I'm teaching a course on the Psalms this semester and in fact almost through the majority of my lectures and now in the midst of presentations. A big section of the course is centred around the life of David & how we relate to his story. One of my favorite musicians Michael Knott did an album which essentially is his own story interwoven with the life of David. The album is from 2001 and here's the promo:
Showing posts with label psalms. Show all posts
Showing posts with label psalms. Show all posts
Sunday, March 08, 2009
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
Season
I am in the midst of a change of seasons and it excites me! Coincidently, here in Canada we are close to entering a new season of snow - Winter. Autumn started out being warm but for the last couple weeks has been rather dreary - rainy & cold. I'm not sure how much the weather affects my psyche but I have been going through a season of disorientation. Even looking at my past number of blogposts I see my blogs as being rants and having an element of lament to them. In fact, I even entitled one lament. I'm not sure if it was that deep of a lament but it did release some of my thoughts & emotions.
We all go through seasons within our life, seasons of joy & happiness, seasons of dissaray - when everything seems to go wrong, and finally seasons that reflect on the difficulties gone through and the realization that we are better off than we were before. Walter Brueggemann in his book The Message of the Psalms - sees these three seasons of orientation, disorientation, & new orientation as sort of a lens in which we can look at the different psalms. In fact, it has become the template for much of what I have done in the psalms course I am teaching. Ironically, the season of disorientation, of lament has echoed what I am going through.
I have been challenged in my understanding of lifestyle, of what really is important. I have been challenged spiritually and taken a renewed look at calling, at ministry. I've realized more fully that life is not so much about doing as it is about being. Being who I am meant to be and affecting those around me by actually being me. Confused? Sorry - no excuses here...I'm leaving lament behind for now and focusing on the future. Yes I will look back at what I've learned but right now I'm about to leave my cocoon and take flight. It may be a slower process than what I would like but I can anticipate what lies ahead.
Here's a toast to new seasons & new understanding!
G
BTW - I managed to play U2's Wake Up Dead Man in my class and compared it first to Psalm 143:1-8 and then Psalm 44:23-26.
We all go through seasons within our life, seasons of joy & happiness, seasons of dissaray - when everything seems to go wrong, and finally seasons that reflect on the difficulties gone through and the realization that we are better off than we were before. Walter Brueggemann in his book The Message of the Psalms - sees these three seasons of orientation, disorientation, & new orientation as sort of a lens in which we can look at the different psalms. In fact, it has become the template for much of what I have done in the psalms course I am teaching. Ironically, the season of disorientation, of lament has echoed what I am going through.
I have been challenged in my understanding of lifestyle, of what really is important. I have been challenged spiritually and taken a renewed look at calling, at ministry. I've realized more fully that life is not so much about doing as it is about being. Being who I am meant to be and affecting those around me by actually being me. Confused? Sorry - no excuses here...I'm leaving lament behind for now and focusing on the future. Yes I will look back at what I've learned but right now I'm about to leave my cocoon and take flight. It may be a slower process than what I would like but I can anticipate what lies ahead.
Here's a toast to new seasons & new understanding!
G
BTW - I managed to play U2's Wake Up Dead Man in my class and compared it first to Psalm 143:1-8 and then Psalm 44:23-26.
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Lament
In true davidic fashion - I thought why not do a brief entry in response to the busyness of my life as of late. I am guessing that i put close to 70 hours, possibly more this past week in preparation for the new course I am teaching. Admittedly, I have wondered if it has been worth it all? What has the cost been to my lifestyle?
I enjoy my leisure time and plan on doing a serious mtn bike ride once a week for about an hour or so. I love spending any time I can outdoors, in fact at one time I used to get paid to work outdoors. I love to spend time playing with my daughters & wife! Our family usually spends a morning a week with our church community that meets in a building near where we used to live and every two weeks we spend an evening with our small group. But lately - all those things I love have been pushed aside to meet the demands of my so-called work or ministry.
How many hours do you pour into your work so that you can put food on the table, make those house payments, & buy those vehicles to put in your garage? How much does our lifestyle actually cost us? The government of Manitoba estimate that to raise a single child from 0-18 costs somewhere in the neighbourhood of $166,000 Cdn. Again, this is an average guestimate and perhaps a reflection of the lifestyle choices we force our children into. Why do we work? Obviously to meet the economic or physical needs of a family. But what about the emotional, social, & spiritual needs that exist?
Ironically, if I would maintain my current workload I most likely would be sacrificing my children on the altar of "doing." The hours we spend at work each week (even if it is a job that we truly enjoy) obviously are more than the hours we actually spend with our families right? In fact, even when we are home away from our workplace, often we are still at work solving some type of problem. The problem of our age is that often never leave work - our computers now fit in our pockets and tell us what to do hour by hour.
Humankind has made the mistake of believing that what we do actually counts for something when in reality it is who we are or are becoming which should really be recognized. Some people call this self-actualization - others simply call this discovering your calling. We have all been called to develop our character - to be people that extend grace & mercy to those less fortunate.
We are called I believe to some form of community - we all need friends and function best when we have other people to interact with & love. We are all called to commission - to reach out to the world in sharing what we have learned and in a Christian context - the good news that this life can have meaning beyond what we do or even who we are. And finally, I believe we are called to communion - to spend time reflecting on who we are becoming and we are called to be. For me personally, this not only includes self-introspection but God-introspection. Who is God and what does our relationship look like?
So here I sit in lament, typing out my frustrations but closer than ever to finding a way out of the cage. I may be deeper in the darkness but I'm closer to the light.
G
I enjoy my leisure time and plan on doing a serious mtn bike ride once a week for about an hour or so. I love spending any time I can outdoors, in fact at one time I used to get paid to work outdoors. I love to spend time playing with my daughters & wife! Our family usually spends a morning a week with our church community that meets in a building near where we used to live and every two weeks we spend an evening with our small group. But lately - all those things I love have been pushed aside to meet the demands of my so-called work or ministry.
How many hours do you pour into your work so that you can put food on the table, make those house payments, & buy those vehicles to put in your garage? How much does our lifestyle actually cost us? The government of Manitoba estimate that to raise a single child from 0-18 costs somewhere in the neighbourhood of $166,000 Cdn. Again, this is an average guestimate and perhaps a reflection of the lifestyle choices we force our children into. Why do we work? Obviously to meet the economic or physical needs of a family. But what about the emotional, social, & spiritual needs that exist?
Ironically, if I would maintain my current workload I most likely would be sacrificing my children on the altar of "doing." The hours we spend at work each week (even if it is a job that we truly enjoy) obviously are more than the hours we actually spend with our families right? In fact, even when we are home away from our workplace, often we are still at work solving some type of problem. The problem of our age is that often never leave work - our computers now fit in our pockets and tell us what to do hour by hour.
Humankind has made the mistake of believing that what we do actually counts for something when in reality it is who we are or are becoming which should really be recognized. Some people call this self-actualization - others simply call this discovering your calling. We have all been called to develop our character - to be people that extend grace & mercy to those less fortunate.
We are called I believe to some form of community - we all need friends and function best when we have other people to interact with & love. We are all called to commission - to reach out to the world in sharing what we have learned and in a Christian context - the good news that this life can have meaning beyond what we do or even who we are. And finally, I believe we are called to communion - to spend time reflecting on who we are becoming and we are called to be. For me personally, this not only includes self-introspection but God-introspection. Who is God and what does our relationship look like?
So here I sit in lament, typing out my frustrations but closer than ever to finding a way out of the cage. I may be deeper in the darkness but I'm closer to the light.
G
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Life of David
I'm in the midst of researching for a new course I'll be teaching this fall focused on the Psalms. Obviously one of the keys to unlocking the poetry of the psalms is to get to know the poet. The life of David is one of contrast between human lows and spiritual highs.
What I love about David is that he is real - he is human. David sins but finds redemption. David struggles but finds peace in the wilderness - God's creation. He wrestles with God, questioning the suffering of the world, the loss of friends to war & murder... He demands justice in a world where the scales seemed to have tipped in the favor of all who rise against him. Yet David is a man of God.
David is human like you and I. Yet He rises from his simple skin, his human condition into someone worthy of the love of God. Despite being a murderer, an adulterer, a sinner - David the man finds grace & forgiveness! He recognizes that we do not control our world - only God does.
Through praise, through lament - David discovers that God is always there. No matter how great the mountain, how deep the valley, the peace that passes all understanding can be found in the amazing love, the amazing grace of God Almighty!
Selah!
What I love about David is that he is real - he is human. David sins but finds redemption. David struggles but finds peace in the wilderness - God's creation. He wrestles with God, questioning the suffering of the world, the loss of friends to war & murder... He demands justice in a world where the scales seemed to have tipped in the favor of all who rise against him. Yet David is a man of God.
David is human like you and I. Yet He rises from his simple skin, his human condition into someone worthy of the love of God. Despite being a murderer, an adulterer, a sinner - David the man finds grace & forgiveness! He recognizes that we do not control our world - only God does.
Through praise, through lament - David discovers that God is always there. No matter how great the mountain, how deep the valley, the peace that passes all understanding can be found in the amazing love, the amazing grace of God Almighty!
Selah!
Monday, June 21, 2004
Boxed In...
Boxes, boxes & more boxes - I am beginning to feel a little claustrophobic in my office. Reminds me of a Smashing Pumpkins tune - I hear Billy Corgan's straining voice yell out, "despite all my rage i am still just a rat in a cage" from Bullet With Butterfly Wings. It is amazing what I've all put in boxes these past weeks - everything from important tax documents to stories I wrote in grade school to artifacts from Ethiopia & Kenya. I was tempted to call this blog entry "Knicknacks & Artifacts."
I have a kosher grape juice bottle from Israel on my desk that I refuse to throw away. Why you ask? Because it for some reason has sentimental value to me. I went to Israel in 1991 for a college class together with some friends and my grandfather. The bottle contained the juice we used to celebrate communion together in the Holy Land. It's now simply an empty glass container with a Hebrew scrawled label that identifies it was produced by Eliaz Binyamina in 1991. But other than that it is just a bottle that you might find washed up on the shore of Galilee.
For some reason, I've thought a lot about my grandfather this week. I'm not sure why. I still miss him even though he died ten years ago. His impact on me was significant though. My beliefs and passions are largely influenced by his example. He was a man who not only read the Bible but spoke its message to all he met. We shared a common pet peeve. People who said they had faith but did not nothing with it.
Faith without action is dead. I love this quote from Rev. 3:16 "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. `So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth." or how Eugene Peterson puts it in The Message - "You're stale. You're stagnant. You make me want to vomit."
Back to boxes - we love to put people in a box don't we. We classify people as pessimists, feminists, environmentalists, liberals, charismatics, new agers, partiers, etc. Ironically - the only real box we can place a person in is a coffin. What categories have you been placed into? What is worse is that we often place God in a box as well. It reminds me of a skit we once did with some junior highers during youth. McJesus. What kind of Jesus do you want? Buddy Jesus - who hangs out with you on Sunday and you put him in your closet the rest of the week. Or do you want a Condemning Jesus - who sends all those people you don't like to Hell!
The God I know cannot be put in a box. He keeps surprizing me and appearing in the the oddest places. I once found Jesus at the bottom of Red Rock Lake. I was snorkeling along the coast in late Spring and swam near the dock and so something very curious below me. It was a picture of Jesus? So I reached down and pulled a picture of Jesus with Psalm 23 written on the back of a plasticized card. Later that summer I was sharing with a good friend about how I had found Jesus at the bottom of Red Rock. It turned out she had lost that card the previous summer while doing devotions on the dock.
I love the show Joan of Arcadia as it is all about blowing up the boxes we place on God. The basic premise of the show is that Joan, a quirky teenager, can talk and see God. God appears to her at the oddest times and with the oddest appearances. He sends her on little missions or tells her to get a job - and amazingly each of her actions affects other people. Some of these actions seem simple but in the end impact someone amazingly. God is present in this world - often in what scares us the most. I'm constantly amazed by how often God plays a role in today's culture - in music, in movies, in books, in conversations, even in blowing up boxes!
What if God was one of us?
Still packing,
G
I have a kosher grape juice bottle from Israel on my desk that I refuse to throw away. Why you ask? Because it for some reason has sentimental value to me. I went to Israel in 1991 for a college class together with some friends and my grandfather. The bottle contained the juice we used to celebrate communion together in the Holy Land. It's now simply an empty glass container with a Hebrew scrawled label that identifies it was produced by Eliaz Binyamina in 1991. But other than that it is just a bottle that you might find washed up on the shore of Galilee.
For some reason, I've thought a lot about my grandfather this week. I'm not sure why. I still miss him even though he died ten years ago. His impact on me was significant though. My beliefs and passions are largely influenced by his example. He was a man who not only read the Bible but spoke its message to all he met. We shared a common pet peeve. People who said they had faith but did not nothing with it.
Faith without action is dead. I love this quote from Rev. 3:16 "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. `So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth." or how Eugene Peterson puts it in The Message - "You're stale. You're stagnant. You make me want to vomit."
Back to boxes - we love to put people in a box don't we. We classify people as pessimists, feminists, environmentalists, liberals, charismatics, new agers, partiers, etc. Ironically - the only real box we can place a person in is a coffin. What categories have you been placed into? What is worse is that we often place God in a box as well. It reminds me of a skit we once did with some junior highers during youth. McJesus. What kind of Jesus do you want? Buddy Jesus - who hangs out with you on Sunday and you put him in your closet the rest of the week. Or do you want a Condemning Jesus - who sends all those people you don't like to Hell!
The God I know cannot be put in a box. He keeps surprizing me and appearing in the the oddest places. I once found Jesus at the bottom of Red Rock Lake. I was snorkeling along the coast in late Spring and swam near the dock and so something very curious below me. It was a picture of Jesus? So I reached down and pulled a picture of Jesus with Psalm 23 written on the back of a plasticized card. Later that summer I was sharing with a good friend about how I had found Jesus at the bottom of Red Rock. It turned out she had lost that card the previous summer while doing devotions on the dock.
I love the show Joan of Arcadia as it is all about blowing up the boxes we place on God. The basic premise of the show is that Joan, a quirky teenager, can talk and see God. God appears to her at the oddest times and with the oddest appearances. He sends her on little missions or tells her to get a job - and amazingly each of her actions affects other people. Some of these actions seem simple but in the end impact someone amazingly. God is present in this world - often in what scares us the most. I'm constantly amazed by how often God plays a role in today's culture - in music, in movies, in books, in conversations, even in blowing up boxes!
What if God was one of us?
Still packing,
G
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