Category: Brother Al (Page 4 of 67)

“Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, ‘Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie'” (Is. 44:20 NLT).  I just read this in my morning devotions.  In this section of Isaiah (44:6-20), the prophet is depicting the foolishness of idols.  The section begins with the Lord declaring, “I am the First and the Last; there is no other God” (44:6).  God then challenges the people to prove him wrong.  “How foolish,” God observes, “are those who manufacture idols.”  Being even more direct, God says, “Such stupidity and ignorance!  Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see.  Their minds are shut, and they cannot think” (44:18).  

Do we have idols in our lifestyle that seem plain foolish in the eyes of our Lord?  Could our devotion to the use of modern idols point to our stupidity and ignorance?  Are we so blind that we cannot see what we are doing?  Are our minds so closed that we do not realize our devotion to modernity?  Could we hold in our hands an actual idol?  Could we be believing a lie when we can’t live without an i- phone?   If we think of devotion to an idol as the time we spend with it, how much we depend on it, and the almost addictive lifestyle habit the I-phone creates, then I would say “the I-Phone has become one of the chief idols in our day.”

Men, living in the modern world,  have to examine their lives, asking themselves if their I-phone have become an idol:

First and foremost, the I-phone has severely distorted our view of reality.  It can easily shape reality, from God as Creator and Redeemer of reality, to that which is formed by human beings in rebellion against the reality of a creator God.  Most damaging is how human life is portrayed.  The young, suffer the most, living with thoughts of suicide under the deception of not being created in the image of God for a loving relationship with him.

Second, simply put – because of the distortion of reality the I-phone is loaded with “misinformation.”  It is a powerful tool that “the father of lies” uses to spread his “lies.”  Jesus declared, “He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him.  When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8: 44). Our arch enemy will use every instrument at his disposal in his attempt to destroy humans made in the image of God.  The internet has become a primary tool of the enemy for fabricating lies.  Misinformation is really lying.  Satan will promote lying to spread his agenda of hate and anger.

Thirdly, the I-phone we all hold in our hands is a effective means of “propaganda.” It will take a concerted effort on the part of each of us not to be persuaded by the distorted views of reality on the web. Beware of how “the father of lies” can us the internet.

In Revelation, the devil is described as a dragon. the antichrist.   In Rev. 13, the spirit of the antichrist symbolized by the beast coming out of the sea having political power and the beast coming out of the earth with the ability to perform miracles. “The dragon gave the first beast his own power and throne and great authority” (Rev. 13:2). The second beast, “exercised all the authority of the first beast” (Rev.13:12). He will do “astounding miracles” by which “he deceived all the people who belong to this world” (13:14).    

Men beware of the enemy’s cunning ability to distort reality and spread lies over the web.   

The final words of Habakkuk’s prophesy are a prayer (Hab. 3:16-19).  The prophet had begun with a cry of complaint, “How long, O Lord, must I cry for help” (1:2). God then revealed to him how he was working mightily in his day in an most unexpected manner.  Habakkuk vowed to keep watch for a move of God. “I will wait to see what the Lord says and how he will answer my complaint” (2:1).

He ends by rejoicing in the Lord. “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Saviour” (Hab. 3:19).  “Like Habakkuk, we need to start where he begins in his dialogue with God: “How long….Why? (1:2-3).  Like Habakkuk, we need to reach the place where we can quietly say, “though….Yet I will rejoice in the Lord (3:17-18)…….Questioning God is acceptable, but refusing to trust him is our downfall, for whatever the circumstances, personal grief or national disaster, the just God, the sovereign Lord gives strength to the righteous person of faith.” (BST).  

In verse 16 Habakkuk describes the impact on his awareness of God’s activity.  His heart is pounding, his lips quiver and his legs tremble.   He is deeply troubled by the prospects of God’s coming  judgement.  “I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled.” (3:16).  He knows he will be living in the midst of God’s judgment.  

Habakkuk’s view of the coming days had now been deeply informed by God speaking to him.  When we experience the prospects of God’s judgment on our nation, with a fervent belief for God to will bring revival, we can experience, “deep agony of spirit for the state of God’s people and of the nation, fervent intercession for the intervention of God in saving power, increasing awareness of the inevitability of judgment and of the human suffering which accompanies it, and intense person engagement with God’s word for the present situation” (BST).    

He has no idea how revival would happen.  In desperation he  cried out to God.  God gave Habakkuk assurance of his presence in the culture, but not in the way anticipated by the prophet.  Habakkuk had prayed, “In this time of our deep need, help us again as you did in years gone by.  And in your anger, remember your mercy” (3:2).  The prophet did not know how his prayer would be answered. 

He only could wait.  “Habakkuk has been transformed from an impatient prophet into a calm and expectant one.” Earlier Habakkuk had been told to wait for God’s will to be accomplished. Habakkuk had reminded God of past revivals. “I have heard of all about you, Lord. I am filled with awe by your amazing works” (3:2b).

But in the present, it did not look very hopeful. But God was at working in history to bring about his purpose, even as he has been using the Babylonians. “If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place.  It will not be delayed” (2:3b).  The prophet was encouraged by God in his waiting. “But the person in right standing before God through loyal and steady believing is fully alive, really alive” (2:4 Message).   

Men, this a vital lesson for us to learn.  As we pray and seek God’s will, it might seem that God is not at work in our culture.  God can change our attitude from lament to hopeful praise, knowing that God will at the right time bring revival.  Habakkuk ends with praise “yet I will rejoice in the Lord!  I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! (3:18).  

There are occasions on the spiritual path chosen for us, when we will slip and fall. In the well known 23rd Psalm, we’re told, “He leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul, He guides me along the right paths, for his name’s sake” (Ps. 23:1-2).  There are over 20 references to a path in the Psalms.  “You make known to me the path of life,  you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Ps 16:11). In Psalm 18:36, we are given assurance, “You have made a wide path for my feet to keep them from slipping.”  One the most intriguing is Psalm 77:19, “Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen.”  The path God provides is indeed secure. 

But when I  was meditating on Ps. 73, I became aware of how easy I can slip, if my focus is not on the Lord. “But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.  For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”  The Message is blunt, “But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness.  I was looking the other way, looking up to the people at the top, envying the wicked who had it made, who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world.”  The Psalmist was slipping of the path.  “The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches.  I ‘ve been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me.” (vs 12-13).

Then in the presence of the Lord, the psalmist wakes up. “Then I saw the whole picture: The slippery road you’ve put them on, with a final crush in a ditch of delusions.  In the blink of an eye, disaster!” (Ps 73:18-19 MSG)  He is transparent about his spiritual condition. “When I was beleaguered and bitter, totally consumed by envy, I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox in your very presence (v21).  But he was aware of God’s presence.  “You’ve taken my hand.  You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then you bless me.”

God was all he needed.  As a man in the fourth quarter of his life, the words of verse 26 are reassuring, “When my skin sags and my bones get brittle, God is rock-firm and faithful.”  As for those who are unfaithful.  “Those who left you are falling apart!  Deserters, they’ll  never be heard from again.”  In response to God mercy, the Psalmist after nearing slipping on the path of life, declares, “But I’m  in the very presence of God – oh, how refreshing it is!  I’ve made Lord God my home.  God, I’m telling the world what you do! ( v 28). 

Jeremiah gives us warning about those who are wicked. “‘I have seen their despicable acts right here in my temple,'” says the Lord.  “Therefore the paths they take will become slippery.   They will be chased through the dark, and there they will fall.  For I will bring disaster upon them at the time fixed for their punishment.” (Jer. 23:12 NLT).  May we not be caught on this slippery path.  

God will be there when we seem to be slipping. “Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you.  He will not permit the godly to slip and fall” (Ps 55:22 NLT).  Knowing God has rescued us, we walk in the presence of the Lord. “For you have rescued me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping.  So now I can walk in your presence, O God, in your life-giving light” (Ps 56:13 NLT). 

In early 2010 ,James Houston wrote an article entitled “The Independence Myth” with the subtitle “Only our soul friends can show us the ecology of evil within us.”  Dr. Houston asks, “Could a new understanding of such terms as spiritual direction provide pointers to what is needed in our congregational life?  Could it be that in our search for ‘revival,’ making our pastoral care more holistic would save us from what seems like a constant need to pump air into leaky tires.”  He goes on to identify three such leaky tires. Men, do we have a leaky tire.

First, he mentions, the “mistaken notion that if only we preach and teach enough the congregation will ‘know the truth.'” Instruction alone maintains  Dr. Houston, “is no substitute for the relational inspiration and the quality of life we can give each other in “soul friendships.'”  “As long as we assume that ‘talk’ automatically leads to living the gospel, there will be spiritual leakage.” 

A second leak “has to do with our confused identity as Christians.”   It is “fatal to Christian ministry to find one’s identity in being the pastor or elder or deacon, instead of being ‘in Christ Jesus.'”  Thirdly, Houston identifies the “moral leakage among us.” He sees a “nation of the morally stillborn,”  who are more like “the morally retarded,” showing little behavioral difference from the culture.   

These leakages reveal the lack of the discipline and ordering of our emotional lives, attitudes and motives,  which need to be incorporated in our teaching.  We often can be blind to the depth of original sin.  Houston observes, “If sin is self-deceiving, then I need a soul friend to give me insights into the ways I am deceived, or insensitive, or hardened by sin within me.”  A true spiritual friend helps us to see “the inner ecology of evil” in our heart.  

Dr. Houston sees the need to prioritize the “emotional education of our inner lives.”   An “over rationalized faith” can lead to more talk then walk.   ” {When} authentic spiritual guidance” notes Houston. “reveals the reality of human sin, and the relevance of Christ’s lordship and redemption to our emotions and our minds, then it will help expose the intrinsically self-deceiving character of sin in our lives.”   Those who are most rational in control of their lives, will “scorn the relevance of soul friendship.”   However, a sincere soul friend can expose our inner ecology of sin.  

Houston, asks why is prayer so neglected among believers?  His answer is intriguing.  “It reflects our general fear of intimacy, which in turn is responsible for our lack of deep friendships, and indeed for the whole undernourishment of the relational life.”  One of the aims of spiritual guidance and direction is to help with our life of prayer.  Spiritual friend can be  encouraging in our struggle with prayer.  

Finally, Dr. Houston reminds us, the life of the Christian is grounded in the mystery of the Trinity.  “We all need to see the divine Trinity as the archetypal reality of our expression of community, communion, and spiritual life together.”  Each person of the Trinity is “for-the -other.” each having “identify-in-the-other,” but yet one God.  “Spiritual  friendship means the friendship of those who are the prayerful companions of God.”  With spiritual friends we can experience “a comfortable walking with God.”

Houston warns there are no “paid friends” who are experts, rather”these qualities only appear when the Spirit of God blows softly over dry bones as the prophet saw in his vision.  And therein lies our hope.”  

My advice, find a male spiritual friend.  Make it a priority.  Don’t be a spiritual “Lone Ranger.” 

I appreciate “Breakpoint.”  I go there each day as I attempt to make sense of today’s world.   A recent article was entitled, “Ready to change the world?  Eat dinner with your family.”  The article contained an enlightening quote from Dr. Anne Fishel, the director of the Family Dinner Project, regarding the family around the dinner table. “Regular family dinners are associated with lower rates of depression, and anxiety, and substance abuse, and eating disorders, and tobacco use, and early teenage pregnancy, and higher rates of resilience and higher self-esteem.” 

Even with all these benefits, only 54% of American families sit down to a daily mealtime.  The article noted many family dinner times are “constantly besieged by digital distraction, such as the smartphone and tablets.”  Neil Postman years ago, warned “(a) family that does not or cannot control the information environment of its children is barely a family at all.”  

The Breakpoint article reflected on the dramatic shift in our collective cultural imagination. Jewish political scholar, Yoram Hazony observes a cultural shift, in which it is not so much disbelief taking place, but rather of dishonoring  of our essential institutions and the traditions kept by them.  “The breakdown of the family, the compromise and collapse of our religious consensus, and the loss of civil society has contributed greatly to an uncritical acceptance of bad ideas and destructive patterns of behavior,” observes Hazony.

Hazony laments conservatives having “little intention of actually engaging in those practices worth conserving.”  Practices such as keeping the sabbath, reading scripture, attending religious services, and regular family dinners are seen more as nostalgic traditions.  Civic duty and political change needs, however, to include how we live, especially with those closest to us.  Dr. Fishel observes regular family dinners as a predictor of long-term success in family life.  For school-aged kids, frequent family mealtime is “an even more powerful predictor of high achievement scores than time spent in school, doing homework, playing sports, or doing art.”

The breakpoint article ends with this challenge and encouragement.  “It may sound too simple to be true, but it’s not.  One way that Christians can make a lasting, significant difference in politics is by protecting and cultivating the dinner table.  The future of our nation may indeed depend on whether Christians make family mealtimes, as one non-Christian sociologist has described, a “‘sacred space’…….It matters greatly who is in the White House, but it matters so much more who we are in our houses, in our houses of worship, and around our dinner tables.

I am writing this blog with many memories of having  of my family, having what was  called “the family altar.”  It centered around the table used for family meals. The suggest was for the head of the family to use  the main meal of the day as an opportunity for 1) family discussion, 2) sharing of concerns, and 3) devotions after the meal.  The table is a symbol of gathering and conversation. In my recollection of those day, I saw myself, for better or worse, to be the facilitator of devotions and conversation. 

My Testimony –  It is vital for a growing family to have a time of open and free conversation on a daily basis if at possible.  I found this commitment meant discipline and planning.  I had to “lean into” the table fellowship. showing interest and compassion for my wife and kids.  Sometimes it was difficult to “be present.” Most challenging was leading in devotions after the meal.  Looking back  I am thankful our “table talk.”

“Your children will be like vigorous young olive trees as they sit around your table” (Ps 128:3 NLT).

In the early 1990’s I read a book by Charles Colson, entitled “Against the Night.”  He visualized  barbarians already having invaded our culture left a lasting impression on me.  He noted, “I believe that we do face a crisis in Western culture, and that it presents the greatest threat to civilization since the barbarians invaded Rome….. This time the invaders have come from within.  We have bred them in our families and trained them in our classrooms….. Most of them are attractive and pleasant; their ideas are persuasive and subtle.  Yet these men and women threaten our most cherished institutions and our very character as a people.”  Today, there is talk of our culture becoming “paganized.”  

God spoke through the prophet Joel concerning of a coming invasion  of locust plague as a destructive invasion, referring it to “a day of the Lord.” The date of Joel’s prophecy is uncertain, as well as the interpretation of the locusts. In this blog I would like to suggest the invasion of the locust as being compared to the “barbarians,” Colson talked about almost 30 years ago. 

 We are being warned to be aware of how we are relate to God in our day. Eugene Peterson said, “The powerful picture has kept God’s people alert to the eternal consequences of their decisions for many centuries.” “Such an event,” Peterson believes, “simply exposes the moral or spiritual reality that already exists but was hidden beneath an overlay of routine, self-preoccupation, and business as usual.” We can certainly see how the barbarians have been at work in our culture. 

The invasion of locusts calls the people not only to lament but also to repent.  The ultimate focus is not despair but on God who dwells among the people.  “Rather then simply being the reminder of a catastrophe, the prophecy also serves as a model.  Destruction, lamentation, and repentance leading to restoration are steps applicable to many periods of existence, both for a nation and for an individual.  The prophecy can well serve as a liturgy for life” (NIVZSB). 

It seems to me, thinking of Joel as a “liturgy for life,” would be helpful for men wanting to engage of culture that has been invaded by “barbarians.”  Joel cries out to the people , “Sound the trumpet in Jerusalem!  Raise the alarm on my holy mountain!  Let everyone tremble in fear because the day of the Lord is upon us.  It is a day of darkness and gloom, a day of thick clouds and deep blackness” (Joel 2:1-2).  This is an urgent wake up call for the people of God to seek God during a time of real spiritual darkness.  

Joel’s call is urgent.  “Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly” (Joel 2:15).   He urges them to pray, “Spare your people, O Lord.  Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations.  Why should they say among the people, ‘Where is their God'” (Joel 2:17).  

Joel urges repentance with these words, “Rend your heart and not your garments.  Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love.” (Joel 2:13). Then he adds, “he relents from sending calamity.  Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing” (Joel 2:14).  Awakening is left in God’s hands, while 0ur task is to sincerely and fervently cry out to the Lord.   

Joel then gives encouragement. “Then the Lord will be jealous for his land and take pity on his people” (Joel 2:18). Later God promises, “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten” (Joel 2:25) while pouring out his Spirit on all people (Joel 2:28).  

Most observers of our nation seem to agree that the near future looks uncertain, with an approaching storm on the horizon.  Our perspective  can easily be shaped by the many “influencers” who spread misinformation in hopes of persuading us to ultimately believe “the lie” about the future. There is a frantic search for solutions, with a lot of promises, but little hope. Personally, I need to submit to the Lordship of King Jesus, the ultimate influencer, with his “Good News,” helping me to form a biblical worldview, while I continually cry out for discernment.   Jesus gives us fair warning, “Watch out that no one deceives you” (Mark 13:5); “You must be on your guard” (Mark 13:9); “Be on guard! Be alert!” (Mark 13:33). 

The words of Matthew 24:12 have always been a sober reminder for me. “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands to the end will be saved.”  The implication in our day seem to point to  influencers opposed to King Jesus  becoming ever present in the media. A wholehearted devotion to Jesus will grow cold in the hearts of some who follow Jesus.  But remember, Jesus is the ultimate influencer.  He declares, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matt. 24:35).  “I assure you,” Jesus said, ‘Until heaven and earth disappear, even the smallest detail of God’s laws will remain until its purpose is achieved” (Matt. 5:18). 

The words of Ezekiel seem to fit our present impasse. “Because they lead my people astray, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash, therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall” (Ezk. 13:10).  The prophet warns all who trusted in the whitewashing, “I will tear down the wall you have covered with whitewash and will level it to the ground so that its foundation will be laid bare.  When it falls, you will be destroyed in it; and you will know that I am the Lord.  So, I will pour out my wrath against the wall and against those who covered it with whitewash.  I will say to you, ‘The wall is gone and so are those who whitewashed it, those prophets of Israel who prophesied to Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her when there was no peace, declares the Sovereign Lord'” (Ezk. 13:14). 

Two warnings from Ezekiel seem appropriate for our day.   The first is the message of “peace” when looking into the future.  We are told about a bright future with promises not to worry.  We are being asked to trust these promises. But Ezekiel warns against those who speaks about the future in such glowing terms.   We can easily be led astray.

The second warning is found in the image of “whitewashing” a wall.  Beware of those who simply “whitewash” present day problems.  We need to look at the foundations along with the tarnished building.  God warns us clearly – whatever has been whitewashed, will one day be destroyed.  The flimsy foundation will be exposed.   

Here are two implications as we deal with all the influencers of our day.  One, be careful in agreeing with the voices that speak confidently and persuasively about the future.  There is trouble ahead.  We need to heed the call to repentance and surrender.  Secondly, we must not put our confidence in those who “whitewash” our state of affairs.  When solutions are presented without regard to King Jesus, we need to be very careful in being influenced by “bad news” rather than the “Good News” of the kingdom .   

Bible sales rose 22% through October of this year compared to the same period last year.  This is from data released by Circana Bookscan. This surge in Bible sales, happened while the total U.S. print book sales was up only by 1 %.  Print Bible sales hit a five-year low of just under 8.9 million in 2020,  But sales began to tick upward again.  Sales surpassed 13.7 million in the first 10 months of this year.  

This increase in Bible sales has happened even as polls show a decline in religiosity across the country. The number of Americans who identified with a Christian religion hit a low of 68% last year,  according to Gallup.  A half a century ago, 87 adults in the U. S. identified as Christian, according the the polling of Gallup.  According to Pew Research, 28% of American adults are now religiously unaffiliated.

In the opinion of Bishop Robert Barron, bible sales is evidence of “a renewed search for meaning, purpose and value.” He points out the Bible in Western civilization has been, “the main source of meaning, purpose and value.”  He goes on to say, “I think people are turning back to the Bible in greater numbers” because they’re looking for meaning, purpose and value and they sense they will find it in the Bible.  Barron added that he hasn’t been surprised by rising rates of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation among young people.  “That’s what happens,” observes the Bishop, “when you say there’s no meaning or purpose.”

The Bible surge could be a natural consequence of a general feeling of anxiety in our world, since our foundations as a nation are based on Scriptural principles.  Could we be living in the days when  Amos prophesied,  “The day are coming,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “when I will send a famine through the land – not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord” (Amos 8:11).  He portrays people desperately searching for the word of the Lord. “Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, search for the word of the Lord but they will not find it” (Amos 8:12).  Jesus reminds us, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God'” (Matt. 4:4).  

As I look back over my life as a follower of Jesus, I am very thankful for God’s grace  experienced in my journey, enabling me to be a faithful workman who is not ashamed.  I identify with Paul’s exhortation to young Timothy, “Do your best to present yourself to God one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (II Tim. 2:15).   I have always believed in the efficiency of God’s Word to inspire and do the work of formation in the lives of those who hear and respond to Scripture.  “All scripture, breathed as it is by God, is useful for teaching, for rebuke, for improvement, for training in righteousness, so that people who belong to God may be complete, fitted out and ready for every good work” (II Tim. 3:16-17 Wright). 

Scripture can be seen as God’s “love letter.”  Our culture is desperate to hear some “Good News.”  God tells us that he loved us so much that He sent His only Son to die for us (John 3:16).  Scripture tells us of being made in God’s image.  He has created us uniquely to serve him (Eph. 2:10).  His love letter tells us all he has done for us,  while carrying us to the end (Is. 46:4).  He is preparing a homecoming for us (John 14:1-4).  

During this Christmas season, we are celebrating the Incarnation.  In Hebrews 1: 2-3, we read, “And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son.  God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe.  The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command.”  In our day of social chaos and ideological conflict, I am stuck by the fact of Jesus, “sustaining” everything by the word of his command.  Col. 1:17 declares, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”

Imagine this marvelous reality: The one who hold and sustains all of creation together, came into this world to live among us.  This is “Good News” in a world where we feel disconnected from reality. The disciples of Jesus were earnest in  wanting us to know their first hand account of the incarnation.  “From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in  – we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands.  The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes: we saw it happen! And now we’re telling you in most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The Infinite Life of God himself took shape before us” (I John 1:1-3 – Message).

There were no cameras to document the appearance of the Son of God.  The disciples preserved the incarnation  in “sober prose.”  “We heard him, we saw him, we even live close enough to touch him.  It actually happened!  We are witnesses of this fact! The incarnation took place right before our very eyes.”  Leanne Payne exhorts 21st century believers to have faith in “the incarnational reality.”

C. S. Lewis believed that the Incarnation is at the very center of God’s redemptive plan for the world: “The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation.  They say that God became Man.  Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this.”

Lewis goes on to maintain that without  the incarnation, there would be no Jesus story: “Just as every natural event is the manifestation at a particular place and moment of Nature’s total character, so every particular Christian miracle manifests at a particular place and moment the character and significance of the Incarnation.  There is no question in Christianity of arbitrary interferences just scattered about.  It relates not a series of disconnected raids on Nature but the steps of a strategically coherent invasion – an invasion which intends complete conquest and ‘occupation.'” 

I suggest that we use the word “occupation” in visualizing God invading “enemy” territory here on earth as the Son of God.  Let us celebrate anew the Christmas story as in invasion.  Breakpoint observes, “It’s a mystery…..but as humanity journeys further into this digital age, the idea of incarnation will only become increasingly strange.  This virtual world of high-speed internet, social media, smartphones, and the cloud is increasingly disembodied…….It is essential to dive as deeply as possible into all of the implications of the Incarnation, not just in making sense of Christmas, but also responding to the challenges of our disembodied age.”

Jesus became a man and lived among us.  When I feel detached and separated from the reality of my life, I can gaze on Jesus, knowing he has gone before me and faced all of my obstacles and struggles.  “We must look ahead, to Jesus.  He is the one who carved out the path for faith, and he’s the one who brought it to completion” (Heb. 12:2 – Wright).  

“The transition to Ambivalent World” is the title of an article in World Magazine by pastor Seth Troutt.  It got my attention.  As the teaching pastor at Ironwood Church in Arizona, I think this young pastor is alerting us to a shift in our culture.  “The vibes have shifted and young men in America are more open to the gospel than they have been for decades, and we mostly have podcast culture to thank for that.”  I for one, as an “old timer” do not listen to or pay much attention to the cultural influencers on the internet.  But the thought of an “Ambivalent World” got me wondering.

Troutt makes the argument that we are moving out of the negative world (2015 – present).   From his point of view, ” [A] Negative World is already disintegrating and giving rise to a fourth epoch: Ambivalent World.”  He sees this shift as fragmented since it is gendered and generational.  “While young men are breaking conservative and religious – even more religious than women for the first time ever – young women are increasingly identifying as liberal.  This means we aren’t returning to a Neutral World, but we’re wading into a split world filled with mixed emotions and divergent plausibility structures.”  

Troutt describes ambivalence as “the coexistence of conflicting feelings.”  “America today,” Troutt believes, “craves moral coherence and resists it, it seeks transcendence while reveling in immanence.  Troutt mentions “Reality Respecters (Joe Rogan) and Meaning Makers (Jordon Peterson).”  He goes on to observe, “Those who respect reality won’t stand for the erasure of biological facts, and the Meaning Makers won’t settle for nihilistic existential answers to questions about meaning.  They’ll have libertarian instincts as it relates to authority and traditional assumptions about gender.  They’ll be open but cautious about the Bible.”  It seems to Troutt that those most likely to covert are “fleeing reality denying epistemologies by yanking the wheel to the right.” 

Troutt give this caution.  “Churches must recognize that no matter what, their rhetoric will alienate some while resonating deeply with others, but churches that want to reach the next generation of young men should orient their communication and missional emphasis in such a way that the Reality Respecters and Meaning Maker (i.e., people who listen to Joe Rogan and Jordon Peterson) will feel understood and seen.”   We need to be paying attention.

Pastor Troutt has certainly made me more aware of shift taking place in our culture, especially among young men. As a elder I need to be open minded.  It very well could be that we are headed into a time of confusion and uncertainty, rather than the assumed negative stance to the “Good News.”  Here is what I must pay attention to in the days to come.

First, this shift is “gendered and generational.”  The voice of Scripture will be met with mixed responses.  Yet we have lived for years under a cloud of suspicion regarding God’s design for male and female.  Men can be exemplars of God’s intentions .

Secondly, pay attention to the influence of the “reality respecters” and  “meaning makers.”  Men are hungering for reality and meaning, in the midst of “coexistence of conflicting feelings.”

Thirdly, we live in a time when young men are struggling with identity (reality) and wanting to know the best way to journey through the confusion of our time.  Could it be that God is opening a door for the “Good News.” “See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut” (Rev. 3:8). 

Fourthly, while I am in the “fourth quarter” of my journey, I desire to be a voice crying in the wilderness, for men to come home to Jesus.