Relevant Truth (or something like that)

I reading a lot of blogs lately but haven't done much posting myself.

Yep, I'm yet again using the "having blogged in a while" clíche opening.

Anyway, reading a great post earlier by Philip on Nexus4Change (check my reading list) based off his reading of Don Miller's Blue Like Jazz, a book that I reccomend. He raised a concern that I have feeling myself, not so much with Miller's writing specifically but with a lot of modern Christian books.

Before I talk about the concern, let me share what I like about the recent works of Don Miller, Rob Bell and a load of other authors I've yet to read: Christian faith is being shared in a manner that is relevant, honest (in terms of the human condition), attractive and intelligent. These men have moved with the times and acknowledge that times have changed and text book theology isn't going to go down with the Web 2.0 generation.

But my concern is this: that as postmodernism, relationalism (if that's a word), and the centrality of the human condition have been embraced, that their grasp of truth has been lost. It's is not culturally sensitive to call people sinful or declare that a large group of people will suffer for eternity because they don't believe the right thing. So, its not said.  Scripture is re-examined or deconstructed in light of our modern context. As Brian McLaren's book states: Everything Must Change.

I'm not going to outright reject the thinking of leaders like that and I'm trying to broaden by own understanding but let me offer my own belief as far as sharing the Gospel in our current culture.

In one hand, we hold our methodology, our ways of communicating, our structures of meetings, etc. This hand is open. This things can change. In fact, they should. We have to engage people where they actually are, not expect them to fit into a cookie cutter before we give the hope that exists in Christ.

In the other hand, we hold the Gospel, the Words of God, the centrality of God's truth and the challenge to understand what we believe without unnesscarily reinventing the wheel. We take the truths and ideas of the Bible in the context of when they were written with the understanding that it's not relative and that there is intention behind the writing. This hand is closed. By that, I don't mean that we arrogantly shout off what we believe but we avoid the blind leading the blind. There is actual truth that we are moving closer to.

I think that maybe the length of this post will make up for the post drought. If you made it through, well done.

Reflection on Time

I was just thinking about my schedule for tomorrow.
Let me give you the background.

I was originally scheduled to work in my job (in Zumo) tomorrow from 2.30pm to 7.30pm tomorrow. That's five hours.
Earlier today, I got a phone call from my manager asking me to work instead from 8.30am to 2.30pm instead.
Six hours.

The strange thing was that despite the longer work hours, I got excited about the opportunity to have a productive afternoon after work.

Now, my manager has switched me back to the afternoon shift, I'm kinda disappointed.
The prospect of having a productive day (aside from my job) seems gone.
It's strange that although I'm working less hours, I feel like I have less free time.
Why is that?

Probably, it's that I find it easier to get stuff done in the afternoon or evening then the morning.
Maybe, it's that it hard to focus in the morning also know that I'll soon have to get ready for work.
On some level, I wonder if its because by forced to get up early in the morning, I feel less lazy then I would sleeping in a bit. (I should mention here that I slept in very late and frequently over Summer.)
Also, it disjoints my day by having to be somewhere in the middle of it.

My challenge tomorrow is whether I can overcome a schedule that defies my personal body clock and make use of the time I do have. I feel like through a combination of appreciating the time I do have and taking time to reflect and worship (God, Jesus specifically) that the time will be well used.

I travelled to Dundalk this weekend with 3Rock for a leadership training day with Rev. Tom Wilson during he reflected on solitude. Think I need to practice some of that. More of my thoughts on it tomorrow.

Au revoir.
(I like foreign versions of "you see later")