to have sex with a woman from every country on Earth. He was serious about it. He’d been travelling for a few years, from country to country, ticking nations off his list. Until he arrived in Maui and realised it was a traveller's Mecca and if he stayed put the ladies of the world would come to him. One night, Mike asked me if I wanted to join him on a Catamaran with ‘some ladies’. I declined. After a few questions, Mike came to a startling realisation and asked what was to him a deeply troubling question, “You’re not a virgin, are you?” When I said I was, he promised, “We will change that!” I laughed and explained it wasn’t something I wanted to be changed.
A week or two later, Mike invited me to a bar for drinks after work. It was Friday night and the the entire staff from the bird stand would be there sharing laughs and liquor. I explained that I didn’t drink. He assumed this was due to my age and said he knew the bartender and it would be no problem. I explained my choice not to drink and he said, “Ok, well just have a glass of milk or something.” Then I explained the Sabbath to him. As a Seventh-day Adventist, I choose to give 24 hours - from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday - to God each week. I spend these hours with God, my church family and friends. Mike shook his head in wonder.
The next week the owner of the birds, Casey, happened to stop by while Mike and I were chatting. Casey was a hippie. He drove a combi-van, had long hair and talked in long drawn out syllables even for short words. Mike started teasing Casey about his hippie diet. “Dave, did you know Casey only eats rabbit food?” I smiled and said, “Mike, I’m a vegetarian, just like Casey!” Again, Mike shook his head.
A few days later, as we were chatting, Mike pointed out a friend walking on the beach. “Oh, I want to introduce you to someone.” The beach was across the busy street and past a wooden dividing fence. Mike stood on a chair, cupped his hands, and shouted over the crowd, “DUUUDE!” His friend blocked the sun from his eyes and squinting, looked at Mike - as did everyone else in the busy outdoor shopping area. “DUDE! This is the guy I was telling you about!” Mike gestured to me as he continued shouting, “THE VEGETARIAN VIRGIN WHO DOESN’T DRINK!!”
Time stopped. I looked for a hole to climb into or a tree to hide behind. Everyone was staring. At. Me.
Mike’s friend ran up the beach, jumped the fence, crossed the road and sprinted toward me. As he got close he raised a hand above his head like he was going to hit me. Instead, he brought it down, palm up, and said, “Put her there!” I warily slapped at his hand in the way cool guys do. He accepted my low-five, put his hands on his hips and rocked back on his heels. “Dude, is it true?”
“Um, is what true?”
“Do you really refuse alcohol, meat and the ladies?”
My eyes shifted around the courtyard to see who else was looking. Mercifully, people had moved on with their lives. I looked down at the ground, embarrassed, “Yeah, it’s true.”
The next words out of his mouth were completely unexpected. “Dude, how do you do it?”
All my life I’d had to explain why I don’t do these things. Never had anyone framed the question in the reverse. “Do what? I don’t do anything!”
He laughed. “No way, man. Respect! I could never be that strong. How can you be so strong?”
I told him about my family. “I’ve been raised this way. I’ve never thought of it as strength. It’s just the way we are.”
“Dude, it’s strength.” He put his hand out and I shook it, “I’ve got nothing but respect for you.”
Character and Resilience
Over the 30+ years since that perception altering conversation, I have been studying the development of character and resilience. Both are products of our culture and values. We are truly unique - each and every one of us - shaped by the environment we grew up in and the choices we made in our formative years. Most of what we are as adults was shaped and set-in-stone before we left home.
I spend a lot of time talking to kids and parents about how to define and develop both character and resilience. Here’s my take, in a nutshell:
Resilience comes from relationships. Every child needs a minimum of five significant adults with whom they have experiences and share stories. Believed stories are stored in the same part of the mind as personal experiences. So, the more stories our children hear from significant adults, the more resilience material they have for life’s difficult patches.
Character - a combination of our thoughts and feelings - is formed by boundaries and routines. Like the wall around a building, our character is stable when we know and trust the boundaries. Everyone is comfortable leaning against a solid wall, no matter how far the fall is on the other side of it. Likewise, we trust ourselves when we have well-tested boundaries. Those boundaries are designed and defined by our routines and rituals. Every time an athlete runs around a track, they increase their ability and belief to succeed in their sport. When they ritualise that run around the track - doing it day in and day out - they create permanence of strength and character. Every time a person of faith practices their faith - every prayer, every time of worship - they increase their trust and reliance in the foundation of their faith. Every time a child lifts their arms up to their parent and is lifted up, their trust and reliance on that parent is encouraged and empowered. Our boundaries and routines provide the foundations and building blocks for our character.
Our identity is formed by three boundaries we live with and within every day of our lives. These boundaries are shaped in our childhood and never questioned by most people. They form our identity. Imagine a target with three rings. The bullseye is your identity. It is encompassed by three rings. The first ring has “person” written in it. The next ring has “world” written in it. And the final ring has “universe” written in it.
World-view
Because we are all aware of the concept of “worldview” let’s start with the middle ring. Our worldview is shaped by the world in which we grow up. In the west, success is reached by the person who aspires, focuses, trains and achieves their goals. To someone embedded in a western worldview, it may come as a shock to hear that in the past all of humanity and still today, most of the world, live by a different rule of success.
Community, to those outside the western worldview, is where success is decided and defined. A community rises or falls based on the interactivity of the people within. One person’s success or failure means little overall as long as the family, the village, the culture is maintained. I call these two worldviews: Me vs We.
“Me” says “I made this. It’s mine.” Selfishness is ingrained. Sharing is praised as an act of personal altruism.
“We” says “We made this. It’s ours.” Sharing is ingrained. Selfishness demeans the community and is shunned.
“Me” says “I am created in God’s Image.” Being like God means self-control and self-esteem.
“We” says “We are created in God’s Image.” Being like God means working together to empower others and create a better world.
The Biblical worldview, the one to which Christians are called, is contrary to the self-focused western worldview. Community is more important than the individual. Our purpose in “image-bearing” God to the world is accomplished in and through relationships rather than personal achievement.
Your worldview creates a boundary within which your identity and character form.
If you live within the “Me” boundary, your routines and rituals will focus on your need to achieve, improve, acquire and increase wealth and experience. You will find meaning in owning more than you need and using your worth to build more worth, even negative-gearing it to allow you to wrap your tail around an even bigger pile of treasure. You will feel completely justified behaving in selfish and self-righteous ways because you’ve earned it yourself and clearly, you know best!
If you build your life within the “We” boundary, you will seek first to build relationships. Your time and energy will focus on giving and accepting love. You will see others as your investment portfolio. As you mentor people your community will strengthen and mature. As you focus on your relationship with God - growing to love and treasure Him as you are loved and treasured by Him - you will become more loving and lovable. God’s Kingdom is a place of family, future-proofed through meaningful conversation, friendships and acts of compassion.
Resilience, which comes through relationships and shared story, can be developed in both worldviews. In the “We” worldview, resilience is a natural byproduct of spending time in community. In the “Me” worldview, resilience is a gained through family, team sports, the educational system and paid mentoring.
Person-view
What does it mean to be human? What is a person?
The modern world has sold us a concept of human nature that is broken and incomplete. We are taught by the media, movies, superstars and science books that we are, at our very foundation, sexual beings. Our identity is built on our physical attractiveness. We are valued by others and thus value ourselves if we are sexy. We spend our lives building bodies that are sexually attractive or layering ourselves with flattering clothing - or both. We find our place in life, where we belong, with people like ourselves. The law of fitness governs our survival as individuals and as a species.
The truest and purest view of the person is that we are spiritual beings. The Bible starts by saying we were created in the Image of God. A person is a spiritual being. God is Love. You are designed to be loved and to give love. I say this is the truest and purest person-view because as those who have been truly loved know, at its foundation, love is not a sexual thing. Humans who have experienced true love know there is no greater joy than being unconditionally loved. When we love and are loved with a heart love - in our spirit - we are truly living as we were created to live. We are spiritual beings.
If your person-view boundary is of humans as sexual beings, you will have routines and rituals which focus on beautifying and perfecting your body, objectifying yourself to earn respect as a worthwhile person. You will spend time and energy participating in pursuits that value others for their success at sexualising themselves. Your children will learn from your words and actions that they are most valuable when they are physically attractive.
If your person-view boundary is of humans as spiritual beings, you will have routines and rituals which are internal. You will practice and participate in reading books, spending time in prayer and meditation, attend religious services, and do acts of service. Your time and energy will be spent on heartfelt activities. Your children will learn from your words and actions that they are most whole when they are growing in spirit and involved in service to others.
Resilience, which comes through relationships and shared story, can be developed in both person-views. Other people and their stories will be taken on board, reinforcing your particular view. These mentors and their stories will lead you deeper into this way of thinking.
Universe-view
What is the Universe? Where did it come from? How did it get here?
The question of origins has interested us for as long as recorded history goes back. Religions formed around the question. Science attempts to answer it. It is the primary human question. Starting with the middle-ground in which we live, the world we can see and experience, the focus of the question zooms out and in, both approaching infinity. The bigger questions start with our solar system, reach beyond our galaxy and grasp at the edges of the known universe. The smaller questions zoom in and parse us - our cells, atoms, protons, quarks and quirks. But, overall, the question remains: What is it all and where did it come from?
The modern scientific world we live in has thrown a red herring into the approach we use in explaining the universe. This red herring swims not just in secular camps but religious ones as well. It is a product of modernity and in this sense, universal. Our ever-present passionate interest in nature has become an impassioned plea toward the saving of nature. Just as in days-of-old, our society has turned it’s universal question into a religion. Save the planet. Our nature to love and be loved draws us inexplicable toward loving the planet. If you ask most people caught up in saving the world why they think this way, they will argue that they are not in it for themselves. Saying things like, “We don’t need to save the planet just for our own needs, it’s just the right thing to do. We’ve done this damage and we should undo it.” They are expressing their inbuilt unexplainable desire to love that which is greater than themselves.
Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with caring for our planet. It is a good thing to clean up our mess. But, the red herring remains. And Christians are just as guilty of it as the scientific world. We preach green sermons. We organise outreach programs for our youth in which we better and beautify nature. And we argue about the Earth like it’s the end of the world. We even call it science, Creation Science. Many Christians feel they need to defend the planet - it’s age and birth - from those with different origin beliefs. So much so that many Christians make a passion of it and some make a living at it. Arguing about creation.
And here is the universal problem. The red herring is the focus on the created rather than the Creator. I believe we have a God who created everything, created us in His Image and then called us to love and be loved. At the foundation of this belief is God - our Loving Creator. I worship Him. Not the stars. Not the Earth. Never does the Bible try to prove God’s existence. It assumes it. Never does the Bible try to prove God’s creative power or process. It assumes it. When we take our mission or method from anywhere other than our Creator and His Love, we become part of the problem rather than the solution.
If your universe-view comes from creation, you will have routines and rituals focused on the wellbeing of planet Earth. You will spend your time and energy discussing and defending a theory of origins or saving the planet. You will be passionate about saving the planet. You may also be driven to decry those who believe differently.
If your universe-view is based on the Creator, you will have routines and rituals which lift Him up in worship and draw yourself and others toward Him. You will spend your time and energy glorifying and glorying in his presence and purpose for life - to love and be loved. Your views of God and his Word will inform your desire to care for others and the planet. You will, like your loving Creator, engage and embrace others in compassionate conversation.
Resilience, which comes through relationships and shared story, can be developed in both worldviews. There are many groups of creation-focused people who are deeply engaged in common purpose and meaning. They are not, however, necessarily connecting to God or through God to others in Love. Shared experiences and stories are present within both universe-view boundaries. One ensures God alone is worshipped - lifted up as the Creator of life and love.
Conclusion
Thinking back on that handshake and passionate plea, “How do you do it? Where do you get your strength?” I now have some answers. I was right that my family was the source of my views. But, now I am able to explain it.
A follower of Jesus lives and breathes within a different reality than someone who doesn’t know Him. Not because their reality is inherently different but because it is perceived differently.
God is love. His love compels his followers to love those around them. Not because its our job but because it's our response to His love. Being loved by our Creator in whose image we are created we connect as spiritual beings in loving, creative relationships with the rest of humanity. All in the desire to see God fully known for all that He is.
God’s people are those who recognise where they have come from. Or, more importantly, Who they have come from. Created lovingly in the Image of God by the God of Love, we are formed by Him to be in relationship with Him and those He created. When we show love to Him it is called worship. When we show love to each other it is called compassion.
Building our character within boundaries that speak of His love will shape us more rightly in His image. Viewing the person as spiritual, the world as relational, and the universe as a gift from the Creator we can build routines and rituals that embed these truths more deeply within us. Spending time with like-minded people in community and worship will give both us and our children resilience that relies on the experiences and stories which grew out of God’s love.
That is how we do it.
By building on the firm foundation of the God of Love.
By flourishing within boundaries created by His Love.
That is where we get our strength.
Monday, March 04, 2019
Towering Resilience - Jenga question based game
What’s the best thing that ever happened to you?
What is one goal you have right now?
What do people say they like about you?
What makes someone a good friend?
What 3 things are you good at?
How do you feel right now?
Where are your ancestors from?
What is your nickname?
Who do you look like?
The best gift you’ve been given?
3 things that upset you?
Are you clean or messy?
3 things I love…
What does listening look like?
What is your biggest fear?
3 things that upset you?
How do you show you care about your friends?
Tell something funny that happened?
What does angry body language look like?
The farthest you’ve been from home?
What are your pets names?
What is your favourite place?
What makes you happy?
Your favourite food?
Who named you?
Who is your hero?
Favourite fast food?
What do you collect?
Your favourite clothes?
Who do you act like?
People like me because…
What do you really want?
How many languages do you speak?
What is the best holiday you’ve been on?
What are you proud of about yourself?
What’s your favourite thing to play with?
What is your favourite animal?
The bravest thing you’ve done?
What is the best thing this week?
Who knows you best?
What makes you laugh?
What is your favourite game?
Tell a joke…
What is your favourite sport?
Do you like surprises?
Who is your best friend?
Tell a dream you had…
How many siblings do you have?
My favourite song is…
What makes you cry?
The best family activity you’ve done?
What makes you angry?
Saturday, March 02, 2019
The Do You Know Resilience Scale
Click here for a Workbook for Kids based on the DYK Scale (below)
The Do You Know Scale
Please answer the following questions by circling “Y” for “yes” or “N” for “no.” Even if you know the information we are asking about, you don’t need to write it down. We just wish to know if you know the information.
Y N Do you know how your parents met?
Y N Do you know where your mother grew up?
Y N Do you know where your father grew up?
Y N Do you know where some of your grandparents grew up?
Y N Do you know where some of your grandparents met?
Y N Do you know where your parents were married?
Y N Do you know what went on when you were being born?
Y N Do you know who chose your name?
Y N Do you know some things about what happened when your brothers or sisters were being born?
Y N Do you know which person in your family you look most like?
Y N Do you know which person in the family you act most like?
Y N Do you know some of the illnesses and injuries that your parents experienced when they were younger?
Y N Do you know some of the lessons that your parents learned from good or bad experiences?
Y N Do you know some things that happened to your mom or dad when they were in school?
Y N Do you know the national background of your family (such as English, German, Russian, etc)?
Y N Do you know some of the jobs that your parents had when they were young?
Y N Do you know some awards that your parents received when they were young?
Y N Do you know the names of the schools that your mom went to?
Y N Do you know the names of the schools that your dad went to?
Y N Do you know of a relative whose face “froze” in a grumpy position because they did not smile enough?
Score: Total number answered Y.
More than 10 "Y" answers correlates positively with a resilient person.
Important Note: (from website below) About that last question! Fifteen per cent of our sample answered “Yes!” This is because the stories that families tell are not always “true.” Often, they are told in order to teach a lesson or help with a physical or emotional hurt. As such, they may be modified as needed. The accuracy of the stories is not critical. In fact, there are often disagreements among family members about what really happened! These disagreements then become part of the family narrative. Not to worry!
From: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/marshall-p-duke/the-stories-that-bind-us-_b_2918975.html
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