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A PEACE AND JUSTICE CHRISTMAS

I like this poem:

Have Yourself a Peace and Justice Christmas by Sojourners Staff

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Set your heart a-right.
Flee the malls and focus on Christ’s guiding light.

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Give your time a way.
Share God’s love, And serve “the least of these” today.

Here we are, as we pray for peace,
We’ll live simply and give more.
We care for those far and near to us,
Which brings cheer to us, once more.

God brings down
The haughty from high places,
And lifts up the low.
God cares for the hungry and the humble, so –
Forget the stress and let the peace and justice flow!

THE MOTHER SAINT

Mother Teresa was born in 1910 and died in 1997. During her 87 years she practiced religion that God our Father accepts pure and faultless. This is looking after orphans and widows in time of distress (James 1:27). Mother Teresa worked in Calcutta, India to care for many orphans.
It was not easy for Mother Teresa she wrote this in her personal journal about the hardships involved with her lifestyle of living among the poor:

"Our Lord wants me to be a free nun covered with the poverty of the cross. Today I learned a good lesson. The poverty of the poor must be so hard for them. While looking for a home I walked and walked till my arms and legs ached. I thought how much they must ache in body and soul, looking for a home, food and health. Then the comfort of Loreto [her former order] came to tempt me. 'You have only to say the word and all that will be yours again,' the Tempter kept on saying ... Of free choice, my God, and out of love for you, I desire to remain and do whatever be your Holy will in my regard. I did not let a single tear come."

Sainthood includes doing what needs to be done when it isn't easy. What a wonderful example of living for the dying and the forgotten. Mother Teresa truly was a mother because of the way she took in orphans. She was the mother of many. This mothering life came to define her. God bless saints who care that much for the suffering. I want to be one of them.

GOD BLESS SAINTS WHO FOSTER AND ADOPT

This is me and my favorite child at church. Her name is Halle. She is a foster baby currently being loved by Randy, Tricia, and Callie Lillard.
(Not to mention any number of Christians at Sycamore View on a given church assembly).

It makes me sad birth parents are put in circumstances to have to let go of precious gifts like Halle. It does make me glad the birth parents have chosen to give the child to a family who is more prepared for a child. It makes me glad that there are people like the Lillards who are willing to love a child for a short (or long) amount of time. It makes me glad that there are people willing to adopt children like Halle. I am sad that they are missing out on the very thing I am doing in this picture, though.

God bless saints who foster and adopt. I want to be one of them.

WHEN THE SAINTS GO MARCHING IN

"When the saints go marching in, I want to be in that number when the saints go marching in."
A famous line from a famous gospel hymn. While I want to join the saints on that glorious day when the trumpet sounds, I want to join the the living people who are displaying sainthood today.

I like the descriptions I have seen of the word saint. One being, "a human being who has been called to holiness." But my favorite being, "not just a believer but one who has been unusually transformed." I want to be that. I like seeing it in other people, it inspires me. In the next few posts I am going to bring to light some present day saints that I see in my life to go along with some saints that have already gone on.

I want to be in that number now and forever as the saints go marching on.

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT...

Friday night when Erin and I were deep in slumber I started pulling the comforter off the bed. Not just pushing it off me, or throwing it to the end of the bed. I am talking I was sitting up pulling it off, it took some actual energy to do this. Erin awoke and said, "what are you doing?" I answered something about I am having a dream that I was supposed to pull off the cover. Her response, "I don't care what dream you are having, put it back." I went back to sleep.

This has taken the place of the most memorable Justin half asleep moment. This is when I continuously asked Erin what a "cameo coat" was. I have been known to do a lot of talking in my sleep (just ask my college roommate), but the latest incident has got to be the most memorable.

I'M DREAMING OF A HONDURAN CHRISTMAS

As I eluded to in the previous post, Erin and I are going to Honduras over Christmas. We will be there from the 20th of December until the 30th.

I am glad Erin thought to do this. The story is we heard Jessica Wires wanted to go: yada, yada, yada we leave the 20th. We will be staying with a missionary who keeps four orphans and one child of her own. We will be giving love and attention to these children during Christmas. We aren't necessarily there to be Santa Claus, although we will share with them. Our main objective is to show the love of Christ to those children and to encourage the missionary.

I will try to update you on what is going on. Also, I am toying with the idea of making a small documentary of the trip using our digital camera. Either way, I am certain I will have lots of pictures and stories to share. On my Christmas list from you is prayer for a successful trip.

SCHOOL SPIRIT

On this date 11 years ago people died in the high school I was attending. People were also paralyzed and a few survived their wounds. I think about that at least once a year, usually more. Yes, I knew everyone involved including the shooter who was in my first two classes.

In high school there are always the corny cheers about being "proud to be a Pirate, yes I am...".
Well at football games I usually wasn't. We stunk. But 11 years ago tomorrow I was proud to be a Pirate. Some students from the prayer circle which was the target of the shooting made a huge sign and put it on the front of the school which was surrounded by TV vans from CNN, NBC, CBS, etc. The sign read, "Michael, we forgive you." I don't think about that part of the story as much. I wish I did. That is awesome maturity from high school students, unfortunately I was too immature to be a part of that at that point in my life.

Heath High School has since put in a memorial garden, which is nice. But I wonder what happened to that sign.

CONSUMERISM

This is pitiful. I am not even sure what words to put with this.

I am going to Honduras over Christmas. I can't wait to get there. More on that later.

THANKSGIVING

I have been thinking about what I am thankful for this year. I have come to realize that I am not thankful only for God's love and the sacrifice of Jesus, but I am thankful for the life this compels me to live.

In the Old Testament we see examples of the writers of the Psalms being thankful for the law. Psalm 119:105 says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path". But wasn't the law restricting and hard to follow? Wasn't it a bunch of difficult rules that were improbable to keep? That is not how the Israelites viewed the law. They saw it as a way to please God. They were glad to know they could be pleasing to God and glad to have the means to do it.

As for me, I am thankful for the life Jesus has called me to live. It is difficult sometimes. It is mentally draining occasionally as I have to try and remove myself from the American mind set I have placed on myself and view the world through a Christian lens. But it gives me purpose, I am not left to wander aimlessly through life, or work for self-gratification that leads to an empty life. It gives me energy and adds substance to my life. It gives me a hunger to help people that is never completely filled. I am thankful for the blood he shared, but I am also thankful for the life he calls us to live. I am thankful for the Christian life as the Israelites were thankful for the law. The Israelites were given a way to glorify God, a meaning to life. The Christian life does the same for me. I am not restricted by living a Christian life, I am freed. For that, I am thankful.

For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
--2 Corinthians 5:14-15

CHRISTMAS PARTY 2008

CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY

Christian community as depicted in the Epistle to Diognetus:

...a people who are not markedly different from those around them in dress or custom; Christians, though, have a confessedly striking method of life. They dwell in their own countries, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things with others, and yet endure all things as if foreigners They marry, as do all; they beget children; but they do not destroy their offspring. They have a common table, but not a common bed.

They are in the flesh, but they do not live after the flesh. They pass their days on earth, but they are citizens of heaven. They obey the prescribed laws, and at the same time surpass the laws by their lives. They love all men, and are persecuted by all. They are unknown and condemned; they are put to death, and restored to life.

They are poor, yet make many rich; they are in lack of all things, and yet abound in all; they are dishonoured, and yet in their very dishonour are glorified. They are evil spoken of, and yet are justified; they are reviled, and bless; they are insulted, and repay the insult with honour; they do good, yet are punished as evil-doers. When punished, they rejoice as if quickened into life...

Are we living Christian Community like the 2nd century church did?

CHRISTIAN POLITICS

Christian politics is not voting for the person whose party has convinced the nation they hold the morals of America as their platform. Christian politics is the church as a community and individual Christians being proactive towards the social issues in our nation.

Are those people concerned about gay marriage taking care of their own marriages and joining with the church in supporting those who are struggling with marriage? Gay marriage is not an attack on my family or any other one. In my opinion, divorce is the most dangerous attack on the family, substance abuse, addictions are other risk factors to the family "under attack", not people who struggle with homosexuality getting married. So what are those fighting verbally doing pro-actively with the church for the support of healthy marriage?

Are those people shouting out about murdering infants adopting or fostering? Or even financially supporting organizations that actually do something after babies are born to unwed mothers, or teenagers not ready for motherhood?

Are those people fighting for policies for those under the poverty line taking time to have a meal with those in poverty? Are they joining with their church in an effort to not only financially help, but be a presence of care?

Are prayers going up for people in Iraq? Or only votes cast? Or no thought at all about loving enemies (not to mention innocent citizens)?

The disciples of Christ were never called to make sure a faithful follower was in office. I dare say Jesus did not care who was in office. It was not worth squabbling about. Jesus' challenge to us was to live in a way the world recognize as different.

Paul never tried to make the laws of the land to where he would not be flogged and put in jail for preaching Jesus resurrected. I am sure he would have found the "morality" of the government of that day to be convenient. But, he was more concerned with the lives of Christians and those in need. As we can see in his letters he had enough issues to worry about in the way of unity rather than political loyalties.

Why allow something like loyalty to a political party damage Christian relationships?

Voting is not Christian politics. Living out the social issues you want to see changed or preserved is Christian politics. Being a city on a hill, the salt of the earth is Christian politics.

There is no such thing as a "Christian Nation", not the US, not Nazi Germany (who also claimed Christian Nation). There is a Christian community, though (by the way, it reaches outside of our country). And it has nothing to do with elections and it is where we should act.

WHAT DEFINES ME?

As most if not all of you know, I am a Cubs fan. So I am supposed to write a blog post giving reasons they lost. Or maybe hoping for next year. Not today at least.
Natural comments I receive regarding the Cubs lets me know that people are aware the Cubs games are important to me, especially playoff time (even from people whose team did not have the best record in the NL; I have to at least have one defensive zinger).
This made me think. What do people see in my life that lets them know about my passion to serve God? What happens in the real world that would make people think, I should tell Justin Lewis about this. Opportunities to serve? Injustice that I would work to curtail? Things going on in Zambia? These type of things are things I should be defined by. Not the most knowledgeable or loyal Cubs fan in Memphis or something like that.

FALL FEST 2008