Larry Norman once said that Elvis stole his music. I don’t know if that’s true, but every Christian band out there today owes their existence to the Godfather of Christian Rock.
Technorati Tags: larry norman, christian rock, music, jesus people, jesus movement
Rob Fedders has an interesting take on sexual roles and the proper response to a feminized society and legal system. I don’t agree with all of his premises or conclusions, but he still makes some pretty good points.
Technorati Tags: marriage, divorce, custody, men’s rights, father’s rights, patriarchy, feminism
Exodus 35:1
And Moses gathered all the congregation… Moses gathered men, women, and children together to hear the Torah. We all suffer as a result of each other’s wickedness, but every individual is responsible for his own obedience to God. A man cannot be held responsible for his wife’s sins, nor can a woman be held responsible for her husband’s. He is responsible for how he loves and leads his wife, and she is responsible for how she respects and obeys her husband.
Technorati Tags: vayakhel, parsha vayakhel, torah, gender roles, marriage
Exodus 30:12
…every man a ransom for his soul… Although the King James translators chose to put “children” here instead of “sons,” the remainder of the text is clear that males are intended. This tax was only levied against men who were able to fight. No women or children were included. The resulting count of half-shekels was no doubt used to assign the leaders of tens, hundreds, and so forth, as well as to estimate the nation’s fighting strength. Women and children were not counted, because they did not participate in combat except in the most extreme circumstances. The half-shekel was silver, representing the blood of the donator. It was a statement of patriotism, of willingness to defend Israel to the death if required.
I keep hearing pop-culture ninnies tell us that teaching abstinence doesn’t work. “Kids are going to have sex anyway, so we might as well teach them how to do it responsibly.”
They are all complete morons. They would make as much sense if they said, “Kids are going to attempt suicide anyway, so we might as well teach them how to kill themselves responsibly.”
Of course, it doesn’t work if you don’t give them a motive. It worked for me. It worked for most of my high school friends. (Trust me. If they were having sex with anyone at all, they would have said so.) The difference between my crowd and most of the rest of America’s kids is that we were motivated to abstain. It wasn’t to prevent disease or pregnancy. Those are both great reasons, but kids don’t necessarily care about reason. The difference was that we grew up in church, lived in devout christian homes, attended a christian school, and intended to marry christian girls. We had a motive that mattered to us.
If you tell kids that they are nothing more than jazzed up apes and that there is nothing to believe in–ever, anywhere–beyond the tangibly pragmatic, then you leave them with absolutely no reason to care about anything except the here and now. Most of them don’t really care about next month, let alone the next nine months or the next nine years.
Here’s my plan (for today) for saving America:
I’m sure I’ll have a new plan by tomorrow.
Technorati Tags: abstinence, sex education, public schools, education, teachers
If my sister was a Boulderite Hippy, she’d be Beth Preston. And if life is like a box of chocolates, so is coffee house music. Beth is one of the reasons I still love it so much. Even if she weren’t such an amazingly talented singer and songwriter, it’s hard to imagine being in the same room with her for long and not having fun.
Michael Garfield opened for her tonight at the Laughing Goat. He showed us some pretty cool guitar tricks. The art was interesting too, but I don’t know that I would hang it on my walls. Except for one called Symphony. I really liked that one. Black and white, pen and ink numbers by Leslie somebody-or-other. I forgot to write down the name. I’ll try to remember to call them tomorrow and ask. The Dr. Seuss Circus was apparently in town too. Some of the performers were sitting front and center. Oh, wait! That’s just Boulder. Growing up in Rock Island, we had some interesting characters come into the Crossroads Coffeehouse, but they were street people. These were probably CU students. Circus performers, street people, CU students…sometimes it’s hard to keep them straight.
Hm. Yeah. No further comment necessary.
As well as her own material, Beth played a couple of covers, including “Red House.” She’s no Jimi Hendrix on the guitar, but I would love to hear her sing a duet with the man a la Nat and Natalie. In a typically artistic contradiction, she sang one song extolling love for the way things are and another in which she stated, “I’ve become a blurry reflection of someone I’d rather be.” I know exactly what she means.
After about five encores I was still very sorry to see the end of the show. She gets bonus points for audience participation.
Technorati Tags: beth preston, music, boulder, inside fire, michael garfield
Beth Preston is in town this week. Here’s the schedule she sent to her mailing list:
| 02/17/08 | The Laughing Goat | Time: 20:30 |
| 03/07/08 | Cannon Mine Coffee Club | Time: 20:00 |
| 03/13/08 | Trilogy Wine Bar | Time: 21:00 |
Exo 27:20-21 And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.
Sometimes I wonder if I am completely insane, because of all the crazy stuff I see in Scripture. Do you see the parable of the talents in this passage? The gifts of the Spirit? Homeschooling? Mentoring and apprenticeship? I see all of those things, and I wonder if I’m hallucinating.
There are several different metaphors in those two verses. The beaten oil is deliberate refinement in the Holy Spirit. The location outside the veil in the Tent of Meeting implies a process that takes place within the family or community in the presense of God (behind the veil) and his Law (in the Ark) and under the light of his Spirit (the Menorah). Aaron and his sons represent family and community leaders, especially spiritual leaders. Finally, tending the oil is encouraging spiritual development through teaching and leading. All of that gives a picture of the role God intends for every person to take in relationship to the next generation and to those under their authority.
Yeshua told a story of a man with three servants. The servants who put their master’s resources to work for profit were rewarded. The servant who buried his master’s gold so that it wouldn’t be lost was stripped of what little he had and thrown out of the master’s house. God asked the Israelites for freewill offerings of precious metals, gemstones, and fabrics, but he commanded them to bring the oil, and commanded the priests to maintain the oil in the Menorah. He gave them only two options: produce the oil or be thrown out of the camp.
God has given everyone resources which they can employ in his service. We all have a gift, a calling, a special skill that can be made available to the Spirit. Paul listed some of those gifts in 1 Corinthians 12, but he did not intend for us to take that list as comprehensive. I firmly believe that teaching and prophecy should be included, as well as musical talent, mechanical aptitude, writing, and every kind of artistry and craftsmanship. With the right refinement, all of those things can be fuel for God’s Light in the world.
Like its organic counterpart, this fuel doesn’t come straight off the trees, ready to use. It must be harvested, pressed, and refined. Nor does it suffice to pour it into any lamp or onto just any fire. It must be channeled into the right reservoirs and tended by God’s appointed authorities. Parents, first of all, and then pastors, educators, priests, and people of all kinds of skill and talent are to instruct their successors in serving God and using their spiritual gifts to the profit of God’s kingdom. Men with special skill in the engineering of homes and office buildings must mentor apprentices into building to God’s glory.
Also like olive oil, it is counter-productive to isolate a single ingredient. Each person is a complex interaction of flaws and talents, and we need to seek a balance. While one of us might have a more beautiful voice than others, that isn’t a license to ignore character development in favor of breathing exercises. Olive oil is valued for its scent, flavor, color, and combustibility. It isn’t enough to achieve maximum caloric output. It must be an attractive, multi-dimensional output that allows God’s character to show through us.
As the keepers of God’s orchard–and we are all keepers and trees–he will hold us responsible for how we managed his oil. Are you a talented musician who can play any instrument he touches? Then use your talents to encourage other musicians to use their talents for God’s glory. Are you a leader who can take the full measure of a man in minutes? Then identify the potential leaders around you and mentor them into righteous, productive leadership of God’s people. You are the priests in the tabernacle of your family and community. You are the people supplying the oil for the Menorah. God has not asked for volunteers. He has commanded every single one of us to produce or be cut off.
Update 02/13/2008: One clarification. You are commanded to develop and use your spiritual gifts for the Kingdom. The Cohanim (priests) are commanded to coordinate and encourage your gifts. That you are responsible for teaching and fostering those gifts in others is an implication, but not necessarily a command.
Update 02/17/2008: So I’m not completely insane. The sermon at church yesterday was strikingly similar to what I posted here. It was based on Exodus 28:33-35 and John 21:15-17, and it emphasized teaching and living Torah, but the general idea was the same.
Technorati Tags: community, family, mentoring, tetsaveh, parsha tetsaveh, torah, menorah, olive oil, holy spirit, gifts of the spirit
Heidi adds a few good words of her own.
(Sorry, Heidi. I spelled your name wrong. Now corrected.)
