Rick Nier...Woo!

I know that I just recently posted about Mary pouring perfume on the feet of Jesus. You can find it in Mark 14. I want you to think about this story again. Even if you have heard the story before. But imagine, for a moment, in modern day settings, that you are invited to an upscale dinner party. It’s the kind where no one would dream of using a spork. There’s 3 forks, 2 spoons, a knife and some of those after-dinner mints that nobody eats unless you are at one of these parties. You’ve had the formal invite on your fridge for weeks. You meticulously plan out what you will wear. You take extra time to iron your clothes and wear the special perfume or cologne. Maybe you even Googled dinner party manners, just to be sure. You arrive and everyone is decked out. Waiters are in tuxes and everyone is being careful not to snort when a joke is told. And the guest of honor? Everyone is watching him, even when they are part of another conversation. You can see the host making sure all the deta...

Then I saw "a new heaven and a new earth," for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  ~Revelation 21:1-3 This is a classic few verses from the last book of the Bible. It is very inspiring and can be very useful, like towards the end of an emotional movie when the hero has been beaten down beyond normal human comprehension, only to come back and achieve victory, even if it is only a partial and emotional victory achieved by getting the attention of a pretty girl. But I digress. These verses are best heard, read aloud by someone with a voice like that guy from the Allstate  commer...

Hmmm, have you ever thought about something, had lots of conversations about said topic, then got really excited when someone finally decided to write a book about it? Yeah, me too. The aforementioned topic would be all the years of Jesus' life not talked about in the Bible. Let's face it, we get a birth story full of animals and characters. Then we get one snippet of the childhood of Jesus at age 12. Then, WHAM!, it's Jesus taking down demons and loving on the sinners. For anyone with an imagination, it leaves us wondering what it was like for Jesus, and His family, when He was a child or young adult. Was He always correcting His parents? Did His siblings ever try to get Him in trouble? Did Mary ever lose her patience and use His name in an incorrect manner? If so, was she breaking a commandment? So I was excited to recieve a copy of The Silent Years by Alan W.C. Green. The story was told from the perspective of an Uncle He may have had, but largely fictional ch...

The other night my family went to the Y. Jacie wanted to go rock climbing and I said I would climb with her. You have to know, internally, my goal was not to let a 10-year old girl show me up. My competitive side is well known by my kids, because as I was encouraging Jacie on one of her climbs, Luke (8-years old) asked me why I was encouraging the competition. I reminded him that we were on the same team, so it was good to work together. And we did. Jacie reached the top of two different climbs.  Perhaps you're wondering how I did. I thought about telling you. I almost put it down. But then I realized that would make this about me. Whether or not I reached the top does not change who I am. What you think about whether or not I reached the top does not change who I am either. I could tell you. But if all we're doing is comparing, which I started to do, it will get us nowhere.  Nowhere. Let it be known that the family had a good time, so the mission was accomplished. A lot...

I think that we love the New Year because we have a romanticized view of what happens when the clock rolls over. We seem to think that we'll make some resolutions and everything will be rainbows and kittens. But then we wake up and realize that old acquaintances are not all forgotten. Relationships that stunk the year before will still stink, unless, of course, we decide to do something about it. Consequences carry over, without caring to look at the calendar. I think this leaves us with a despair that leaves us not wanting to try. Why bother, right? The New Year doesn't actually change anything. If we look closely, we'll realize that the New Year is really just a new day. Sounds kind of discouraging, doesn't it? Well, hold on, because I am actually a big believer in a good night's sleep and a new day making a world of difference. In fact, I could be chief among those accused of romanticizing the New Year, a new month and even just one new day. But for all t...

I have spent way too much time considering what other people think about me. From the way I dress, to the way I talk, I've obsessed over too many details of me. Why? Because I've concerned myself with what others think. Earlier this week, I talked about a guy named Simon the Leper who didn't seem too concerned with his identity. His name is only mentioned in passing, because it will be a woman who steals the scene, although it's not really about her either. Mark 14 tells us of a woman who comes in and anoints Jesus' feet with an expensive perfume. From the gospel of John, we know that it's Mary, the sister of Martha. Forget what you know about the argument the disciples have with Jesus about this being a wise or foolish use of money and resources. Forget that this seemed to spur Judas into betraying Jesus. You can even forget about the imagery of this being preparation for Jesus' burial, although it is a beautiful picture. What strikes me is the brave...

I recently read Jeff Fulmer's novel Hometown Prophet . The story follows Peter, a classic story of a man who lives with his mom and receives visions from God. Wait, that's not classic? Before you scoff, we don't really know where some of the Old Testament prophets lived. Maybe that was why Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet. You might cry to if you still lived with your mom. Despite it's un-classical nature, Jeff does a good job of thinking through the implications of receiving, and then delivering, messages from God. Especially when you live with your mom and back in your hometown, where everyone knows your flaws. Aside from the obvious supernatural aspect, I think this story flowed very realistically through the consequences to our hero, Peter. Good book. Good story. Good characters, despite their flaws. I do have one minor soapbox of mine to get on. There were a handful of swear words used. I know, I know, there is a huge literary debate about what is...