the sweetest swap

i love traveling.  or at least, i don't mind it too much.  which is good because the closest relative (before my sister began collage in town here) is 664 miles away, plus a time zone change, plus extra for the search for Pilot stations and detours for when they decide to shut down I-40 at midnight.

and while there's often a few hours where i fight the sleepies, the occasional overnight drive means that i have 10+ hours with no urgent phone calls, internet, tv...people… crowded roads… it's just me, my thoughts and whatever music or podcasts i care to blast.  and a ribbon of highway that goes past the horizon no matter how long i've been driving.

this most recent trip i continued one of my favorite series of podcasts by Wayne Grudem as he teaches through his giant textbook on systematic theology.  yeah, i know. but i love it.  even if there is no easy or clear answer or if i may disagree with his conclusion, i always learn a little bit more.

one of the neat things i've learned, both through this textbook and our church's curriculum, is that even through the names and circumstances change a bit, there are all kinds of images and word pictures for Jesus, from Genesis straight on through Revelation. 

and one of the strongest images shows up near the (second) beginning of the world, and is just about THE beginning of our entire faith history, when this random pagan dude named Abram gets a chance to step into the biggest story of everyone's lifetime.  he didn't know that, but he DID know that when the Voice of Truth tells you to do something, you probs should get on it, even if you're firmly planted in the Senior Citizen age group.  following Truth's lead, he turns his life upside down, does his own sort of road trip to put down root way far away, converts his philosophy, and does more of a U-turn in life than anyone i know would do just because a Voice told him to.  it must have been a convincing Voice because beyond anyone's comprehension he winds up with a kid a century younger than he is, which assures him that all the other mind-blowing promises made to him were going to come true as well. 

but then the dream turns nightmare-ish for just a bit. 

the Voice comes back, and what it says is not… not what he was hoping.  definitely not conventional, but what else has it said that didn't make some waves (literally- the Voice made the waves) that rocked some boats?

it told good ole' Abe to take the son that was promised to him… and sacrifice him up on a mountaintop.  the kind of sacrifice you can't go back on, involving knives and fire.

what the crap. seriously, what. the. crap.

studying this as a large group at church, about 50 of us brainstormed through a list of questions that came into our minds after reading this passage. questions like:

-being raised a pagan, was this type of sacrifice not as abnormal to him as to us?

-how old was Isaac, this breathing promise being recalled?

-how long did it take him to pack up and start walking to the mountain?

-WHAT ON EARTH DID ABRAM TELL SARAH as he walked out the tent flap  with their child who was supposed to be the start of a chosen nation?!?

we don't know.  all we do know is that Abram packs a suitcase with some robes, firewood and matches and says he and Isaac are going on a father-son retreat to worship this Voice.

the thought process takes a long time.  the passage has zero verses in between the command and the obedience. 

Isaac is smart enough to realize halfway up this mountain that he's carrying the firewood, his ancient dad has the suitcase, but there's no animal for the sacrifice.  after being reassured by his dad that God's got this under control, he continues unaware.

at some point i think he catches on, because he finds himself tied up and lying on the firewood.

and just when both of them are despising (while obeying) the Voice more than either thought they could, the Voice comes one last time. if you're still brainstorming through this, try to picture both of their faces.  the confusion, denial, anger, bargaining-  they're flying through those grief stages- but Abe's already reached some level of acceptance and puts that shaky knife-wielding hand in the air. 

the knife is literally in the air when Abram is told to put it back down and take back his son.

and in its place he puts a ram that got stuck in an unfortunately nearby bush.

i don't know how long it took for their heart rates to come back down, but i'm betting there was some fantastic worshiping going on up there as they celebrated weirdest life-and-death situation they were rescued from.  what a sweet swap!

there's a little bitty "mountain" or sorts that has become my favorite.  it's only 3 or 4 steps high, but there are times when it's almost as hard to climb as it was for Abram to climb his.  at the top, there's a table.  an altar.

a place to put our everything.  our hopes, dreams, promises, future, lives.  whatever the Voice asks for, no matter how crazy or contradictory it sounds. 

understanding is not a prerequisite to obedience.

and before you can make excuses, you can read the engraved words, "In Remembrance of Me" on the side.

so that we can remember that Abram's story was a glimpse ahead of a different sacrifice, where a different ram took its place on a different altar in the place of a  different child, even as the judgement was inches away in the hand of the father.

you're the child.

Jesus is the ram.

the altar… is an altar. the place where mercy and judgement collide in a cataclysmic explosion- that yet leaves us, the released bystanders, unharmed. there's no acceptable response except to be knocked down to our knees by the shock waves from the impact and to worship where we fall.

that little bitty mountain that i climb sometimes feels steeper, sometimes less so.  often almost too steep. i shakily stumbled down the incline once after leaving my offering and took a single flower from the bouquet atop the altar.  i left feeling like i'd gotten the better end of that swap, leaving behind "just" a prayer and gaining a cut flower doomed to wilt in a day.  how could my gift compare? it seemed hopeless, near-worthless, trivial. i looked up and saw the giant stained glass window where fading light glowed through the image of a cross standing over the earth.

the first time i climbed that mountain under that cross, i exchanged all of my nothing for all of his everything.  i got on that altar, knowing what was at stake-

-and then-

- a moment to hold my breath-

- and there was a lamb where i used to be. 

if that's not the sweetest swap, i don’t know what is.

every time since has been easier than that first hike, and even though it can be more of a spiritual workout than i'd like, there's a unique quality to the time spent there.  it immediately brings me back to the beginning - of my beginning there. up on the mountain, it's just me and my redeemer.  few distractions, people, noises. no timelines, deadlines, headlines. where nothing is more important than the two of us. the time that is absorbed there is rarely regretted.   i'll make that swap any time i can.

penny goes decaf

what a week!

i am promising myself that the next time my checking account is compromised, my phone gets replaced and my internet is hijacked that i will NOT fix them in the same week.  possibly the same month, but that's it. 

the dumb errands tend to build up until they reach critical mass, which then causes me to go into a whirlwind of activity and knock things off the to-do list one after another.  then i make cookies, clean the kitchen, organize the room, and begin 2 new art projects.

and forget about the laundry.  again. 

but anyway. the important stuff is done (hypothetically speaking.  in reality, each item on the list will come with at least 2 new complications).

in addition, the workplace has been crazy-busy lately.  i love my job, i love my coworkers, i love working.  i love my patients, i love serving, i love those small moments in the dead of night that nobody else gets to see.

but still, it's been busy.  that overtime check is going to be simply glorious.

i don't remember what was going on at the time this thought first occurred to me, but it was similar in enough ways that the thought occurred again this week.

whatever was going on, there was a lot of it, and i was tired.  so very tired. and busy.  with a long to-do list and a short time span.

a little voice in my head remarked its doubts that there was enough caffeine in the state of tennessee to get me through it.

and then immediately following:

"Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.  take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls.  for My yoke is easy, and My burden is light."

and then immediately following:

what?!?!

for some reason, that day it struck me differently.

why, if i was tired and busy and had so much to do….

why would He offer me rest?

why not an espresso?  or chocolate?  or a giant mango smoothie?  or all the above- super-size?  why on planet earth would He offer me rest?!?

Jesus knew yokes and probs saw them every single day.  even if His dad was a carpenter, there's a decent chance He helped out at a cousin's farm and even learned how to steer those giant walking hamburgers up and down fields in the roasting hot sunshine.

He didn't have to personally experience the "american dream" to know intuitively that a lot of the time it's more like a nightmare that only ends when you go to bed...to relive it all over again.

the "american dream" is all about oneself.  getting more, getting ahead. being faster, smarter, cooler, prettier, richer, better- and being all of that immediamente.

yokes are about… none of that.

yokes are about teamwork, hard work, side by side work. 

they generally work best when the animals are of equal size and strength, but if one is slightly shorter or having an *off* day, or a bit slower, that poor cow knows that a foot away is another cow that can bear the rest of the load.  as long as that one is heading straight, sure-footed and strong, the weaker one will fall in step. it will learn, in its time, how to keep up and not fall or veer or surge ahead.  mostly because they are attached to each other by the neck. 

but this week, i don't particularly mind being attached by the neck to Someone who is able to bear the whole load and still not be pulled off course by me, as my eyes go bleary or my mind wanders, or my entire self just collapses from exhaustion and gets dragged along with the plough.  not to encourage laziness, but it really is okay sometimes to rest.  quit doing the solo-yoke thing- you'll just wind up ploughing the field into a maze, not a garden. the double-yoke thing works better- as long as you're with the right partner.  that's what Jesus says He is.  the yoke is easy and the burden is light because He's carrying 99.9999% of it already, and offering to carry you along with it.  you don't need an energy boost- you've got Him, the One who'll stay right by your side the entire way.  no refills or extra shots required.

i usually go crazy if i stay around the house "too much" without getting, or doing, or fixing, or seeing something.  today, i needed to rest.  so today, i rested. mostly because i'm skeptical of the phone's reliability and the checking account situation is still being resolved, so i have a little bit of cash to tide me over for a while, and going too far from home doesn't seem smart.

but still, i'm resting.  i worked on a painting.  i listened to fun and enlightening podcasts on systematic theology.  i read some of John outside. i found a fascinating, yet disturbing, display of God's weird world outside our window.  that monstrous garden spider that hasn't moved more than an inch in two days finally nabbed a huge catch- i take credit because i moved a fake flower display to the window to see if it would attract bugs.  i guess it worked.  i can't tell if i'm more curious or creeped out. 

but it doesn't matter, because i'm resting.  He gave me a day to rest so that i can learn from Him and also function well in the days to come when the work needs to get done- or at least some of it.  maybe not all of it.  i'll let the yoke-mate set the pace.

in the middle of the road

soooo much going through this crazy brain of mine.

that's less of an abnormality than i wish, and makes putting it all into words ridiculously difficult. 

especially since the comfy chairs in "my" coffee corner are gone. 

Dear Books-a-Million,

not cool. 

bring them back!!!!!

i was looking forward to spending time there, processing the missions trip that i couldn't process while laying semi-conscious on the couch focusing only on how to swallow.  i honestly don't think i've been that sick in almost a decade. i will never take my streptococcus- free throat for granted again.

every mission trip causes all kinds of memories that you hold on to forever.

this latest one, to Parnamirim, Brazil, was no different.

but each one also has one or two particularly special moments that hold on to YOU forever.   and every single time that trip is referenced over the next few decades, it will be the first image that comes into your mind, elevates your heart rate and puts a smile on your face.

well, we're working on the smile- it's a cross between a smile and a grimace right now- but it will come.

as far as the Brazil trips for our church is concerned, the work we do there is an incredible time of team bonding, hard, hard, hot work, new friends and old ones, more hard work and lots and LOTS of beans, rice and chicken. 

but everything we do is a build-up towards that one, single shining time: the dedication service of the chapel.  that friday night, dozens of Americans and Brazilians gather together in a one-room chapel that we built with our own hands, and we celebrate as a multi-national Church the God build with His own hands.  we sing, we hug, we share.  we present the chapel's keys to the pastor of this brand-new baby congregation, and plaques honoring those who provided the funds for the supplies and extra labor. we sing more and take zillions of selfies to treasure later.  there are tears of joy at the friendships we've made and the experiences we've shared that week, and there are tears of sadness at the impending separation the next day.

usually included in that service, just as in the morning devotionals, an American team member will share a personal testimony. i think every year we go, all the team members know that until Pastor Dan announces who's sharing the next day they should avoid eye contact or risk being asked.  it was monday or tuesday evening when he approached me and asked how i felt about giving a morning devotional at the work site before we began building.  even if it wasn't a full testimony, he asked if i just told a little about what God has been doing recently in my life.

i begged off, promising to "think about it." and thought i was off the hook. i didn't really say how i felt about it, because that answer would have been to laugh in his face, and shout "fat chance!" as i ran for the border.

but then there was a moment, thursday night.

our whole team had come back from the churrascaria (Brazilian steak house/all-you-can-eat) dinner, absolutely stuffed and now hanging out all over the motel pool area, the hammocks or the office in smaller groups.  laughter was ringing out, slowly quieting as people finished their card games and wandered back to their rooms to get some sleep.

i was trying to catch up on my mission trip journal and didn't notice him until he sat down on the bench beside me and said, "So, what's God doing in your life?"

all i promised was that i would try to write something down and we would decide in the morning, knowing that God's current working in my life would not make sense at all to anyone unless they knew the background, too.

just a few minutes later, he and everyone else had gone indoors.

i was left all alone on the bench.  just me and Jesus, trying to fathom the idea of sharing any of that story.  Pastor Dan knew just enough to know that it was a moving story that would be appropriate for this capstone moment.

deep (VERY deep) down inside, there returned to me a little (VERY little) voice that i'd heard a while before the trip.  a voice of hope.  a voice of freedom.  a voice that said maybe, just maybe, this would finally be the year i could find the strength within to release my story, stop living under a lie, and let God receive the glory for His work.  that's really the only reason we should share anything.

i stayed on that bench forever, typing words down in a file on my phone that i've never typed before. i saw those words and just … just nothing.  i felt numb inside.  there were so many questions, fears, doubts. for the thousandth time, i wondered "if You had been there, this wouldn't have happened, would it?"  and "what about now- right now - are You here?  would You come to this bench right now ? every personality test i've ever taken gets mixed up over me- i'm about 51% Type A and 49% Type B.  even Myers-Briggs has trouble classifying me.  the Type A side saw Pastor Dan's request as a simple task- don't think, just do.  the Type B side was struggling a bit more. as i mentally worked through this, trying to get the head and the heart to agree on something, just wondering what Jesus would say if He had sat down with me, it came.  a strong, loud, yet gentle rain. first, nothing; then, rain pouring down from invisible clouds in the dark, beating on the roof and then hitting the ground in rhythmic streams, evenly spaced by the wavy roof panels overhead.

it could have been a pure coincidence, or it could have been a little message: "I AM there on that bench…"

***

chapter 11 in the book of John covers the whole story of Lazarus, and for some reason i can't understand, John is the only guy who bothered to write it down.  i guess chiseling down a daily diary on boulders would get inconvenient, but you gotta think having a day like that would justify getting some cheap parchment and jotting down a paragraph or two!  guess not. 

but in between Lazarus being alive, and then being alive again, there are two brief conversations.  one with Martha and then one with Mary. the Brain and the Heart.

Jesus' disciples have just decided that they were going to keep following Jesus, even though they think He's making a super-stupid choice, heading right back to where He just escaped a mob-assassination from. they are devoted to Him, even when they don't understand Him.  because now that His friend is DEAD, going towards Jerusalem seems pointless and dangerous and dumb.

in response to their quizzical facial expressions, He says, "Are there not twelve hours in a day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world."

the only commentary my footnotes give state that He was saying that as long as He was there- because He WAS the light of the world- everything would be alright.

but even more than that, when He says that there are 12 hours in the day, the rest of that thought is left unstated:

after day comes the night. 

hours are measureable. 

He knew exactly what time it was. 

miles down the road, just outside the town of Bethany, Martha gets wind of His approach and meets Him outside the town gates.  wasting no time, she goes right into the conversation.  she doesn't really care about the traffic, the weather, the local news- she wants to know why He didn't come earlier. 

she's hurting and confused and very Type A.  she's the one who is always prepared, always working, always fixing things.  she's organized, she's capable, she's strong.

but there's a problem she can't fix, a situation wholly out of her control.

and the only One who could...didn't.

and durg it all, she wants to know why.

so she asks why, and He answers why. 

"if You had been here, this would NOT HAVE HAPPENED.. would it? "she had the theology down pat- she was just missing a key piece- Jesus.  

something "clicks" in her head and she knows someone else who needs a healing touch: her sister Mary.  so she races back to their home and tells Mary to get her sandals on 'cause Jesus was calling her (which there's no written record of).

so Mary hops on down the road just as fast as she can, wasting no time.

she likewise, could care less about current events or anyone else.  all she wants to know is why on earth He didn't come earlier.

she's hurting and confused and very Type B.  she's the one who cares more about the houseguest than the house, always spending time with people, building relationships, talking, sharing, loving.  she's caring, she's personable, she's committed.

but there's a problem she can't fix, a Lazarus-shaped hole in her heart. 

and the only One who could have stopped it...didn't.

and durg it all, she wants… she wants Him. 

so she falls at His feet, tells Him the problem… and nothing else.

"would You come- just come right here.  Come right here, right now- would You? could you?"

she's so upset there's not even a real question there. her brother is dead. either she thinks He can't fix it, knows He will, or  hasn't even thought that far ahead- i don't know. but it's enough for her that Jesus is right there, right then.  other friends followed her to lend their emotional support; they are invisible to her. 

it's just her and Jesus together. the I AM was right there.

even Jesus cries.  He cares enough to cry. like a strong but gentle rainstorm, making His presence known. not denying the problem- acknowledging it, but also the fact that the answer was coming- so soon- but not here yet, and that until that "yet" came there was a painful waiting. 

again, the commentary doesn't say much.  it considers the text sufficiently speaks for itself. Jesus was caught up in the emotion of the moment and supporting His friends who were hurting.

i can't help but think there's more.

He's looking back...but He's also looking forward, physically and metaphorically.

He's looking back at His disciples who followed Him and the question they're thinking ("half those Jews behind Mary are probably about to arrest us- why are we not running?")

He's looking forward at Martha and Mary and the questions swarming around them, and the questions that they don't even know to ask.

He's looking back in time at centuries of Marthas and Marys and Lazarus's (Lazari?  Lazaruses?....????) and Jews.  millions of Type As and Bs with questions, pain, death, disease, anger, confusion, sin, and holey, holey hearts.

and then finally, He's  looking forward in time.  but not hundreds of years forward (well yes, but not principally). just a matter of days forward.

the disciples didn't know that when Jesus made that reference to time, dusk was fast approaching. the sun was going down, and every single one of them that had just that day chosen to follow Him- even though they thought it would end in death- was about to ditch Him and run once they realized that it would undoubtedly end in His death. 

that friday night in Brazil, sharing that secret story for the first time… what a night.

looking down at a text that had never been spoken, looking back at years i am incapable of forgetting and all the questions they create, my mouth went completely dry.  somehow i choked my way through the whole thing, with a white-knuckled grip on the pulpit and a friend supporting me (emotionally AND physically) from behind.

the Martha side of me had already been through that conversation.  i've already thrown all those questions down, cried those tears, been through that whole scenario.  the brain part is done.

the Mary side of me is still…

it's still sitting there.  right there in the middle of the road.  everyone else can stay invisible for all i care right now.  i need those friends just as much as that Mary did- i need to know they are there… as long as they support me from behind and don't come between me and Jesus.

it's got to be enough for me that He is here.  He's got the answers to the questions that i don't even know to ask, and if i look back even farther, i'll see what Jesus was looking forward to, and maybe- just maybe- our eyes will meet just below that cross beam.   

throw the questions down at His feet, right there at the base of the Cross.

then look up just a bit and see the answer just above you.  the answer to every-shaped hole in every heart.  the answer to every question, asked and unasked.  the light for every darkness.

the best part is that there is room at the Cross for everyone who wants to come.  don't stand off down the road; come join me- there's room for all.

and they can stay as long as they need to. 

that's what i plan on doing.

i am no longer

it's been a while since i wanted my words to heard so clearly. there is such a burden on my mind and i'm afraid that if readers misunderstand me, super-bad reactions and things might happen.  so track with me, and ask questions before making assumptions or jacking your blood pressure up to IV metoprolol levels, please. that'd be awesome.

i have very dear, very close friends on both sides of the ongoing conversation the media is having.  we just now celebrated Memorial Day- a chance to remember that blood, sweat, and countless tears were shed to protect each American's undying right to have their own voice be heard, as long as it stays in an appropriate context.  if we forget our history, we are doomed to repeat it.  i think we're doomed, but still…

i think my struggle here is that i completely agree with both sides. 

but i also completely disagree with both sides.  and so i'm confused.  and hurting. yet strangely okay, as long as i remember my own history.  (key point right here).

*if you keep reading, please not that i have cited extensive sections of Paul's letter to the Romans, because i think his argument makes the case really very well.  these sections are in italics and indented, if you don't have time to read them now.  any bold type/emphasis is mine. two parallel trains of thought, so it might be easier to only read my text, then Romans 2-8 separately.*

i was literally just talking a couple weeks ago with a friend about the Duggars, and what the world would do when they all found out that they are not, in fact, the perfect family with no problems and no sin and no tears and nothing swept under any of their carpets.

and then it happened. 

just like it always does (always, always), sin that had hidden for so long reared its ugly head, and it's like every single TLC fan took a collective gasp in disbelief.  almost by accident, yet also by divine design, we learned that a teenager, raised by parents who are religious to the point of extreme, did some remarkably stupid things- sick things, really.

key point right here: what Josh Duggar did was wrong.  however sick and twisted he thought it was at the time, it was WAY more so.  he was a teenager, and we all know teens can be so stupid at times that we wonder how this human race has made it this far.  and we know that everyone involved knew beyond doubt that it was wrong because of the lengths everyone went to keep it quiet.  counseling for all involved?  great!  manual labor as punishment? excellent!  serious chats with law enforcement officers?  i'm all about that. 

here's where i'm divided. 

the Duggar fans cite all the above as proof that he's good to go, cheer him on for coming clean, say the parents did all they should have, and are thankful that he has changed his ways and is now the good leader of his own household. 

the non-Duggar fans point out that hiding this until the statute of limitations comes into play is kinda cheating the law, talking to a police officer with (huge, very huge) sins of his own probably wasn't the *best* idea, and that no amount of private counseling and manual labor is enough to blot out the "X" on his soul. 

i'm divided because… well, because ALL this, ALL OF IT, is (i believe right now) 10000000% true. all of it.

here's why:  i am that person everybody is pointing and staring at. 

i am that sinner.

i am that convict.

i am a murderer. an adulteress.  a liar, a cheat, a thief.

the only reason it's Josh's name and not mine  on everyone's "trending now" tagline is because he's on a tv show and i'm not.

99% of those active in my life know only about the past few years of my life.  they know (most of them) how old i am, how many siblings i have, that i no longer am a New Yorker, that i am a nurse.  they have either worked with me, lived near me or gone to church or college with me.  they all know the part of me that is excellent material for a family-friendly show- because we all know how pleasant life as a night-shift nurse is... BAAHAHAHA!! 

no but really, i don't care.  i wouldn't trade it for (just about) anything.

but there are a few, a very few, who know a bit more.  because they were there and actively involved when i came clean.

i remember, still so vividly, when i was finally able to look down and see the blood dripping from my own two hands, physically nauseous and dizzy from seeing my guilt, the pain i had caused, the wrongdoing i'd been involved it.  i could see my sin for what it truly was, and it was hideous.

there was a choice right then- or rather a collection of them- summed up in the one choice of "what in the flaming heck am i going to do?!?"

i could sweep it back under the carpet, limit it to the far reached fringes of memory, try some detergent to rid me of the stains and never speak of it again.  but no matter who knew or didn't, i could still feel the heat from the flames i was leaning over the

brink of.  i could see the "X" that no cleaning agent or bucket of tears could fully cleanse…. they could only smudge it a little.

so many people are angry that there's nothing the law can do now.  stupid statute of limitations- how dare they clear his record?  how dare those he hurt forgive him?  how dare he ever be happy again- there's no way he changed, there's no way his wife should stay with him, and there's no way he can ever be defined as anything but a scummy troll for the rest of his days!

well, from all i've learned, heard and read, there is no law, no moral code, no religion in this world that puts you in the right and Josh Duggar in the wrong.

the American penal system?  if you're going to complain that the law cleared him, then go to the police station right now and offer to pay the ticket price for every single time you've gone even 1 mph over the speed limit. every stick of gum you didn't pay for, intentionally or not. every stop sign you didn't completely stop for. the American law is trapped in so many double standards it can't see straight.  if a pregnancy is "wanted" by the woman yet lost in a car accident or miscarriage, then it's a child we mourn.  but if it's not wanted, it's just some tissue to be sucked out and tossed in the biohazard disposal container.  those who quietly follow a particular, non-popular religion are "intolerant," but those who target them, sue them, force them out of business, mock and slander them are only "fighting for their rights"?

you're really gonna trust in that kind of penal system to clear you, yet condemn him- and call that fair justice?

edited note: WHAT I AM NOT SAYING is that if you go 35 in a 30 mph zone, you deserve the same punishment in the American courts as a violator of children- the single most hated criminal, even to every other criminal.  flawed though it is, the American law provides punishments that seek to fit the crime, and i believe they should be kept, upheld to the fullest measure, and in many cases are way more lenient than i would be, and what other countries currently are.

WHAT I AM SAYING is that we have courts for that, and unless you are a certified judge or on a jury, your job is not to cast blame, until you also accept and make up for your own acts that, however "small" or "insignificant" are still illegal.  in this one situation with the Duggars, his crime is horrendous, but the legal system's hands are tied, so to speak.  the fact that the statute of limitations has expired is sketchy to say the least, but it is a fact.  it is also a fact that his victims have chosen to forgive him and asked that for their own sake the police file be done away with.  i believe the true hypocrites are those who grudgingly admit the victims' forgiveness, claim Jesus' forgiveness for themselves, even say there is God's forgiveness for the Duggars, yet refuse to forgive him themselves, though they do not know him personally at all and only what the media tells them. 

I AM SAYING that there are two laws at work- the American law, and God's law.  both have an answer to this, but from my experiences (which are more than you are thinking right now, i'm almost sure), God's law is the only flawless one that provides both justice to satisfy the red-faced screamers out there, and also appropriate amounts of perfect grace.

Buddhism, Hinduism, even many forms of cultural faiths don't say you're off the hook- they just give you all the retrys you want to get "life" right.  innumerable reincarnations until you're finally "good enough" to reach blissful nothingness.  (not even to ask where the "bliss" is, if there's nothing there…)

stick with that, and all you can say is that maybe JD needs a few more go-arounds than you.  can't really complain about him more than that.

none of these options is good enough though.  don't even kid yourself.  i think every single American, deep inside, is torn because we all have a craving for true justice.  there's a reason we only really like the crime shows that depict most or all of the "bad guys" being convicted and locked up for the rest of their lives- or heading straight to Death Row with no chance at an appeal. 

but we're also torn because deep inside, we also know it's not quite as cut-and-dry as those 43 minutes.  many of those convicts outwardly live lives at least as good as we ourselves do, and we know that if those "bad guys" are guilty (...which they are…) then so are we (…. uh-oh…). 

Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgement on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgement of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man- you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself- that you will escape the judgement of God? Or do you presume upon the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgement will be revealed.

He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing see for glory and honor and immortality, He will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury...For God shows no partiality.

Romans 2:1-11

here's why:  i am that person everybody is pointing and staring at. 

i am that sinner.

i am that convict.

i am a murderer. an adulteress.  a liar, a cheat, a thief.

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spriit who has been given to us.

Romans 5:1-5

but we don't usually think about it outside those 43 minutes, do we?  nope.  we let that one case, with that one wrongdoing, completely define that one human being.  we're treating the real-life Duggar just as if he's just another tv-show character, but not holding ourselves to the same standards. 

here's why:  i am that person everybody is pointing and staring at. 

i am that sinner.

i am that convict.

i am a murderer. an adulteress.  a liar, a cheat, a thief.

my verdict was clear: guilty, whatever law you held me to.

my choice:  what is going to define my life?

i could have gone that route- i could choose to be defined by one act long ago, that left blood dripping from my hands.  those ugly moments from my life, those memories i can't be rid of, the faces of the ones i've hurt.

but i chose to be defined by one act much longer ago.

one act where Someone different, with hands dripping - not with someone else's blood but His own- took the stand and pled "Guilty" in my stead. 

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person- though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die- but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 

Romans 5:6-8

here's why:  He was that person everybody was pointing and staring at. 

He was that sinner.

He was that convict.

He was a murderer. an adulterer.  a liar, a cheat, a thief.

Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.  For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Romans 5:9-11

He himself was completely innocent, but He took those sins and literally made them His own, thereby literally making Himself guilty.  then He paid the price.  

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned- for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law.  Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the One who was to come.

Romans 5:12-14

so where is the justice?  where is the justice for Duggar's victims? for all those wronged in ways that make the bile rise in our throats, our throats that are crying out in anger and indignation at the tragedies that happen at the hands of evil people? 

But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.  And the free gift in not like the result of that one man's sin.  For the judgement following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification.  For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:15-17

some of the most healing words i received from a godly influence in my life were these:  the promise that despite the way it looks from our earthly perspective, there is true justice. 

EVERY SIN WILL BE REPAID.  those who accept forgiveness know that their sin has been taken by Jesus who met true justice with true humility and true love.

everyone else?  they will pay the price themselves.

one way or the other, every sin will be repaid, to the last measure.

Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.  For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one Man's obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 5:18-21

here's why:  they each are "that person" everybody is pointing and staring at. 

they are that sinner.

they are that convict.

they are that murderer,  adulteress, liar, cheat and thief.

if you had any idea of the true justice coming, you wouldn't complain that some merely mortal judge let a creep get off "scotfreo*"  in this life.  because he won't in the next when he faces the Eternal One.   

* the Old English language from which we get the term "scot-free," meaning "free, or exempt, from royal tax."

there is only one Law that makes for both ultimate Justice and ultimate Forgiveness. 

What then shall we say? That the law is sin?  By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin.  For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet." But sin, seizing an opportunity though the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness.  For apart from the law, sin lies dead.  I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me.  For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.  So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

Romans 7:7-12

it's the law that means that i can say that Josh Duggar's actions were completely of the Evil One, yet i can say i forgive him because i have been forgiven.  he has either taken God's forgiveness openly offered to us all, of he will face more justice than we can stomach the thought of later on.  i don't have to judge him now, because i've already been judged, and God is Judge of all, not me.  i am every inch the sinner he is, and to condemn him is to condemn myself. 

yes, people- PLEASE CONVICT LAWBREAKERS and uphold all the measures of justice we can.  correct wrongdoing, repay what is stolen to the best of our ability.  to the courtroom judge, i say do your duty without prejudice.  jury, seek the truth and hold citizens accountable.

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it/ Do you not now that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therfore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

[…]

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

Romans 6:1-4, and 15-19

but do it knowing that outside the courtroom (and a few times within) there is a place for grace, mercy, forgiveness.  [a lot of] people do [eventually] change, and a horrible, stupid teenager doesn't [always] make a terrible, stupid adult.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.  But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:20-23

here's why:  I AM NO LONGER that person everybody is pointing and staring at. 

I AM NO LONGER that sinner.

I AM NO LONGER that convict.

I AM NO LONGER a murderer. or an adulteress.  or a liar, or a cheat, or a thief.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.  For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do.  By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

[…]

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?  Who shall bring any charge against God's elect?  It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died-more than that, who was raised- who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered."

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:1-4, and 31-39

amen.  hallelujah, amen!

follow the yellow brick Romans Road-...then do as they do

for some reason that i've already forgotten (it was a really great one), my roomie and i decided to put off chores for another night and watch Aladdin, because  childhood is always better second time around- when we can choose our own bedtimes.  and since the Genie got us on a Robin Williams kick we found another gem on Netflix- Jumanji, which i have never watched all the way through.  at one point in there, as monsoons, terrorist flowering vines, rhino stampedes, pelicans, creepy monkeys and a psycho hunter pour forth from this poor old house, the crazy monkeys run past a movie store (that in one scene you see is an adult store with XXX-rated movies for sale…) and see the Wicked Witch of the West's flying monkeys having a pow-wow and they decide to join in.

i do not know why this movie would be in an adult store, or if there is simply a second video store.  do not ask me. 

but wherever it is sold, i love the movie.  it took a while, after surviving a REAL tornado, but once the PTSD went away i actually appreciated it more.

 

after doing just about everything you're NOT supposed to do in a 'nader scenario, she whacks herself unconscious, wakes up in a brightly colored alternate reality/dream world, and says… "i don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto."

she's a genius, that one.

then she just jumps right on in with the shenanigans of the Munchkins, joins the parade and becomes best friends with a crack-happy Glinda.  once the party and song are over, she realizes that now she's got to DO something.  but what?

well, duh- clearly follow the yellow brick road. 

which one?

the one that the song ended with you standing on.  it's like it knew or something…

she is standing on the exact spot where it begins.  and then she inches along, tip-toeing around every curve of the spiral and then on down towards the Emerald city, step by step.  

we're about to complete yet another year of Cubbies tomorrow night, where the 2-6 teachers will attempt to demonstrate to the parents how much these 3-5 year olds have learned.

it's gonna be great.  i hope i don't cry.  if there are tears on my face, it's either because i'm proud they actually did what they were supposed to (stand in a line and say 2 short verses) or because i'm laughing at what i'm anticipating being the outcome (…. not what we practiced…).  

one song about the joys of being a Cubby.

one "A" verse. ("A" stands for "All." All have sinned.  Romans 3:23)

one "C" verse. ("C" stands for "Christ." Christ died for us. Romans 5:8)

that's it.

having emerged from the Jumangi-Jungle of Thistly Theology only in the past handful of years, i sympathize with Dorothy, wondering where in the world to go, and how in the world to get there, and then what in the world to do.

well, silly, you do like the Cubbies, sing a ridiculously happy song, and then walk on down the Romans Road.

sounds crazy, but it's true.

it's what we've done every week with our Cubbies. 

it's what we've done every mission trip i've been on.

it's what we do with non-Christians.

it's what we *should* do with Christians.

you start at the very beginning, and you go from there. 

it's simple enough that kids can understand it. 

it's SO simple that ONLY those with the attitude of a kid CAN get it.

i told a friend today that i often feel… stupid.  the word is stupid.

i was given a friggin' ton of Bible-knowledge growing up.  even though 99.110% of it was tainted and twisted into non-truth, the Bible-knowledge is something that too many don't have.  but now i have to completely reconstruct an entire theology.  the only way i can see to do that is to figuratively speaking throw out EVERYTHING and only take back in what is really true.  it's not an easy task.  it's not overwhelmingly fun.  it feels stupid.  there are so many things i only understand on the level of these Cubbies.  so much that i am literally AND figuratively on a 4-year-old level.  i see Christians my age raising families, teaching LifeGroups, witnessing all over Jackson, writing books and poems and songs, celebrating all these miraculous truths of the Gospel.

and then there's me.  and i'm like, "i'm… i'mma gonna play over here with your kids. probs tell 'em a story about Jesus.  then feed them graham crackers and send them back to you."

our LifeGroup has been going through Romans for the past few months which i have just loved.  it's the theology for 4 year olds, but on a post-grad intellectual level.  it's Paul giving the Romans the low-down on Christianity, starting at the very, very beginning, then spiraling outwards.  it's the early AD-edition of Christianity for Dummies.  best thing ever. 

because even Paul the Apostle says in there, "i'm speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations."

basically: you feel stupid.  but you're a human, so it's okay.  here's what humans need to know: Romans Road- SHA-BAM!! 

           nailed.

                       it.

Jesus said it first.  be a kid.  don't be a smart-aleck.  be a kid.  they do stupid things, they ask stupid questions, they have stupid-short attention spans. but those lil' Munchkins GET IT.  and they GET ME. 

i wonder if He got as excited over His disciples as we do if we can get all 18 pre-Ks to stand in a semi-straight line. 

every time Simon Peter opened his mouth to put his foot in…  (Teacher, TIE MY SHOE RIGHT NOW!)

every fight He had to stop over who was the "best" disciple… (Teacher, i -*sniffle* -didn't win- *sniffle sniffle*- the raaaaaace!!!- *sustained howling cry*)

every time someone interrupted His nap or personal time because of a new crisis… Jesus- WAKE UP!!  WE'RE ALL GONNA DIIIEEEEEEEE!!! ("Teacher… i needed to use the potty 10 minutes ago."  "okay- you may go." … "i did, Teacher."  …….oh.)

even something as simple as a potty break can turn into a drama-laden adventure with a kid. they get the simplest questions completely wrong.  the one time we asked them to color outside the lines was the one time they didn't, and so the craft didn't work, because only the crayon outside the lines showed the outline of the cross that was removed-  the cross they all colored so dutifully minding the lines.  they go astray a lot; we gave up on "Simon Says" because they all try so hard to follow ALL the rules every time that they get confused at NOT obeying the Teacher when she gives an order. they don't know who Simon is, but by gum Teacher said to JUMP!!  -but if Teacher says, "we're done coloring- it's story time now" their whole world comes to a screeching halt. 

those are the ones Romans was written for. i'll catch up to the brainiacs one day, but until then you can find me spinning in circles on the playground, getting dirty and building theology as we build 4-course dinners with Play-Doh.  any Munchkins out there who want to join in, you sure can- as long as you learn the songs ;)