#196 Early Thanksgiving

Here in the U.S. Thanksgiving is coming. We're only three days away from celebrating. I really like Thanksgiving Day. I need reminders to be thankful, and as a pastor I want thankfulness to be a regular part of the lives of the people I minister with and to. Having a full day dedicated to thankfulness—at least in theory—is great. While having a Thursday (and for many people a Friday) off of work doesn't help me as much as some others, I still appreciate the long weekend and the break from the normal routine.

But I also wish Thanksgiving Day came at a different time of the year. Being a pastor, I think a lot about church celebrations and tend to be planning a little bit ahead. By the end of November my mind has switched over to Advent, thinking about getting ready to celebrate Christmas and making sure we don't lose sight of our hope for Jesus' return. While I think a special service dedicated to thanksgiving is fantastic, in some ways it feels like it makes the already busy season leading up to Christmas last even longer. I would be in favor of moving Thanksgiving just a week or two earlier in November. It would free me up to focus a little more on Thanksgiving, and allow me a chance to catch my breath before diving into Advent and Christmas. (I remember from school that Pres. FDR tried this at one point, but it didn't go over very well.) But I know it's not all about me. So I'll continue to be grateful for a day focused on giving thanks, but I ask that you cut me a little slack if I seem a bit scatterbrained this week. Part of my mind is already in Advent.

Grace and peace,

BMH

#195 Never-ending Battle

Every once in a while I talk about my love of Superman on this blog. As a dedicated Superman fan, I really enjoy reading Superman comics. And while I have old favorites that I read over and over, I also like to read stories I haven't read before. After all, who knows when I'm going to discover a new favorite? So a couple years back I subscribed to DC Universe, which gives me digital access to thousands of comics, meaning I have no shortage of new-to-me comics to explore.

Last year I decided to jump in with the January 1987 issues of Superman, Adventures of Superman, and Action Comics. That's not an arbitrary starting point. In late 1986 Superman comics were essentially restarted. None of the previous years of stories were going to be referred to anymore. Everything was new again, and three Superman-specific titles were being published each month. So that first day I read three stories dated January 1987. The next day that I read, I read the stories from February 1987, and so on and so forth. For a few months I only had two titles to read at a time, but the third quickly came back. Then in the middle of 1991 a fourth title, Superman: The Man of Steel, was added, so that a new Superman story was being published just about every week. (Now if you're quick with numbers you may realize that only gives 48 issues per year, while a year actually has just over 52 weeks. Never fear! In 1995, a quarterly title, Superman: The Man of Tomorrow, was added to cover those remaining weeks.) Some days I don't read comics at all, and some days I read other stories, so I don't do this every day. But slowly but surely I've marched through the months, and today I read the stories dated December 1997, which means I've read 11 years' worth of Superman comics.

Now one of the interesting things about this era of Superman comics is that everything was treated as one continuing story. Even though there were four different books with four different writer/artist teams, they all worked together under a single editor. Sometimes a tale would begin in one title and continue the next week in the next title. At other times the four different books would be a little more independent, but there would still be little references to what was going on in other books and subplots would run through all four. As a reader, it's really cool to see how different threads from different writers are pulled together to create these big, sweeping adventures. It's rewarding to see new storylines that pick up on ideas planted weeks and even months earlier. Running a huge story for years and years gives lots of space for characters to develop and for new ideas to be explored.

But it's also easy to see how hard it is to keep telling one massive story for years and years. After a few years one writer might leave and another come in with a fresh perspective. Or a new artist might breathe new life into familiar characters. But it's hard to constantly come up with new challenges for our hero. Twists can start to feel more like gimmicks. Old villains can feel stale while new villains can feel less original and exciting than what's come before. Sometimes there seems to be unnecessary drama just to fill issues. Don't get me wrong: I'm still really enjoying my reading, but I'd say I'm less engaged going into 1998 than I was for the stories from 1991 or 1993 or even 1995. It seems I'm not alone in thinking this. I've been told that all four Superman books turn over their writers and artists in late 1999/early 2000, and the connections between the books begin to weaken. Eventually it's time to try a different approach.

As much as I'm excited about the next era of Superman, I know I'll miss this one that I've been reading. There's something sort of real, something true-to-life about a story that goes on and on and on. Superman and his friends build memories like we do. It's fun to have a ongoing, developing relationship with the characters. Sure, some adventures are more exciting than others, but our lives aren't always fantastic or interesting either. There's always hope for the future. And unlike in life, with comics I can always go back and revisit the old days, too. So the never-ending battle continues.

Grace and peace,

BMH

#194 The Challenge of Growth

As a Christian, I am supposed to become like Christ Jesus. This is God's plan for His people; this is why we take the name "Christian." But when I look at my life I don't feel very much like Jesus. Part of that is normal. It's a long journey from being sinful by nature and inclined to hate God and my neighbor to being holy and loving and perfect like Jesus. But other times after I've slipped back into sinful habits or given into temptation or lost control of my desires yet again, I think that it's embarrasing how little progress I've made in years of following Christ.

I'd like to become more like Jesus. At the very least, I think I want to become more like Jesus. But so often I struggle to live that out. I read the stories of Jesus—who He was and what kinds of things He did. I know God's commands and instructions for life as His child. But sometimes my effort seems terribly lacking. I think about making changes in my life and fail to follow through because sin is so much easier and more familiar. The Christian life isn't supposed to be easy; Jesus compares discipleship to taking up one's cross and losing one's life. Again and again I chicken out. Here's an example: I think I spend too much time on my phone. I'd like to change. But I don't take any drastic steps. I make vague promises to myself about trying to cut back, but I only follow through for a day or two if at all. So many times I end up thinking more about games I can play or articles I can read than how I can follow my Savior and Lord. That makes it hard to grow.

And to make matters worse, I also sometimes have these weird and clearly wrong feelings of thinking that I don't really need to grow all that much. I struggle to realize where and how badly I fail to live up to Jesus' standards. Returning to my example, I know there's a line between rightfully enjoying God's good gifts through things like hobbies and ignoring God and others by wasting my time. But in my mind, I'm pretty sure I draw that line where I want it instead of where God would say it is. It's so easy to take good things like hobbies—things that can even be beneficial for my mental health—and value or focus on them too much, turning them into idols that devastate my spiritual health. It's so easy to absorb the standards of the world around me and convince myself that those standards are the same as Jesus' standards.

I want to become more like Jesus. I want to be willing to make sacrifices for Him. I really believe He's worth it. I know I'm going to need help. I need to do a better job of seeking accountability from one or two close fellow Christians. And even more importantly, I need Jesus' help. There's good news here—thank the Lord! Jesus gives all of His people the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is always at work to transform me and help me grow. So I need to work as hard as I can at discipleship, at growing in Christlikeness. And at the same time I also need to trust the process, that the Spirit is refining me and bringing my new self to life. I can work with the confidence that God will finish His work, that through His power I will become what He wants me to be. Time to renew my commitment.

Grace and peace,

BMH

#193 Personal Records

When I was a sophomore in high school, my pastor and his wife gave us high schoolers notebooks to use as prayer journals. They encouraged us to take a few minutes each day and jot some things down in the books. They gave a few suggestions about things we could include but left room for us to do things in a way that fit our unique personalities. So I tried prayer journaling and found that I liked it. After about six months I moved to a new notebook and started writing a short paragraph prayer each day.

Thirteen years later I still write my journal almost every night. I've filled quite a few college ruled notebooks over the years. Every once in a while I'll flip back through an old book or two. Sometimes I'm able to use the journals to figure out on which day a certain event happened or determine what we did for some holiday last year. But the journals are less a record of daily events and more a record of my own thoughts and feelings, my dreams and questions and struggles and joys since I was about 16 years old.

It can be interesting to have a window into my own psyche years ago. Sometimes I can see growth in myself, noticing things that I stressed about in the past that no longer seem like such a big deal. And sometimes the prayer journal serves as a sobering reminder of areas where I still need growth, where I still make the same mistakes or wrestle with the same worries. There are places where I laugh at my younger self, and there are places that make me wish I still was as excited or passionate about some issue as I seemed to be then.

But as much as these prayer journals are my personal records, I find that I'm not the one I learn the most about as I read them. Again and again I get the feeling that God is really the main character in this long-running narrative. God is the one I address each day, normally as "Heavenly Father" but sometimes with a variety of other names and titles. Looking back I see how God answered these prayers, how God blessed me with these memories, gave me these successes, and helped me through these struggles. God provides hope; God forms character; God overcomes worry; God inspires praise. In all sorts of situations, with feelings of gratitude, guilt, fear, satisfaction, sorrow, joy, and more, I feel myself being drawn by God over and over. And like the psalm-writers of long ago, I learn that God is loving and faithful, compassionate and gracious, just and true. God shows that He is good.

Grace and peace,

BMH

#192 Caped Wonder Stuns City

After three years there's a new Superbabes in town! I am pleased to present some exciting pictures from our weekend adventures. You may find your experience more enjoyable if you view these photos while listening to the theme from Superman: The Animated Series (top) or the 1940s Max Fleischer Superman theatrical shorts (bottom).

Now on to the adventures! After noticing danger with her incredible super-vision, Superbabes quickly transformed out of her secret identity:

She flew to the rescue:

Using her remarkable strength, Superbabes quickly subdued a giant dog that was rampaging through town:

She broke some chains:

She paused for a moment, cape fluttering in the wind, before she overheard more trouble with her amazing super-hearing and flew off to save the day:

She used her fantastic x-ray vision to save a trapped puppy:

Her extraordinary feats completed, Superbabes continued to build trust with the public by answering a few questions from WGBS news:

Finally, she returned home, where she utilized her sensational heat vision to cook her dinner:

Stay tuned for further adventures of Superbabes, champion of the oppressed, who fights a neverending battle for truth and justice!

Grace and peace,

BMH

#191 Redemption

When I was a student at Trinity Christian College (Go Trolls!), we met for chapel twice a week in the Grand Lobby of our chapel building. This space had huge windows looking out towards the library, and hanging in front of these windows was a six-piece stained-glass mural called "Creation Redeemed." Here's a couple pictures:

(This is backwards, but it gives you a better look at the details.)

A red band weaves across the panels with a quote from Colossians 1:17: "He is before all things and in Christ all things hold together." I must have spent hours looking at that stained glass during my years at Trinity. I think that this artwork has had a profound impact on my theology. Reformed Christians (like me) believe that Jesus' work of redemption centers on saving His people from sin and death through His death and resurrection. But we believe that's not all. Jesus' redeeming work touches every area of life and every corner of creation as He claims all things under His authority. Or, to quote Ephesians 1:7-10: "In [Christ] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ."

As Christians we don't have some sort of spiritual life that's distinct from the rest of our lives. God cares about every part of our lives because the whole world belongs to God. God's people live for Him and do His work in every human field. God's work is cosmic in the sense that it encompasses everything. But God's work is also very down-to-earth because He calls us to point to Him and represent Him in our work, our families and relationships, our politics, our finances, our community involvement, our growth and learning, our hobbies. We can see signs of God's work and be His instruments as He carries out His purposes in business and broadcasting, in medicine and mechanics, in technology and trades, in engineering and ecology, in psychology and social work, in athletics and agriculture, in literature and law. Our God is great and grand. He is working to drive sin and evil out of every part of our lives and our world. God's love and power cover all things, giving us purpose and hope. God triumphs. God saves. God reigns.

Grace and peace,

BMH

#190 Putting Power to Use

A few weeks ago Tess and I listened to the podcast Nice White Parents. In this podcast, Chana Joffe-Walt tells the story of a school district—and particularly one middle school in that district—in New York City. Over the years, there's a lot of talk about integration and working for equality, but often very little actual progress gets made. Things really happen when the people who have power—in this case, the "nice white parents"—want them to happen. By the end of the series, Joffe-Walt says she thinks that bringing equality in general seems to require those who have power to work for a system that no longer gives them advantages.

As I thought about this idea, my mind quickly went to Philippians 2. Here's verses 3-8: "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!"

What Jesus has done is very much what Joffe-Walt suggests. Jesus is God the Son. He has all power and authority. He deserves all glory and honor. We are weak humans, who again and again do wrong, sinning against Jesus. Jesus owes us nothing. But He humbles Himself. He empties Himself. He comes down from His heavenly throne and lives as a weak and limited human. He puts God's power to work to deliver people who were demon-possessed and heal people who were sick and restore people who were outcasts. Finally He humiliates Himsefl by dying on a cross. But through His death and resurrection, Jesus saves and forgives His sinful people. Jesus suffers so we who belong to Him may receive God's benefits. Jesus uses His power for us.

And Jesus calls His people, those of us who believe in Him, to imitate Him. If we have power (and sometimes we have more than we realize), we shouldn't cling to it for our own advantage. We should put our power to use for other's benefit. We should consider others' needs alongside and even before our own. That's not easy for me. I'm pretty sure that's not easy for any of us. It goes against human nature. But praise God, it fits exactly with God's nature. With God's Spirit's help, let's strive to be more like Jesus.

Grace and peace,

BMH