Monster!

*If I were a monster, would you wince when you looked at me? If I were a freak, would you stare? If I were leper, would you say, 'Unclean!'? And if I was lost, would you help me get free?* -Monster, The Almost

"I've always felt like there was this darkness inside of me just fighting to get out."- Davis Bloome, Smallville

I had a dream once that really freaked me out. It was through my eyes, but I was watching it like I was on the outside as well. It was this dream where, I guess, I was evil. One of the worst nightmares I've ever had. I don't like to think about it much, but I make myself every once in a while.

Anyway, the worst part about the dream was that it followed the typical routine of my day. So, I watched 'me' go through a school day/weekend without any conscience. Then, when I went BACK to sleep, I had a dream of a 30 year old me being hunted by the FBI. Definitely not a restful night of sleep. It felt so logical, so... realistic.

Very realistic. It didn't have that quality of bizarre-ness that usually accompanies dreaming. It all seemed very possible.

When I woke up, I thought about it a lot. I asked myself, 'What would I do if I could get away with it? What if I didn't care about God or any form of morals? What would it be like to go through a day without any inhibition, following only my own selfish whims?'

I realized that if there were no repercussions, I would have done almost everything in my dream.

And that scared the hell out of me.

When I say 'no repercussions', I don't just mean not caring about following the Bible. Because we all have an inherent system of Ethics imbued in our souls. Let me explain.

God created the world, right?

And when He created it, He made it perfect. Without sin. Meaning we started as perfect.

So, since we are made in God's image, we are imbued with an inherent sense of right-and-wrong that we feel even when we are very young. We get mad when someone breaks the rules, because that's wrong. We don't know WHY we get mad, but we do.

So, humans started as pure and good, but sin has contaminated so thoroughly this physical realm that we are born sinful AND born into sin.

So, here's my point:

Sin is alien. Sin is foreign. It shouldn't be.

Imagine two beakers. One is full of water. The other is full of a chemical. Now, imagine pouring the beaker of chemicals into the glass of water. Watch as the chemicals react negatively with the water, and the water is overtaken and transformed into something dangerous and wrong. It becomes an entirely new substance, no longer water at all. It USED to be water, but it's not now.

The chemical disperses so thoroughly within the water that it mixes completely. The new liquid in the glass isn't water or chemical. It's NOT a hybrid. It's something new that has been created by the introduction of something foreign. Like oil and water.

In this metaphor, water is our essence. The chemical is sin.

Our sin transforms us into something ugly. Something WRONG. We are NOT what we are supposed to be.

I don't think it's a stretch to say we will be almost entirely different when all things are made new. Because our sin, this constant tug-of-war between what remains of our perfect nature and the sin nature that contaminates dictates our personalities in this world.

The band RED very accurately hits this idea on the head with their song 'Fight Inside'.

*Enemy, familiar friend.
My beginning and my end.
Knowing truth.
Whispering lies.
And it hurts again.
What I feel.
What I try.
Words I say.
Words I hide.
All the pain, I want it to end.
But I want it again.
And it finds me.
The fight inside is raging in me again.*

They also accurately portray this idea in their song 'Death of Me', in which they sing about Christians being their own worst enemies. Check out the music video:



Joss Whedon, in his show Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, created the most metaphorical version of vampires for his story. In Buffy, a vampire is a demon that takes the place of the human soul within a person, effectively destroying that soul. Sinful essence in a body representing normalcy.

To be even more metaphorical, Joss created the character Angel- a vampire who has had his soul restored to him. He is tormented by guilt and desperately trying to atone for his actions when he was controlled by the demon. Now, Angel is just a good guy with unfortunate dietary constraints and a non-beating heart.

The points is, we all have incredible potential for evil and incredible potential for good.

So what is it that holds us back from acting on every sinful whim?

It's that little voice inside our heads, right?

That voice is what remains of our original perfect nature crying out to us. The voice is trying to explain that things are not right.

But that voice can't defeat sin if all we do is act on it.

See, we need to accept Christ. Accepting Christ equips us with the weapons to fight back against this sin nature. If we try to do the right thing and do not seek Christ or follow His methods, we will fall to our sinful nature. That's how the world works.

Fortunately, Christ doesn't just give us the tools to do so after we accept Him. He jumps in and fights the battle for us, protecting us while simultaneously battling the darkness within our own souls.

Skillet, with their album 'Awake', accurately portrays these two aspects of spiritual conflict with the first two songs on their album. The second song on the album should be listened to first. It's the song 'Monster'. Then, go back to the first song and listen to the song 'Hero'.

Obviously, this is a popular theme with Christian musicians.

Ted Dekker is one of my favorite authors, and this is one of his 'short stories' of sorts he posted on his blog I found particularly relevant:

"I always wondered why babies cry when I walk by, and now I know. I am a beast.

You ask me how I know. You see, I was walking through a beautiful forest on a Sunday afternoon stroll when a horrible snort sounded in the bushes to my right. I whirled and came face to face with an enormous hairy boar with two red eyes and long bloodied tusks.

I couldn’t move. But when the boar charged I managed to uproot my feet and run. Through the brush, over rocks, leaping ditches—I don’t remember because panic had shut down my mind.

Blind with that terror, I ran straight into a small canyon and pulled up hard at the base of a cliff. I could hear the beast’s snorting behind and I knew that my back would be pierced by those tusks. When I spun to face it, the boar slid to a glaring stop, a ferocious sight that turned me to ice.

It grunted once and charged, and I lost my mind to fear. I screamed bloody murder and threw myself directly for it, perhaps with a desperate hope it would turn and flee.

It did not flee. It took me head on.

But instead of smashing into those bloodied tusks, I crashed into mirrored glass that shattered and fell to the ground. I stood panting. The boar was gone. The only blood was on my forearms, where the mirror had cut me.

So you see, that is how I know that I am a beast."
---Ted Dekker, 'The Boar'

We all have potential for evil. Each and every one of us could have been Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin. We see murderers, thieves, and rapists on TV and seperate ourselves from them. We say, 'They are worse than us. Below us.'

We all could be that person. For those of us who aren't, it's by the amazing grace of God.

No murderer is born a murderer, and no rapist is born a rapist. They are born just like you and me. But something in their life happened that pushed their conscience away entirely. Under different circumstances, that could have been anyone. It's like some kind of sick, twisted equation:

Broken world + sin nature of humans x circumstance= result.

We've all got this monster inside of us. Christians are no exception. That's the tricky thing about free will- it provides both the potential for amazing good or great evil. Yet God gave it to us anyway.

This is why God is incredible- because His love is UNCONDITIONAL. He loves all He has created, no matter what. God only hates sins- he does not hate sinners. God doesn't hate gays- he hates the sin of homosexuality that these people struggle with. God doesn't hate 'whores'- he hates the insecurity and fear that leads a girl to such actions.

People are not their sin. There are no 'gays'. There are people who struggle with homosexuality. There are no 'whores'. There are people who struggle with self-esteem. Their are no 'emos'. There are people who suffer with depression and self-loathing.

The call of the Christian- and consequently, one of the biggest challenges- is to look at people and see beyond their sin. Hate their actions, not them.

I'm not entirely sure what I'm trying to say here, but I have one last quote that will wrap it up:

"Pity? It is a pity the ring ever came to him (Gollum) at all. Gollum loves and hates the ring, as he loves and hates himself. Do not be too quick to offer up death in judgment, Frodo."- Gandalf

God bless.

The American Dream

One of my teachers once said to my class:

"Why are you guys here in this class today?"

Everyone responded, "'Cause we have to be."

"Why?" he asked.

"So we can graduate," everyone agreed.

"Why do you want to graduate?"

"So we can go to college."

"Why do you want to go to college?"

"So we can graduate and get a good job."

"Why do you want a good job?"

"So we can... umm...ya know."

He summed it up in a way that really spoke to me. He said that the reason we want this is 'because society and our American culture has taught us this is what you must do so that in the end you can have a white-picket fence life with a beautiful wife, two kids, and a dog'. Granted, I'm paraphrasing from memory, but he did use the picket fence line.

He then told us that we shouldn't let our grade in his class control our life in his class. He wanted us to learn, or at least participate, even if we ended up not getting a good grade. He said that even if we failed the class, it wasn't the end of the world.

How very Dead-Poet's-Society-Mister-Keeting.

Moving on. Lately, I've been insanely busy with work from both Sophmore year and make-up work from Freshman year. And I've just asked myself, 'what's the point? What do I want to do with my life?'

Toby Mac, in his song Lose My Soul, says:

*Yeah, I wanna be a daddy who's in the mix.
I wanna be a husband who stays legit.
I pray I'll be an artist who rises above
the road that is wide and filled with self love.*

I've been thinking about college. And I just feel like... I need to be OUT THERE. IN the world, not studying away so that I can be happy. Many people will say that in order to be able to actually contribute and help the world you need to have the knowledge and skill of a college degree; it's a common consensus that you must be 'well-rounded' in order to help change the world.

I agree, it's important to be well-rounded and knowledgeable.

But...Every time I think about going to college, I get this feeling it's going to lead me inevitably to the place I do not want to be.

I do not want to be the guy who settles down so he can live his life with his family, only looking after my families' and my own interest. There's this part of me that feels like if I conform to the American dream idea, I won't have any lasting impact on the world. I'll have an impact on people, but not the world.

In Switchfoot's song American Dream, they say:

*This ain't my 'American Dream'.
I want to live and die
For bigger things.
I'm tired of fighting for just me!
This ain't MY 'American Dream'.*

I want to spread the Gospel and the word of Jesus. I want to help people! So, in thinking about my future, I've been thinking about careers:

My gift is in art. I want to glorify God with the gift He has given me. But I feel like I won't help spread His message if I become a comic book artist or work with PIXAR or another animation company. Could I have an impact on the life of others?

My other main gift is in writing- I have a passion for telling stories. This has also lead to screen-play writing and an interest in directing within the movie industry. I want to write books, directs films, help out with them, act, etc. Story is SUCH a powerful thing, especially today.

I love music- more specifically, singing. I'm not boasting when I say that I'm a decent singer. Musicians are the philosophers of today and Christian musicians have an incredible reach within our community to encourage other Christians to take action.

I want to protect people and save people. I could never be a doctor- but I've considered (and, yes, this is weird) the job of FBI profiler/psychologist. If I can help enforce our culture's laws (many of which are based on the 10 Commandments!), I want to! The human psyche and mind fascinates me. Maybe a prosecutor. I don't know.

After going through the things I have with an anxiety disorder and severe OCD, I want to help others who have dealt with that. I want to be a counselor. I want to help people who are hurting because I've felt that way.

I want to be a missionary of my own. I want to hitch-hike across America with nothing but a bag of a few necessities and the desire to deliver God's word. I want to have an experience like Don Miller when he lived for months within a homeless community among hippies. I want a REAL experience like that.

So, do you see all of those desires and emotions? And everyone else is just like me. Everyone has these feelings. I don't know what I'll do. Maybe I'll pursue art, maybe I'll pursue writing, maybe I'll pursue the criminal justice fields, maybe I pursue psychiatry. Maybe I'll go to Seminary and become a pastor.

But here is where the main point of this entry starts:

Thousands of people died in the earthquakes in Haiti. All around America, Christians are praying and the country is sending help in the form of the National Guard.

Here's my question: Why haven't we all bought plane tickets down to Haiti to help find people amongst the rubble? Why have we shaken our heads and said, 'That's a horrible tragedy. We should help!' and done nothing ourselves.

Yeah, yeah, regulations and laws of our culture.

I'm worried that if I go to college for the betterment of my future, I will lose this feeling, this yearning. I'm worried if I pursue my own interests instead of trying to help people, I will not be doing what I have been called to do as a Christian.

If you had asked me a few months ago what I wanted out of life, I would have told you:
House with a white picket fence, a wife, a job that makes good money that I enjoy, and two kids and a dog.

If you ask me now, I'd say:
I don't know.

I don't want to squander my artistic ability by ignoring it. It's a wonderful gift God has given me, and I should use it to honor Him! But if I end up working at one of my possible 'dream jobs', animating for comic books and publishing my own stuff, how will I contribute? The only thing people will see is my art. They might say, 'Wow, that's cool art.' But have I conveyed anything about God?

I guess, in the end, I'm torn between the careers I selfishly want to pursue and the careers I want to seek because I want to help the world.

In Smallville, (Let me guess: You just rolled your eyes because I'm making ANOTHER Smallville reference.) when Oliver Queen reveals to Lois Lane that he is the Green Arrow and then leaves her, he explains his reasoning thusly:

"There are more important things in this world than me and what I want...or what I love."

I find that quote so moving, because it just hits the note I'm trying to hit perfectly.

As the body of Christ, everyone is needed. Everyone is as important as everyone else. The body cannot function without hands. Ya know? So I understand that every job is needed, every occupation. But I just don't know what body part I fit in yet.

This may sound silly, but please don't laugh when I say what I'm about to say:

I want to be a superhero.

Not a spandex-wearing dude, no. I want to be someone who is making a major difference in the world without selling my soul to the views of any country's politics. I want the power to make a difference- whether by protecting people, sharing with them in their pain, or spreading the word of God.

Don't get me wrong: I still want what everyone wants- a loving family, a nice life with enough money not to have to worry, etc.

Obviously, I can't do any of this on my own. I need God to work through me. But I don't want to end my life knowing that the only people who will remember me in history are my friends and family. This isn't a hunger for greed or recognition- I just need to make a difference in the world somehow by using my gifts and my passions.

God put us on Earth for a reason. He will use His followers no matter what. But I don't want to waste my life worrying about grades in high school when there are people out there who are hurting and need love. The same applies for my thoughts on college, and then having a job later. Who cares about what your high-school diploma says? I need to interact and get to know my classmates and love them. I believe in working hard, but I refuse to allow school to influence my self-image. It's about how I interact with people, not about how well-written my essay on 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' was. I gave it my best. There's nothing else to say. My attention CANNOT be consumed by school, or I will lose my self to our culture's views and eventually lose my soul and individuality.

John the Baptist is one of my heroes. He's the guy who ate honey and grasshoppers while wearing a camel hair tunic. He was probably unshaven and hairy. And he stood in the middle of the streets and in the waters screaming God's message, proclaiming it loudly.

Lots of people will say you can't spread God's word without a 'proper education'. While I have the utmost respect for the educational system, especially Seminary. But when we're spreading the gospel, I think God is controlling what we say. God is using us as puppets in those moments. My friend Glen wrote a fantastic note on Facebook about his experience with this which I could not have endorsed more. He hit the nail on the head.

If you think you need to be smart or 'well-rounded' to help spread the Gospel, consider this: the disciples, and eventually the Apostles- lots of them started as fisherman. Not Pharisees. Not famous, intelligent teachers. They caught fish for a living. They were believers and understood their faith, but they weren't as 'well-rounded' as the Pharisees. They were rough around the edges.

In the Old Testament, there's the story of Balaam (spell check me on that one...) and his donkey. His donkey talks to him about God. A donkey is explaining the most important thing in the world to a human being.

David danced naked in the streets for God. If I did that, people would turn up their noses and say I was 'uncivilized'. Maybe that's what we need! David Crowder, in his song 'I Will Dance', asks his concert crowd to make a joyful noise and a loud noise. In the exact quote: "Not just a little itty-bitty quiet noise- a LOUD noise."

I don't care if I'm super-knowledgeable and well-rounded. I just want to be used to make a difference.

*If you want to live life loud,
Throw your hands up!
If you want to scream and shout-
Let me hear ya!*

-Hawk Nelson

Armor of God

"'In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight! Let those who worship evil's might beware my power- Green Lantern's light!"- The Corps Oath

One of the most well-known super heroes of the DC Comics universe is Green Lantern. Who is Green Lantern? Let me fill all of you non-nerds now.

The Green Lantern isn't one superhero. There's an entire Corps called (surprise, surprise) The Green Lantern Corps. Around the entire galaxy, the Guardians of the Universe select beings who display extreme will-power to be members of the Corps. The person receives a ring, takes the oath, and then becomes a Green Lantern. Using the ring, the Green Lantern channels their will power to make stuff with their mind.

So yeah. Anyway. Green Lantern. What's this got to do with anything?

A'ight. Well, in Ephesians 6:11-17, it says to put on the full armor of God. The fulls verse says:

"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all of this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God."

So, when we're saved by God, we've been given all the tools necessary to combat evil. However, we are not battling evil- God is. Here's what I mean:

In the Green Lantern story, the rings of power get their abilities to channel willpower from the Master Power Battery guarded by the spirit Ion. The weapons (the rings of power) were created by a force INFINITELY more powerful than the Green Lanterns. These weapons were then bestowed on the chosen warriors. The chosen warriors use this weapon to channel both their own will and the energy of the Master Power Battery.

It's kind of like the Bible, isn't it? I mean, God gave us His son for salvation and then gave us the Bible as well, which was also a weapon. God protects us and fights for us, but He also fights along side us. I might not be making my point well... Uh...

Anyway, in Green Lantern, the Lantern's are weak against the 'yellow impurity'. The yellow impurity (AKA Parallax) is known as the living embodiment of fear and doubt. The reason the Lantern's are weak to the color yellow is because if they allow fear/doubt to enter their 'constructs' (the things they make with their rings), they are vulnerable. I thought this was kind of like doubting God.

See, if we trust in God fully we are told we can move mountains. Says so in the Bible. Anyone with faith 'as small as a mustard seed' could move mountains.

The rings are basically the most powerful weapon in the DC Universe, stemming from possibly the ultimate power at the center. But when the Lantern's start forgetting about where their gifts- their rings- come from and believe that they are the source of their own power, they become susceptible to fear and doubt. And when fear and doubt enters the mind of a Lantern, they are officially vulnerable to the bad guys, who have figured out how to tap into the power of fear. They're called (surprise surprise) Yellow Lanterns.

Anyway, I'm thinking that doubt follows arrogance once we forget God is at the center. God was the source of the Apostle's miracles, and God is the source for our everyday strength. Without the gifts He has given us, we're nothing. At all. Seriously.

I guess in the end I'm making two points (albeit rather poorly):
1) God is the source of our 'power' (spiritual gifts, evangelizing) and is working through us. We aren't channeling God. God is using us!

2) Doubt and fear are natural, but they're pointless. They aren't a weakness, they are what create weaknesses.

See, this devo didn't have as much of a point now as it will, 'cause my next big devotions are gonna be based on the power of story. My primary examples are gonna be comic book characters, so I'll be using comics to make most of my points.

Goodnight, Travel Well

*There's nothing I can say...
There's nothing I can do now...
The universe is standing still...
Goodnight, travel well.*
- "Goodnight, Travel Well", The Killers

I had been thinking about writing a new entry for Christmas. In fact, I said I would.

I was on facebook, and I was trying to figure out what to put as my status. I put way too much thought into my statuses.

I thought about putting in some Christmas lyrics...

Or some Bible verses from the Nativity story...

And I was thinking about doing the opening verse from the hymn 'Silent Night'. You know:

"Silent Night,
Holy Night,
All Is Calm,
All Is Bright.
Round Yon Virgin,
Mother and Child.
Holy Infant
So Tender And Mild.
Sleep In Heavenly Peace.
Sleep In Heavenly Peace."

And it felt trite. It felt cheesy. Like it was just a sweet, mushy Christmas song. I chose not to use it.

So, I kept thinking. I thought about the song "Better Days" by The Goo Goo Dolls. That song always makes me think about the REAL meaning of Christmas. (Here's a link if you haven't heard it before: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIFhst3DwPE)

But that still didn't feel quite right.

The reason we fall into materialism during Christmas, I think, is because we can't put the true meaning of Christmas into words that accurately convey the message.

Sometimes things get close to capturing it. Humans have trouble lumping profound things and child-like joy together.

Some people say stuff with a big grin, like, "Merry Christmas! Jesus is born!" and the profound-types roll their eyes at the simplicity of the statement.

But then, the profound-types say, "This isn't just 'Merry Christmas', we're talking about one of the biggest events in history!" and there's no joy in their words. No joy or happiness. Just quite reverence.

When Jesus was in the manger, surrounded by Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and barn animals, we get this impression that it was silent. We just have this instinctual inclination telling us that it was peaceful and quiet.

I think it was peaceful and quiet in an incredible, supernatural way. If you're in a barn, animals are going to make noise. Cows 'moo', donkeys 'hee-haw', chickens cluck. Etc. There's noise.

But we've got a silent night.

And nowadays, because we can't wrap our heads around the idea of 100% joy and 100% solemnity and peace, we bury ourselves in materialism.

Because who wants to have a major headache of confusion when you can just live in shallow bliss?

Finally, I just gave up on my Facebook status and said:

"Every Christmas at this time, I start thinking about the true meaning of Christmas and I just can't wrap my head around it. It's God's birthday. Mind-bogglingly powerful and confusing message..."

I just admitted I was confused. I think that it's very rare in life for us to have moments of true clarity when it comes to spiritual matters. Since the Fall, we've cut ourselves off from God. Meaning all things spiritual will make little sense to us. Every once in a while, you get that sudden spark during a sermon/worship service/prayer where you REALLY feel genuinely connected. It lasts for mere seconds. And then it's gone. And that's because of our Fallen nature.

Here's the other side of that coin:

God upholds the Covenant between Himself and man entirely. God does ALL of the work in upholding His promises. Christmas is a day to commemorate that God is active. God upheld his end of the Covenant and took action- He sent His Son Jesus, whom was fully God and fully human, down into a broken world in the form of a baby.

There aren't enough words. The true meaning of Christmas is similar to the true nature of God: indescribable. Because every time you try to describe it, it comes out trite and cliche.

You hear stuff that's either like:

"Come on, let's remember the REAL meaning of Christmas, guys. This is a serious matter."

OR

"Yay! It's Jesus' birthday! Praise God! :D"

And both are true, but both fall short of actually describing Christmas. Humans won't understand the true nature of spiritual things until the Second Coming. We're incapable. But as Christians, we try. We're truth-seekers. We WANT to know and to understand.

The point is, we can't describe Christmas because words will always fall short. So, just think about that as you're opening presents and eating with your families. You think OUR Christmas is fun? Wait until a REAL Christmas in a perfect world, where we understand the true meaning. That will be one of the most phenomenal things EVER. Understand that OUR interpretation of Christmas is broken, but it's important because we WANT to commemorate this incredible event.

If you want the true meaning of Christmas, well, you won't get it yet. But Christians try. Here's the best explanation of the true meaning of Christmas, from one of the brightest theologians of our times: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKk9rv2hUfA

Hope that wasn't over your head. :)

Anyway, Merry Christmas.

The Day The Earth Stood Still.

*One man, one mission
One plot to save the world
Reclaim all races
And embrace our destiny

Changing history when the colliding comes
Where will you run
Come with us if you want to live

Join us in the army that's arising
The truth invades your mind
Every day the Kingdom is advancing
The earth invasion has just begun.*

-Skillet, Earth Invasion

It's Christmas time! This is the first time I'll be doing some Christmas entries on WASD, and I'm very excited. I'll do at least one more before New Years.

The other day I heard a youth pastor refer to Christmas time as 'the Holy Invasion'. He was saying that when Christmas roles around, the people that only go to church on Christmas and Easter will dust off their nice clothes and head to church. But the term really stuck with me.

'Holy Invasion'.

When we think of Christmas- more specifically, Jesus as a person- we think of peace. We think of the man we see in paintings with brown hair, grinning from ear to ear and holding a small child.

Don't get me wrong: This is Jesus through and through. Jesus is 'shalom'. So the term 'Holy Invasion' almost comes across a little... rude, doesn't it?

But that's exactly what this was.

Let's get a little more specific. The word alien, before it came to mean little green/gray men (whatever suits you), meant 'outsider'. Something FOREIGN.

A holy being outside of everything we know and could possibly understand sends His Son, a being who is also God himself, into a sinful, broken world as a baby.

When Jesus is born, He is a PERFECT human being. He has no sin. 100% clean, all the time. And, He's also fully God. And the son of God.

Pause one second: If you didn't think of it as bizarre and mind boggling at first, try to wrap your head around it- Jesus was the Son of God and God the Father himself. I don't know about you, but that seems pretty 'foreign and strange'.

God has set in motion the perfect plan. He has sent His Son down into the world of sinners, 'fullness of God in helpless babe'. Not only does this prove His intense love for these sinners, he's willing to save them.

He sends His Son Jesus to Earth, knowing full well that Jesus will be persecuted for His entire life, until eventually He is crucified. How could any parent do that? We know that Jesus' death pained God intensely. The loss of a child pains the parent.

So, he sends his son, the PERFECT being, into a world under oppression. Literally, this was a 'Holy Invasion'.

Think to all those images of alien invasions from movies like Independence Day, The Day The Earth Stood Still, etc. This fits the criteria for the title of 'alien invasion'.

Jesus later says in the New Testament, "I come not to bring peace but a sword." Jesus is bringing change to the world. He's invading the culture, changing the way people understand God, saving literally MILLIONS of lives, and totally turning the established order on its head. This DEFINITELY falls in with the archetype of 'alien invasion'.

Rewind: 'Before' Jesus went into action, He was a baby.

Pudgy cheeks. Feet in mouth. Amazed by hands. Those are the images that come to mind when I think about babies. How could JESUS have been a baby?

But he was. So let's take the story to another angle- three wisemen have been tracking the stars, doing their thing, and they see a new star. They saddle up their camels and follow it, until it leads them DIRECTLY to Jesus. A little baby in a feeding box, with a loving mother just after labor and a father seeing to his wife.

If I was one of those wisemen, I would have found that a little anti-climactic. I mean, there's a NEW STAR in the sky, and it leads to a baby in a barn.

They come to the conclusion this baby is not what he seems. It is revealed to them that Jesus is the prophesied King of Kings.

These three wisemen go back to Caesar and talk to him about it. Caesar is ruling an empire right about now. He's happy with his life. He doesn't want some NEW KING coming to take all of this from him. And Satan slides right in and starts pulling the strings on Caesar.

There's a scene in an episode of Smallville (yes, I'm talking about Smallville again) that really fits this moment. In the episode 'Splinter', Clark gets a sliver of silver kryptonite into his blood, and gradually becomes more and more paranoid. He even starts hallucinating. Of course, all of his paranoia is tied to his biggest fear: his secret being discovered by the entire world.

In one scene, when he's hallucinating, he sees Lex holding a press conference. Lex exclaims:

"Clark Kent is an invader from another world, the first of an armada bent on enslaving this planet! But I know his weakness. I know how to stop him."

This is what Satan whispers into Caesar's ear.

Satan never works in complete lies. He deals in half-truths.

He tells Caesar that Jesus is from another world, an alien. (Truth)
He then tells Caesar that Jesus is bent on taking control from Caesar. (Lie)

Caesar tells the wisemen to bring him to the baby, so that he may 'worship him as well'.

The wisemen are like, 'yeah, like that's what you're gonna do.' The wisemen want this child alive- they know He is the Messiah. So they take off. They don't tell Caesar.

I don't know what my real point is, here. I guess I'm just trying to point out that Christmas is something MUCH bigger than we ever acknowledge it to be. It's not 'just' the birth of Christ, it's the BIRTH OF CHRIST. Bold-face. Underline. Exclamation points. It's an invasion about to change the entire world FOREVER.

And, I guess what I'm trying to say is: that's a BIG DEAL.

Alcoholics Anonymous.

"Today at the mall with my family, we passed a wishing fountain. I tossed a coin in and wished for an iTouch for Christmas. My younger brother, trying to impress my parents, said I was being selfish and wished for world peace. He tossed a quarter at the well, it bounced off the rim, and hit him in the head. You can't fool the wishing fountain."- MLIA

"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words." -Matthew 6:5-7

Jesus was a man of action, not of words.

In my English class, we just finished reading Tartuffe. Tartuffe is an old play written by Moliere about a bogus priest who has convinced a nobleman that he is truly pious. The nobleman, named Orgon, is in awe of this 'holy prophet'. However, the rest of Orgon's family see Tartuffe for what he really is.

We, as readers, don't meet Tartuffe until quite a ways into the play. But when we meet him, he's truly detestable. He flaunts his prayers out for all to see, purposefully.

Jesus said that we are to be revolutionaries. We are the Elect. We're supposed to evangelize. But, right there in Matthew 5:6-7, he says we should pray in private. Jesus says believers should congregate and worship as a church, but again we look at this verse and notice he is saying worship should be private. So, which one do we do? Anyone else getting some mixed signals?

Well, let's look at the context of the verse, because after all: context is key. This is in the Sermon on the Mount. People followed Jesus, this man they thought was simply a fascinating teacher and philosopher, up onto a mountain and sat, listening intently while he spoke. Hanging on his every word. Jesus main opponents in that culture at the time were the Pharisees. The Pharisees were a council of Jewish religious judicial officials. The word 'pharisee' literally means 'sit together', if I'm remembering my New Testament project correctly.

The Pharisees LOVED to show they were better than anyone else. That they could keep the law the best, that they could be the most 'perfect'. Time and again they try to stump Jesus with questions to trip him up, and it backfires completely on them. Their authority is challenged over and over and over.

All right. So, we've got a call to be active and loud as Christians, but then Jesus tells us we are supposed to pray secretly and discreetly. Jesus says this as a reference to the Pharisees. Like I said, they loved to show they were 'better'. They would pray loudly. For them, prayer was not spiritual. Prayer was about the attention they received. Up until Jesus came, everyone said, "Oh look at those amazing Pharisees!" But Jesus shows up and says, "You guys have it ALL wrong. You've twisted up prayer!"

Look back up at that little story at the beginning of the entry. Go on, it's funny.

When we pray insincerely for things just to gain respect, it backfires. God sees straight into our souls. I know that gets said a lot, but it's true. He sees our nakedness and our true motivations. So when we're fake-praying, when we're hamming it up to look good in front of others, God gets insulted. We aren't praying to him.

We aren't even praying at all.

In Ethics, we just finished watching a great old movie called "The Days Of Wine And Roses" to correspond with our class discussion about addictions. Anyway, before we started watching that, I had been thinking a lot about the idea of 'church'. What is a church?

And when I thought about this verse in Matthew, I thought: "Wow, are we doing this wrong? Get together and singing loudly and acting all good... Is this right?"

See, my definition of church was:

A place for the enlightened man to rise above the sinful nature and to praise God. A place to separate one's self from sin, from the ugliness of the world.

Then I watched "Days Of Wine And Roses". The movie is about a couple that struggle with alcoholism. Joe, the husband, eventually realizes he has a problem and starts trying to sober up. However, his wife Kirsten, whom had not been drinking until she met Joe, continues to drink. And drink. And get drunk. She starts to resent Joe for sobering up, because she thinks he believes himself to be better than her. She runs away and drinks herself into oblivion. On their final confrontation in their apartment, a sober and deeply-pained Kirsten says that when she's drinking, the ugliness of the world goes away.

The way the movie ends is depressing. She leaves, refusing to admit she is an alcoholic. Joe is left with a daughter and the weight of knowing he caused her drinking. But he's sober. He's been working with Alcoholics Anonymous.

And so I had this thought:

The funny thing about the way people-- believers and non-believers alike-- perceive church is skewed and wrong. Christians and athiests see church as the place where those who have 'ascended' past the sin of this world to gather. That's not what it is at all! Church is Alcoholics Anonymous. People who believe are recognizing their problem (sin) and going not to 'rise above' the world but to beg for forgiveness and to try and get away from the addiction. A church is not a place for 'holier-than-thou' people like the Pharisees. A church is a place for the sinners-- the adulterers, the murderers, the liars, the greedy, the gluttonous-- to go to acknowledge they have a problem.

The congregation is the support group! These are all people saying, "I have a problem too, and I want out of it. I need to sober up."

In a nutshell, church isn't a place for people who go 'because they're Christians' (although that's commendable). A church is a place for a sinner to go, showing an entire group of people he is a sinner simply by showing up, and ask for forgiveness with Jesus. A Christian will mess up and slip. We are fallen. Sinful.

And I'm not saying that acknowledging you have a problem is how to fix everything.

Think of it like this.

1) Man wakes up one day, disgusted with himself for his sin. He goes to repent on Sunday.
2) Man sees another 200 people there, who are all there for the same reason: they are disgusted with their sin and need to praise God for his grace.
3) By coming to church, the man is telling everyone else in the congregation he is a sinner and needs help. 'I'm _____ and I'm an alcoholic.'
4) And thus begins the journey. A church is just like AA.

How does this tie into the whole prayer thing? That verse we started with?

Jesus says we shouldn't be Pharisees. Don't go out and pray loudly at restaurants so that people look over and say, 'Wow, he's virtuous'.

Because people aren't going to say that. People are going to say, 'Christians think they're so much better, when they're just as bad as us. What hypocrites.'

People can tell when faith is ingenuine. Especially with Christians. Christianity is a faith all about changing how you act. So by putting on these big pious displays in public, we're setting ourselves up for a fall.

But Jesus says we should pray quietly and discreetly. Because those big, gaudy prayers don't impress humans, and they especially don't impress God. God sees right through them.

In the end of Moliere's play 'Tartuffe', Tartuffe is exposed as a total fraud and brought to justice. All of his false piety backfires like a quarter off the edge of a wishing well, and hits him square in the head. False faith will only get you hit in the head with pocket change.

So, here's the full point: we have to change how we understand churches. Stop saying a church is place for 'Christians to gather'. A church is a place for sinners who want to be made whole, who desparately want to be sober! Going to church says, "I'm a sinner and I have problem! That's why I'm here!" And that means confessing that not only to God, but to an entire congregation. But those people are all there for the same reason you are! They're sinners who want to be made whole, to be sobered.

If you go to church because it's 'what Christians do', your faith is leaning very close towards the Pharisees'.

If you go to church each day to be held accountable and to openly admit you are a sinner, you're living Matthew 5:6-7.

Jesus was a man of action. He walked the walk. Talk was cheap to him.

Teddy Roosevelt said, "Talk softly and carry a big stick."

If we say 'talking softly' means being brief with words and 'carrying a big stick' means walking the walk, we've got Jesus. Jesus, the Son of God, whom set the example for all believers on how to act.

I know some people are going to think this is cheesy, maybe even a little distasteful. But this imagery is far too powerful for me to avoid.

Jesus did indeed talk softly, living through action. In his actions, he LITERALLY carried a big stick. He was crucified on it. And He rose again.

Jesus was a man of action, who is the only person to ever successfully 'walk the walk AND talk the talk'.

Disclosures and Warning Labels

Have you ever seen one of those signs (or at least a picture of one) that's absolutely ridiculous? Or one of those warning labels that seems so blatantly obvious and useless?

Example:

Windex. Warning! Do not spray in eyes!

Nooo, really?!

Alright. And have you ever seen one of those disclosures on DvD boxsets. It's like, those ones that say, "The views expressed in the commentaries and bonus content do not reflect those of the FOX company" etc.

Here's what I'd like to say.

I'm human (I think. Jury's still out.). I'm fallen- A LOT. I'm prejudiced. I'm a jerk. I'm a bad Christian. And I'm doing a 'theology' blog.

When I started WASD, I just wanted to make a blog for me to spout my random thoughts on theology and God. I also wanted to aim it at other teens, so teens could relate to it.

This entry is a disclosure.

First of all, don't spray it in your eyes. Second of all, it has sharp edges.

No, but seriously. One of my favorite quotes is from Rob Bell when he defines theology. He says, "The word theology has roots in two Latin words. Theos means God and Logos means Talk. Theology is God Talk. Anyone can do theology."

Now, in Ecclesiastes 1:9, it says, "There is nothing new under the sun."

So here's my point.

A) I'm biased and fallen. Everything in this blog is me wrestling with scripture, so don't take it as Scripture. 'Cause I know it's not perfect understanding of things. These are just my thoughts. I want YOU GUYS to think a little bit. Get that hamster running on that wheel. I hesitate to say it's my opinion, since I base all my entries on what I know about the Bible and try my best to keep it in the context of Scripture.

B) There's nothing new. I'm not saying NEW stuff. Humans have been around for a while now. There have been dozens of philosophers and theologians over time. But this blog is MY thoughts. This is me trying wrestling with my spiritual questions and posting them in the hopes some discussion will result or some thought will occur.

So keep that in mind when reading my thoughts.

I'd also like to talk about Christian authors. Just as a general set of rules, here are some guidelines to follow when looking at Christian books:

1) Don't give much credence to books with pictures of their author on the front. I'm looking at you, Joel Olsteen.

2) Don't give much credence to books that say stuff like "Five Steps To A Holier You". The book was written by someone who is fallen, just like you. They aren't going to have anything to say that Scripture doesn't say. They can't.

3) Any books that have their author's photo on the cover or back should not be trusted. If there's a small picture in the dust jacket, that's fine. That's totally okay. But not big photos.

4) Cheesy is as cheesy does. 85% of the time, anything with a ridiculously cheesy title is not going to be that great, in my experience. Granted, Rob Bell named one of his books "Jesus Wants To Save Christians", and that was FANTASTIC. So, that's in the 15% category.

Yep. Just some thoughts.

"Jake, how many hamsters do you go through in a day?"- Crim