“Hey Dad, It’s Me”

Yesterday morning, I watched a documentary titled I AM. It’s on Netflix, and I recommend watching it. On it, there is a seemingly insignificant clip of the director calling his father on the phone. The only part of the conversation we see is the director/son’s greeting. He begins by saying, “Hey Dad, it’s me. Is it too late?” What we assume from the film is that he is calling his father and asking if it’s too late to come by the father’s house to interview him. However, there are three points to the son’s side of the conversation that I want to highlight. “Hey Dad”, “it’s me”, and the question “Is it too late?”.

“Hey Dad”. This simple greeting illustrates a name and identity for one who created us. It is not elaborate nor is it elevated. It does not list the number of things the father has done or his numerous identities. It lists only the most basic, and possibly most significant, relational identity that exists in the eyes of the son, “Dad”.

“it’s me.” I identify with this as this is how I greet my parents on the phone. I don’t say, “It’s Brent” or “This is your eldest son calling you”…unless I’m joking around. Even still, the first words that come from my mouth are “Hey Mom and Dad, it’s me.” This statement of self-identification implies that the parent knows the voice of the child so well that only the sound of the voice is needed for identification. Granted, the words “Hey Dad” would imply that of all possible callers, this caller is one of your children. Still, a relationship must pre-exist outside of this call in order for the voice and identity to be recognized. Beyond this, there is also an understanding the son has regarding the significance of his own identity in relation to the father. If the son didn’t know the father would recognize him based on his voice alone, he would not feel confident in offering such a brief and non-descriptive explanation of himself. Thus, we know that the son knows his “Dad” well and is aware that his father knows his son well.

“Is it too late?” This question can be viewed simply as a question of timing, as the father is old and may go to bed soon. We can’t tell, based on the footage given, what limiting factor is present. All that can be known is that a time constraint is implied.

If you haven’t made the connection yet, don’t know me well, and haven’t quite enough foresight to see where I’m going with this metaphor, I’ll explain it to you. (Although, I’m sure it’s unnecessary.) All these points can be made when relating to our Heavenly Father, Abba, “Dad”. I won’t repeat myself, but in case you’re wondering about the last point, regarding the son’s question, it isn’t too late. It wasn’t too late for the director to meet with his father. Though, before the release of the documentary, the father passed away. How sadly fitting that this question be asked. I doubt the son knew the significance of his question. I doubt he knew that time with his father would be so limited beyond the hours of that day, but the truth that time is limited remains. Our time to establish and increase our relationship with our Father while on Earth is limited by time. Don’t waste opportunities to be in conversation with Him. Know that he is your Father, your Dad. He knows you better than anyone else. Lastly, know that it’s not too late to talk to him today. He might be old, but he’s more than willing to stay up to talk with you for as long as you need.

21 Day Challenge – Community

If you missed the Facebook post, I’ve been trying to focus on meeting new people. It actually stemmed from reading about a 21 Day Challenge on the Art of Manliness website. This has been a difficult endeavor. As an introvert, I am much more comfortable sticking to the people I know. Additionally, my life is pretty cyclical and doesn't involve seeing and meeting new people each day. In fact, there are only rare opportunities for this, and I try not to force the interaction by running up to strangers and shouting in their face. It has been difficult, and honestly, I've only spoken to 1 or 2 new people in the last 10 days. I'm not quitting, but I've realized that, perhaps additionally, I should do all that I can for those I know and am around all day. This may be the more impacting and effective way to do good.

Allow me to quickly explain my idea using an illustration. Let’s look at the example of the church. So often, we look at the story of Jesus and his calling of the disciples. He calls them 1 or 2 at a time. It portrays 1 calling another or 2 others. The problem is when we stop there. We don’t continue down the story, when community attracts the 1s and 2s and thousands. After Jesus and his disciples are an established group and community, we see others drawn to that community.

To shift our gaze to present day, in the life of a church, we don’t see 1 person saying, “Come follow me.” We see a person saying, “Will you come to church with me? Will you be a part of our community?” As outsiders to the community, we are attracted. People are not usually attracted to isolation. That doesn’t mean that, as an introvert, I don’t want to get away from time to time. Even Jesus took moments in isolation on the hillside with the Father. What this means is that as a part of a group, we don’t see the wallflower at the dance or the guy sitting alone at the lunch table and think, “I wish I were sitting off to the side, alone.” Or “I wish I were sitting at a table alone, too.”  Instead, we see the group of people sitting together and think, “I wish I could be a part of that. I wish I were part of that group.”

To be most effective in my efforts to build relationships, I thought that I should try my best to meet new people. This is a worthy cause, to desire to increase the number of relationships I have with others, to stumble across the path of a man who just needs a smile or random act of kindness. However, I realized that this can be very difficult to accomplish and not necessarily due to my own fault. I am around the same people every day. I work with the same people. We sit at our assigned cubicles, limiting visibility and interaction with others. Therefore, the likelihood of an encounter with a new individual is less likely than a repeated interaction with the same person I see each day. If this is the case, then wouldn’t it be more likely that I could enhance the existing relationships rather than meet someone new?

If I build upon the relationships I have and enhance the community, is it possible that others will be attracted to the community? I believe so. To speak to numbers, it is also likely that other members of my community will have relationships and encounters with those outside the community and may be able to draw them into our community. As communities tend to share ideas, it is possible that my desire to meet new people could spread to those in my community. My desire becomes their desire. My mission is now the mission of the community. How much more effective is a community over the individual?

You, me, and God the Healer

²⁷ 
I have been trying so hard for the last several weeks to understand the healing nature of God. He is The Great Physician, God the Healer, one who came for the sick, to give sight to the blind! I know this! I do not doubt it! I declare this truth! So why haven't I, personally, seen it? I've heard stories of others. I've read the scriptures (not enough, I'm sure). I know what God has the power to do. I know that Matthew 7:7 says, "Ask and it will be given to you." What I don't know is why when I ask for healing over others, the healing I asked for isn't given, at least not quickly. (I suppose God may plan to heal in the future.) I know that His ways are not my ways. I know to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6)." 

So I get that I don't get it all...(got that?) But I know that God's heart must break when witnessing the pain of His children. After all, don't loving parents cry for the pain of their children? Mine do, so I can't imagine how much more God does. It must be almost unbearable for Him to witness it. 

Over these last weeks, as I have been trying to understand this healing nature of God, I have also been praying that I would be more receptive to God's people. I have prayed that their lives might be more intertwined in mine, that we may become united as His body, and in so doing, your joys would be my joys and your pain my pain. Yes, I can see how this may have been a curse and a blessing, but this unity is the will of God. (Read 1 Cor. 12) 

My eyes have recently caught mere glimpses into the lives of others who deal with struggles that far exceed my own. A woman at church is losing her sight; sisters and brothers in Christ are in physical pain all the time; my wife deals with severe allergies, asthma, and now, frequent migraines. There is so much pain around me. It pains me to see it! (Unity prayer answered.) I have prayed so many prayers of healing to make the sight come back, to relieve the pain, to release the allergies, asthma, and migraines. I am asking for miracles because I believe in them. So why...why can't I see healing?

I have been trying to test my faith. I have asked myself if it is my doubt that has caused my prayers of healing to be ineffective. I've heard that hope doesn't produce miracles, only faith does that. I have wondered if, by asking boldly for all to witness His glory in action, He might actually heal miraculously. Then again, He might not respond. Would that damage the faith of others? Is that considered testing God? After all, Matthew 4:7 says, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." So many questions I don't know the answers to. 

For now, I will try to rely on this word from 2 Cor. 12:8-10

^"8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

This pain was given "in order to keep [Paul] from becoming conceited, [he] was given a thorn in [his] flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment [him]."

I'm not saying all pain is from God or from Satan. I don't understand how that works nor the circumstances for specific pains. I'm probably not supposed to understand that. However, I do know that God does all things for good. I know that when Jesus's disciples asked why a certain man was blind, Jesus said, ³ “...this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him (John 9:3)." I truly believe that all ailments are opportunities for God to be displayed in us.

I also find myself receiving the words of Isaiah as I ask all these questions and talk with the Lord.

Isaiah 40: 27-31

Why do you complain, Jacob?
    Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
    my cause is disregarded by my God”?
²⁸ Do you not know?
    Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
    and his understanding no one can fathom.
²⁹ He gives strength to the weary
    and increases the power of the weak.
³⁰ Even youths grow tired and weary,
    and young men stumble and fall;
³¹ but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

While I do not understand spiritual gifts, the gift of healing, the full power of prayer, the ways of the Lord, nor even fully grasp my own faith, I do know this... He has given me a stronger love for His people. He may not be healing what I've asked for yet, but perhaps he is healing His body, the church, first. Maybe he is healing our severed ties to each other, the parts of His body. I said earlier that faith is what brings miracles, but of faith, hope, and love, the greatest of these is love. That is exactly what God is giving me for you, and in a way, it is probably even more than what I've asked for!

Lastly, receive this word and be blessed by it...

There is a God. He loves you more than anyone else ever could dream of loving another. He wants only the best for you and has a plan to give it to you. My heart is growing more, like His, in love for you. I will continue to pray for you and your healing. You are not alone in this! I AM is for you, and so am I. Pray also for me, that I may be reminded of you and be reminded to pray for you at all times you are in need, that we may share in each other's suffering and rejoice in one another's victories and blessings. May the God of Healing bring you grace that is sufficient for you. May he bless you and heal you! I ask this, wholeheartedly, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Diving Board

You’re climbing to the top of that really big diving board at the community pool. All of your friends are there, but you could care less about whether they see you jump or not because your biggest concern is what you’re going to do when you jump. Sure, you need to consider a few things first, like whether you are capable of the jump you will attempt. A triple flip is probably outside your means, even though you could go for it. So you know that you need to stay within your means to avoid certain failure and pain. However, you certainly don’t want to be that lame kid that just runs off the board without attempting anything. Sure, if he enjoys what he’s doing, good for him, but you were meant for more! You’ve already done five dives today, a cannonball, and a can opener. You don’t need to make a big splash, because it’s not about that anymore. You want to do something special, something graceful, not a dive again. You want this to be impressive, even to yourself. You want to push your own boundaries and take a little risk, knowing that if you give it your all, you can do something spectacular. So what do you do?

This is where I am at in my life now. I have been climbing the ladder. I’m not trying to impress others anymore. Although, let’s be honest, I always appreciate affirmation in my abilities. I don’t care about the splash I make, but I still want to make an impact. I want to do something special, something I was designed to do. I don’t need to be better than everyone. My best is enough, and only my best is enough. So I’ve already spent a little time showing off, or trying to anyway. I’ve already flopped a couple times when I did something I wasn’t meant to do. I also know what I don’t want to do again. So what do I do?

I think I’m ready to take the jump. There is still some risk for me, though, because there is a possibility that I might flop again if I make a mistake. Sure, I know that God will catch me, but it doesn’t mean it won’t sting a bit. Plus, I’ll have to spend all that effort and time climbing the ladder again. So, I’m asking God what’s next. It’s like when you get up on the diving board as a kid and ask your mom, who always watches your jumps and tricks no matter what they look like, what jump you should do. Of course, I’m repeating God’s name and my question. I hope he answers soon. I’m confident He will. He always does and will always watch me every time I jump. He just cares about what I do. I really love and appreciate that about Him.

He Did What?!?!

21 “Although I am blameless,
I have no concern for myself;
I despise my own life.
22 It is all the same; that is why I say,
‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’
23 When a scourge brings sudden death,
he mocks the despair of the innocent.
24 When a land falls into the hands of the wicked,
he blindfolds its judges.
If it is not he, then who is it?

-Job 9:21-24

This passage blows me away with in each line. I think of it as a compilation of images, each with its own puzzling characteristics, that, when brought together, creates a picture all its own. Let me tell you what I mean by each image.

Let’s start with verse 21. “Although I am blameless, I have no concern for myself; I despise my own life.” Firstly, WOW! What a man to be able to say, “I am blameless”. I’m sure very few people have ever been able to truthfully say this. I suppose this is why the LORD chooses Job as an example of a faithful man. The next part in this line, at first, strikes me as contrary to the view most people (believers included) think of how a man of God, especially one as devout as Job, would regard his life. However, when one takes into consideration what had just happened to Job, for him to “have no concern for [himself]” and “despise [his] own life” shouldn’t surprise anyone. My point is that I believe God accepts our mourning and sorrow as worship, just as He takes the joy and happiness, so long as we are reverent and honoring of our God.

In the following verse, Job says, “It is all the same; that is why I say, ‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’” Here, I was puzzled. I wondered, “Does God really destroy the blameless as well? I thought that God brought down only the wicked and exalted the humble, upright, and blameless.” Without digressing, let’s push on. Job states, “When a scourge brings sudden death, he mocks the despair of the innocent.” What?!?! God mocks the despair of the innocent?!?! I DON’T BELIEVE THAT! Then, Job says, “When a land falls into the hands of the wicked, he blindfolds its judges.” Okay…what does that mean? Who are the judges of the land? If we look back into the previous books of the Old Testament, we see who the judges are. These men were called by God to help steer His people in the right direction, to discern what was right and God-willed, helping the people to come to the appropriate conclusions and make the correct decisions. So, is Job saying that God will not even allow the judges to see what is going on? Will God prohibit the judges to help the land from falling into wicked hands? There is no hope for these lands, and God is partly to blame? Then, Job says, “If it is not he, then who is it?”

Wait, what? Job doesn’t realize who is at work here. However, we know that Satan is the one who is putting Job through these times. It is Satan who destroys the blameless and the wicked, who brings the scourge upon men, who mocks the despair of the innocent, and who lords over the hands of the wicked to whom these lands fall. It is not the LORD! Satan is to blame!

The fog in my mind as I read through this passage is now cleared. I can see again. Thank God. I would bet that Job was quite confused to say the least! Job lost everything and had no idea who was at work. He knew God was in control and that he had done nothing to deserve this loss, so he wondered why God would do this, not knowing that God hadn’t done this at all.

I suppose the reason I found this passage so significant is because, like Job, many of us find ourselves in moments of great sadness and confusion. On countless occasions of losing loved ones, for example, many of us lash out at God; we are hurt and confused. Some of us even dishonor God by blaming him for our loss. I hope that this passage will serve as a reminder that, in too many ways we, as believers, will go through hard times. We will have to carry the cross of Christ and suffer through some hard times. We may be mocked, punished unfairly, and lose much that is dear to us. Still, we have hope! We have hope in the God who is proud of his children who honor Him and are faithful. We have hope in a God that has control over good and of the wicked, who makes all things turn for good. We have hope in something that Job was unaware of in his time, “someone to mediate between us [and God], someone to bring us [and God] together, someone to remove God’s rod from [us], so that his terror would frighten [us] no more.” (Job 9:33-34) We have hope in our Savior, Jesus Christ! Let us not forget!

Friends of Job

Job 6:14-17


14 “Anyone who withholds kindness from a friend
forsakes the fear of the Almighty.
15 But my brothers are as undependable as intermittent streams,
as the streams that overflow
16 when darkened by thawing ice
and swollen with melting snow,
17 but that stop flowing in the dry season,
and in the heat vanish from their channels.


As I read this passage, I first thought about my own friends. Then, before I got carried away searching for the specks in the eyes of my friends, I realized I have to first look at the plank in my own eye. As I think about my own faults as a friend, I wonder how often I have told friends from BYX and from camp how I would help them and support them through life. I wonder how many times I’ve carried out those promises. I can’t even count the number of times I said I would pray for someone or be there if they ever needed me or promised someone that I would walk alongside them in their spiritual journey! I usually follow through with my promises and statements to pray or be available but not for very long. I might hold a friend accountable for a while…then we tend to get complacent and lazy. Every once in a while, I’ll call them up to check-up on them, but it is inconsistent, which is the problem.

The real truth to consistency, I think, is being steadfast even when times are good. So often, we will be there to support friends in distress, when their river is dry. We will flood them with love until they are soaked, but as soon as they are well nourished, we cut them off and move on instead of remaining consistent in feeding them the love and support they need.

I suppose I could and should apply this to my marriage. Don’t jump to conclusions too quickly here. I certainly try to remain steadfast in loving and supporting my wife, but I’m sure I’m rather inconsistent and have a few swells and rather dry seasons. I can say that I don’t think the river has ever run completely dry, but there may have been a few dams put up that have limited the love supply. Thankfully, God has been able to break down my walls and knock down those dams. Unfortunately, it requires that parts of me (mostly pride) get smashed down, which is often a rough process. Thankfully, this is how God works, because once the walls and dams are knocked down, love comes rushing through. I suppose the key and main point of the scripture passage is to keep the river rushing at all times, instead of the intermittent swells and droughts.

If we are being thorough and honest, I think we are the same with friends as with God. I mean this in the sense that when we are in need and our river is dry, we allow God to break down the flood gates and let him pour into us. He soaks us and washes out all the debris that has cluttered up the riverbed. (What a messy and wonderful thing!) The problem most of us face is that as soon as we are clean and have allowed the Living Water to soak in, we think we are good. We think that the spring of Life is in us…and, in a way, it is. The key is that the source of that water is our God, not us! As soon as we forget to keep coming back to the source, our river begins to dry up and the water level drops. As debris begins to dam up the stream, things get exponentially worse. The worst thing about this is that, at least in my experience, I can tell when things are getting dry and cluttered. I can tell when I am being lazy in my relationship with God and allowing the world and sin to clutter up our relationship. I just tend to wait until I’m in a drought before I go back to the source. Oh what a fool am I!

Therefore, my prayer is that, first and foremost, I will remain constant in my pursuit of the Spring of Life, the Living Water that sustains and supplies. Secondly, I pray that in my marriage, I may be consistent in keeping the dams knocked down and not allowing them to be rebuilt, that my wife may never be in need of more love from me than I am providing. I also pray that my friends may not be forgotten or left “high and dry” just because life gets busy. I pray that, at the very least, I regularly pray for my friends and am available when I’m needed. Lastly, I pray that my friends would do the same in their own lives and relationships with the Lord and their loved ones.

If we haven’t spoken in a while, please help me out and get that river flowing between us. As you may have realized, I need a little help in these pursuits, and although rivers flow in one direction, relationships should not.

The Goblet of Fire and the Cup of the New Covenenant

I’ve heard of the books and films under such titles as The Gospel According to Star Wars…Harry Potter…Garfield…etc. I’ve never read or watched any of them, probably due to my desire to better understand the gospel as represented in scripture before checking it with outside sources. Having never actually divulged in one of these gospel explanations, I can, at times, see how such films portray the gospel of our LORD, Jesus Christ.


Last night, I was watching “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” with my wife, Shadia. If you are familiar with the film, there is a scene in which Harry has completed the Tri-Wizard Tournament’s last task and has been transported to a graveyard, where his friend is quickly killed by the villain Lord Voldemort’s sniveling servant Peter Pettigrew. Voldemort gives the instruction, “Kill the spare.” He casts the friend aside as meaningless, not just as meaningless to his sinister cause but completely disregarding the value of his life at all.

We find ourselves in the climax of the adventure as Harry and Voldemort find themselves at a stalemate. Of course, Harry, our protagonist, escapes the hands of the wicked Lord Voldemort but only just. Upon his return, the fall of the drama strikes. Only moments after returning to the stadium of our tournament, the crowd starts in uproar to celebrate the completion of the tournament…until the crowd sees that one of the competitors is dead. As eyes open in shock and heads lower in sadness, the father of the murdered son runs out of the stands and falls before the body of his son, crying out, “That’s my boy! That’s my son!” Moments follow filled with subtle tears and whimpers in the crowd, overpowered and drowned out by the guttural roaring cries of the father.

It is at this point that I see the gospel story “finished”. As Christ says this word, the Father accepts his Son’s spirit, and I can only imagine the unbearable, unequaled sadness that our Heavenly Father felt at the sight of his Son. This sadness is difficult to witness, and I found myself barely able to keep from crying at this scene and the thoughts of Jesus’ sacrifice that streamed through my mind, piercing my heart.

What a sacrifice to make! To give one’s only son for another. My parents have told me that to watch their child die would be the world’s greatest pain. Therefore, only through understanding God’s love for me can I comprehend why anyone would willingly give up the life of His Son.

So I am eternally grateful! I am grateful to a God who would go through the saddest moment in history with the intent to forgive me, unworthy of such love. I can never understand exactly why he did, but thank God he did!