Discipling Christians to Maturity

Christianity has a problem with the culture of modern day America. This culture injects sex, violence, and bad language into the books, movies, and music it creates. It is a culture that some Christians just can't engage with, and that's the problem. I refuse to believe that a strong, mature Christian is supposed to simply withdraw today's culture. The movie you are watching, the book you are reading, the music you are listening to -- it is not about you. Someone is trying to tell you who they are, how they think, and how they feel and they employ a certain media to convey that message. Understanding the world we live in is necessary if we are going to be able to speak the truth into that culture. Yet some seem to suggest that a Christian, as they become more mature, should withdraw from the "old way" and instead start to read only Christian literature, see "good" movies, and listen to Christian music. Is it any wonder that these same Christians are ridiculed for being out of touch and naive?

No, this is not the persecution that Jesus taught us we'd all endure for choosing to follow Christ. That persecution comes when we confront culture with the truth, not retreat from it into our own fairy tale land. Yes, we are to guard our hearts. Yes, we are to think about true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable things. However, we do not need to live in fear of our culture, scooting away when the language doesn't suit our sensibilities. We all to often misunderstand our threat environment. Is listening to what the culture has to say going to change our minds? Are they going to convince us of a lie when we already know the truth? What is our testimony for Jesus Christ when we can't even handle a little swearing, a little violence, or a little sex? We're making it look like good cannot stand up against evil, as if darkness could drive away light. We are already victorious over all the evils in our culture today. They can't hurt you if you don't let them.

The biggest threat to Christians are those who appear as light, and as those we can trust. Christian writers, music, and even pastors are more likely to harm your Christian walk than the anything American culture can throw at you. Guard your hearts. Before you allow your life to be completely changed by what you just read or heard check it against scripture. It sounds true, but is it really?

"From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing and forceful men lay hold of it." (Matthew 11:12). Mature Christians need to be trained to stand up against evil, with evil all around holding fast to the truth. Instead, all to often, it seems we've won the battle then started an disorderly retreat. Jesus Christ won the victory, but it is up to us to hold the ground and put down the insurgency. Now, to be clear, the people aren't the enemy. The culture isn't even the enemy. The evil that inhabits the people and makes its way into our culture is what we are fighting. Sin is the enemy. We need to know how sin has gotten ahold of people, so that we can help them to be free of it. Everywhere, they are telling us. They're writing books about it. They're making movies about it. They're making music about it. And we're walking away because we don't want their evil to rub off on us. People everywhere are in great pain brought about by sin in their lives. We need to understand that pain, understand the sin that lies beneath it, and free them from it.

I think I've made clear what I think a mature Christian should look like. The remaining question is, how do we train Christians to reach that state. If we are not prepared or not yet mature, coming into conflict with evil can lead us into temptation. I don't know that small group studies get us there. It seems too comfortable, too much like a retreat, and not a forceful advance. I came across this story today, apparently from 2005, about a man in Nairobi, Kenya who was attacked by a leopard. "A voice, which must have been from God, whispered to me to drop the panga (machete) and thrust my hand into its wide open mouth. I obeyed," he said. The man ended up pulling on its tongue until it died, at some point ripping the tongue right from the beast's mouth. To witness such an event must inspire courage. I can only think that real discipleship must be like that man's actions. Seeing courageous actions inspires courage. Is there a way to program that? To structure that into something that can be repeated as successfully as small groups can?

Marking Time

The picture is of my second full moon in Afghanistan, seen here setting over the mountains. I didn't quite get the picture right, but the moon sets fast, so I had to do my best with post production. Keeping time by the moon is natural for someone working night shift. Every time you walk outside, it is there looking down at you. Was it Robinson Crusoe that kept time by marking a stick? I can't remember, but I have found that I mark time many ways while I am here. I have a stack of clean clothes in my closet here, since I just did laundry for the fourth time. I keep time by paychecks, and by meals. I can almost keep time by pounds lost (9 so far, which means a ways to go still).

Marking time isn't just a way of looking back at how far you've come, it is a way of anticipating the good times ahead. My church has a coffeehouse called "Ebenezers," the name given by Samuel in the Old Testament to monuments to things God had done. It means, literally "hitherto the Lord has helped us" or, as my pastor would say "so far, so God." The name of the coffeehouse, by the way, is plural, not possessive, marking the many times God has been faithful. Every time we measure our days gone by, we are setting Ebenezers if we do it with gratitude towards God. I have a pile of clean underwear in my closet that is an Ebenezer, and when I have a pile of dirty underwear in my closet, that will be an Ebenezer too.

However, I think of the words "hitherto" or "so far" (as the NIV says) as being also forward looking. "So far" implies something further, and an Ebenezer is not only a mark of what God has done, but a faith-building encouragement of what God still has ahead.

This week are two Ebenezers that are important to me. My son's first birthday is tomorrow, and my wife's birthday is the day after. For me, these days not only mark how far God has brought each of them, but the promise of more days ahead. Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday J. and N., happy birthday to you . . . and many more.

The Mountains are the Feet of Him

The dust here is thin and light. It is easily cast up into the air, and doesn't easily settle again. I would almost expect to see the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg peering at me through the dusty haze, but instead it is the mountains. In the daylight you could almost miss them, mistaking the mountains for a distant cloud. On a clearer day, you might see some contours in the steep slopes. The base here certainly adds to the mix with regular vehicle, foot, and air traffic, stirring up dust which simply circulates around this bowl in the Hindu Kush.

I am at an elevation of about 4800 feet, but the mountains around me rise up another 10,000 or so not too far from here. If you were to follow the chain south and east, you would come upon the Himalayas. They act as a shield here, keeping the monsoon rains in India, and Afghanistan rather dry. It is not without rivers though, as the steep slopes work to gather the water and send it flowing down, eventually reaching the generous Indus river, and then the sea. Alexander the Great followed Afghanistan's Kabul river into the Indus river valley, bypassing the better known (and easier) Khyber Pass. To the north are the mines of Badakhshan, known for its lapis lazuli. Lapis lazuli was once the very definition of the color blue, an expensive source of pigments for Renaissance artists, and called "sapphires" (now used to describe a different blue gem). When the book of Job makes reference to sapphires, it is really talking about lapis lazuli (known for its white veins and golden flecks).

To the west are the ruins of the giant Buddha statues of Bamiyan, destroyed by the Taliban shortly before Operation Enduring Freedom began. Those statues would have been viewed by travelers on the "Silk Road" a network of trade routes that cross through Afghanistan, some not far from here. Perhaps it is because of this trade (and a number of military conquests) that Afghanistan still preserves a diverse population and cultural heritage. These cultures have somehow managed to survive two of the most culturally oppressive regimes in recent history (Soviet Russia and the Taliban, though there are certainly no shortage of other contenders).

And here I am. In the Hindu Kush; an Islamic Republic; a land where once Buddhism held great cultural influence -- an odd place for a Christian. I wonder whether the light of Christianity ever pierced through this dusty air. Perhaps the Apostle Thomas made it this far, but I have my doubts. Even if Christianity has barely reached this valley, the Christian God is not absent from this land. Maybe instead of sitting in a simple valley, I'm sitting in The Creator's footprint. Certainly, He has been here before me, is here with me now, and will be here after I leave this place. Will the people here know Him?

I pray that God would make Himself known in this place, from the deepest cave, to the highest mountain top, and in every river valley. I wish it were my mission here to proclaim Him, but it isn't. In fact, they have rules against any sort of evangelism . . . but not against hope, and not against love. How can I fulfill the Great Commission as well as my official mission here? Can you make disciples without saying a word?

To Reason Why

When people hear I'm headed overseas for six months, they usually ask some variation on the question "why?" In some ways, it is a question that has a lot of answers. I don't think I could really endure six months away from my family motivated by a single reason, it takes a lot of reasons -- and good ones. Many of you know the deciding reason for me going. We should be able to afford a place outside of DC for a price that would allow us to live off of one income, so Jenn could stay at home with Nathan. It will be wonderful to have Jenn be able to be a stay at home mom, something she's probably better at than teaching (which is saying something).

When I deployed to Iraq for four months, I lost a good amount of weight. It helps when you have a gym nearby with little else to do for entertainment. I hope to lose weight again this time, and to stay active and healthy when I get back.

Spiritual growth is also something at the front of my mind. It is easy to fall into the habit of working a job everyday and forgetting the role God is playing everyday in sustaining you and providing for you. The title of my blog I think describes how I'd really like to live. I have heard people say that your faith is weak if you can't give God credit in the easy times and the challenging times. I wonder if it really means you should just seek out more challenges. Do you try to change your faith to accommodate your life, or change your life to grow your faith?

I also think the war in Afghanistan should be fought, and if (believing that) I am in a position to help, I should. The guys in the military don't always have the same choice. I will be going forward for the second time, for a total of ten months, while many in the military have done two or three one year tours. It certainly won't hurt me in my career, either.

I hope to use this blog to keep you informed about how I am doing in these areas and in general. Don't expect much information about what I'm doing, of course. I hope to keep my friends and family informed, but that doesn't mean I'm seeking to be very public. I hope that you'll respect these concerns by not linking to this blog from a publicly accessible site. Thank you to all those who are praying for me.