Not the Only One

Here is a link to an article entitled, "Loving Those Who Annoy You". I guess Jesus meant what He said - and yes, He's talking to me. I'm glad I'm not the only one who struggles with this.

http://www.themennonite.org/issues/13-10/articles/Loving_those_who_annoy_you

The four "F" words

Now that I have your attention, let me explain what I mean.

Suppose an alien were to visit Milford (or any Midwest town). Suppose this visitor were to spend a week observing the ordinary citizens of our towns. What do you think he would conclude about our average, everyday people? Would he be able to determine what is most important to us?

He would most likely notice the four "F's"- Football, Farming, Family and Faith.

My only question is - in what order of priority would he notice them?

The Pledge of Allegiance

I pledge allegiance to Jesus Christ, and to God's kingdom for which he died—one Spirit-led people the world over, indivisible, with love and justice for all.

The following article was written by Susan Mark Landis, Minister of Peace and Justice.

The Mennonite confession of faith states that first and foremost see the church as God's holy nation. "The only Christian nation is the church of Jesus Christ, made up of people from every tribe and nation, called to witness to God's glory."

Because Mennonites put their citizenship and allegiance to God far ahead of citizenship of any earthly nation, they have often been persecuted during times of war when they refuse to join the military. Because we know that God's church is made up of people from every nation, we believe that God blesses each nation and doesn't play favorites. This is why some Mennonites hesitate to sing "God bless America." They want God to bless all nations.

Mennonites began this denomination on the run from the government and many times through the years have found themselves opposed to their earthly government. Sometimes they have had good relations with their host country, but always there is an unease about how long this will last. Often the relationship sours over the issue of conscientious objection to war: when Mennonites weren't given this right, they often moved to another country.

Other parts of this section of the confession of faith talk about the respect due to our governing authorities and how important it is that we pray for them.

Because Mennonites give their primary allegiance to God, some choose to not say the Pledge of Allegiance. They claim the pledge does not allow them to first be citizens of God's kingdom. This issue has been so important to Mennonites over the years that many Mennonite communities built and staffed their own Mennonite schools, so their children did not have to say the pledge. Mennonites have often been persecuted in the United States for refusing to fly the flag.

One reason some Mennonites see the flag as a symbol of violence is because a primary purpose of a flag is to identify a nation during war. Back when the Revolutionary War was fought, the flag was created so that it could be carried into battle. As soon as territory is taken over during a war, the nation's flag is raised over it. Our national anthem was a poem written during a battle, glorifying war. That's the reason many Mennonites don't sing it.

Patriotism means different things to different people, but feelings often run deep and passionate on this topic. Mennonites have widely divergent views usually influenced by their life experiences. The main points in this type of discussion are:

• focus as much as you can on the underlying personal relationship you have with each other as well as on the issue.
• Take time to hear about the experiences which have brought people to their present attitudes.
• Reflect on both the good and the bad of the necessity of being a citizen of an earthly kingdom.
• Read "Agreeing and Disagreeing in Love" for a strong foundation to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace during these emotional times.
• For further reading, check out Mennonites and Allegiance, The American Flag, and I Pledge Allegiance to Jesus.
  
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Are You Full of It?

I've been told that I am "full of it" many times, but what exactly am I full of? Great question to ask ourselves. The apostle Paul writes in Ephesians that we are to be "filled with the Spirit."

What are you filled with? Anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, fear, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, ego?

OR filled with: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, grace, mercy, hope, humility, generosity, compassion, faith, self-control? It's your choice.

Ever feel like you missed the boat?

How Dinosaurs became extinct...

Beside the Night Stand

These are list of the books I am currently reading.

Actually I just finished this one entitled, "Christian America and the Kingdom of God" by Richard Hughes. The premise is that too often America views itself as being God's, holy, chosen nation. With this type of mentality, it is easy to take an Old Testament approach to how we treat all other countries. Hughes' question is, "How does this square up with Jesus' Sermon on the Mount where he says we are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute you?".

Many fundamentalists feel that it is the their job to bring all other peoples and countries into line with "American" thinking. The problem with this mentality is that the United States is NOT the kingdom of God (nor is any other country for that matter). Only the Church is God's holy, chosen nation. It's an easy read on a hard topic.


"The People's History of the United States:1492 - Present" by Howard Zinn. I am typically not a huge fan of history, but I have to say I'm getting into this book. It starts with the horrendous acts that were done to the Native Americans when the Spaniards and Europeans came over to settle. Diaries written at the time of Christopher Columbus detail the sad atrocities that were done to the original inhabitants of this land. It is a 700 page book. I am only about a third of the way through.

Along with Zinn' s book, I am reading "Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong" by James Loewen. Loewen reviewed 18 of the most commonly used high school textbooks and found that most (if not all) leave out important facts about the founding of this country, slavery and who actually owned slaves (this will surprise you), racism, the Civil War, Lincoln and his struggle with emancipation, as well as other issues in U.S. History. Loewen emphasizes the "dark side" of U.S. history, to help balance out the part that's missing from our education system. This is a real eye-opening book.

The final book I am reading is called, "Jesus and Empire: The Kingdom of God and the New World Disorder" by Richard Horsley. This gives an account of what Rome was like in the days of Jesus. Everything revolved around the empire and its Caesars. Statutes and coins paid homage to the great political and military leaders. In fact, they went so far as to call them "savior" (a term given to Jesus also). I am 1/4 of the way through this but my guess is that Horsley is going to make parallels between the social, political, and cultural parallels of imperial Rome with those of the empirical United States today. If you wish to be challenged intellectually and spiritually, this is a good book to read. If you wish to be disturbed and forced to think, read this book.

How to Respond?

Change is happening all around us. The culture seems to be changing at a rapid pace. Facebook, Twitter, the Droid, Kindle, iPods, iPhones, iPads...I can't keep up!

Don't get me wrong. I like technology. I loved it when the first arcade game of Space Invaders came out in the late 70's. Now you can bring the arcade home with your PlayStation, Game Cube, Wii, or Xbox. I've tried to keep up with audio-visual technology. I adjusted from LP's to 8-tracks to cassettes to CD's, and now it's mp3's. I've also gone from VHS tape to DVD to BluRay disc.

I am a fan of innovation but oftentimes I get to a point where I am comfortable with what I know and so I don't bother to try and keep up. I say it's "good enough" and I stay the same. This is a mentality that many churches have. We find false security in always staying the same. We bow to the altar of tradition and think we are doing things the way God wants. We think we are doing things right. But my question is - "Are we doing the right things?"

Part of our problem is that we assume that God stopped creating after the sixth day. The Bible says that He "rested", not that He quit being creative or innovative. God is constantly doing new things. Our mindset should be to find out where God is at work and join Him, but too often we get it backwards. We want God to bless what we are doing and it might not even be in His will.

The church is not called to maintain the status quo. Think about it - if we are, Jesus would not have said things like: "You have heard it said...but I say unto you..." (Matthew 5:38-48). Jesus also said in Luke 5:37, that no one pours new wine into old wineskins because they will break.

The definition of insanity is to always keep doing the same things you've always done and expect different results. As the culture around us continues to change, Christians should be in prayer to see where the spirit of God might be hovering and wanting us to join Him.