kingdom travelin'

I am working on a team blog for next week’s trip it is over at ee08 (see links).

I was working in the yard yesterday and needed to straighten out the mess that was our garden water hoses. So I knew what I needed to do. I drug them out into the side yard and spread their tangled ‘selves’ into the sunshine. You see, this warms and softens the plastic/rubber and makes it pliable. Thus not only are these hoses easier to untangle but the are easier to roll up into a better storage condition and ready for use. Kinda like me. I get all tangled up and need to just sit in the Sonshine and bask in Him through the Word and worship and prayer… this softens me so that I may hear the message and get myself straightened out. We all need to sit and bask in the warmth of the Son.

Saw it last night.

Here is my favorite quote from pretty early in the movie.

Lucy sees Aslan but no one else does. Peter (or was it Edmund?) says “Why couldn’t I see him?” Lucy replies: “Maybe you weren’t looking.”

How often when we are up against a tough spot do we fail to see Him because we are not looking for Him?

Second favorite line… Peter is being tempted by the White Witch (do I have that right?) and Edmund destroys the Ice cage she is in and she is gone, saving Peter who was about to succumb to the temptation. Peter looks in shock and then Edmund says: “I know, you had it all sorted out.” This refers to a fight in an early scene of the film in which Peter is in a fight with a bunch of school boys and Edmund comes in and helps. Peter, in pride says:  “I had it all sorted out.” How often do we think we have it all figured out in our own strength?

I recommend the movie, it is faithful enough to the book.

no, not the pizza… the little wood things with dots… they are lined up for this big week… grad week at Covenant! I finished all my grading, grade entering, and have almost all the dominoes lined up and tomorrow morning they will start falling (barring the unknown – but – you just deal with when it comes)… and then at noon Sat, the class of ’08 will be gone. whew… so why theology in the title? well, i thought about how we like to get our theological dominoes all lined up and our life dominoes lined up… when in reality life is not so easy to line up… its great to plan, but you know what? its not about the plan its about the moment… now… what am I doing to please Him now? ok, go line up your dominoes… oh, over on Lazo vonBlogger there is an interesting conversation taking place that started with a post he made last week… check it out.

… and comment!

I have not been blogging this week or last very much… because of this MOUNTAIN of personal theological papers that I have been reading… somewhere about 800 pages of grading… hence my absence from the blog-o-sphere and even my email inbox…

SO now, I’m almost finished reading and grading (and in some cases – writing long responses to comments and questions my students ask in their papers)… So I was just reading one who has echoed a theme that I have seen in more than just a couple of papers… that being this:

“I have not seen enough and I have not learned enough to know what I believe, I think I am not old enough to know what I believe as my beliefs are evolving.” (a compilation, not a direct quote)

So, thinkers, theological and otherwise… what is your response to this student??? I would like the various wise voices to answer this question please in the comment section…

Now,  comment away and lets see what you all say…

If you read lazo von blogger (see links) as i do, you know there has been an important election today in Serbia which many of us have been praying for… the election was going for a western-leaning (get us into the EU) candidate or a candidate which one blogger called an almost Nazi and the New York times warned would lead to the triumphant return of the infamous Seselj (on trial at the Hague) click here to read this very helpful article…   …so, we’ve been praying & von Lazo went to vote…

the votes are now cast and it would appear (though it might be to soon to really know) that the news is pretty good. Here is a just-posted report from the NYTimes …let’s keep praying that cool heads prevail… let there be peace in the Balkans.

In other prayer needs: an acquaintance in beruit sent out an email about the fighting there… it reminded me of the stories in Vukovar. Pray for Lebanon…

May the Prince of Peace return soon to this Fallen place, may we keep up his work in the meantime…

remember too, to pray that God’s people would be allowed into Burma to bring relief to the survivors from the cyclone