Archive for the ‘Study’ Category

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You Can Toss It Down or You Can Savor It

September 29, 2015

This may be a strange post for a spiritual formation blog. But that hasn’t stopped me before.

I’m writing this on a United flight from Sacramento to Dulles on my way home from a business / pleasure trip to California. For three days I discussed industrial software technology and trends. Then for another three days, I learned about how to savor wine during some winery tours in Napa Valley.

What applies to wine, applies more broadly to about anything you do. Let’s think about it.

When it comes to a glass of wine, you have two options.

You can just toss it down and go for another on your way toward changing your mood.

You can savor the wine. Pour some out into a glass. Smell it. Use some imagination. What smells do you detect? Maybe a peppery smell of a Cabernet? Maybe the fruity smell of a white. Sip it. Check the flavors. Match it with appropriate chocolate or cheese. Check how the flavors of the wine and food enhance each other.

I have long noticed the same differences watching people eat. Some people put their face close to the plate and just shovel it in. Don’t ask them about taste.

Over time, I have discovered taste. Flavor. Take your time and savor the flavors. Find the unique spices and herbs and the qualitites of texture.

I’m thinking the same about Bible study. You can read quickly so that you get your Bible-in-a-year done. Or pick up a few superficial quotes that you can use in an argument.

Or you can read. Read again. Put the book down and think. Visualize the scene. Meditate and ask God for enlightenment over the passage. Read the passage that comes before again in order to gain context.

Swirl the thoughts. Breathe in the spirit. Savor the tastes. Unless you’re at Seminary or grad school where quantity and speed is more important than understanding, take you time. Spend time. I’ve been about eight months in Romans. No problem. I’m not going for a degree. I’m aiming for wisdom.

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Drinking From The Source

August 18, 2015

Our children and family pastor had an 8-year-old ask the people in church Sunday morning a series of questions. The questions related to the Christmas story. All came directly from the Gospel record. 

Most people missed at least half of the questions. Almost all missed these:

  • How many wise men?
  • Were wise men at the manger scene?
  • Did Mary ride a donkey to Bethlehem from Nazareth?
  • Is the story in all four gospels?

People get confused all the time. I see it ofen relating to the Bible. I see it other places.

You see a picture someone painted of a scene. That becomes real in your mind even though it was an artist’s interpetation with no thought of being literally true.

The other day in a study group a question came up. I suggested, “Read 1 Corinthians 5.” Someone else said, “Did you hear the pastor’s sermon on that? Go listen to that.” I repeated, “Read 1 Corinthians 5.”

What is so hard about going to the source material.

In college I got so frustrated. We read about Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Euclid, Newton, and so on. We didn’t read Plato, et. al.

If you are discussing things related to Scripture, then read the Scripture. You can say subsequently, so and so said this about the passage. Then everyone can discuss. But you have as close to the source material as you can get.

It is so important to get the facts before we go off constructing wild hypotheses represented as fact when actually it is unfounded conjecture.

Wow, wouldn’t that raise our discourse above the shouting matches our politicians love!

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When Studying Practice Discernment Using Sources

May 20, 2015

Look at this, she said bringing out a printed page from a Website. Look at what they say.

“The NIV [New International Version] says this.”

This Website says this.

I’m not sure when they removed rigorous study from university undergraduate courses. These days, I often think many graduate courses of study are the same.

Not that I was a great scholar back then, but I have met and hired people for many years who will tell me, “I took a course on that in college, so I am an expert.”

My comeback in 1982 is what I would still say today, “You took an undergraduate course. You barely have an introduction to that field.”

More and more I’m coming across people with seminary degrees, M.Div., who seem to have only a superficial understanding of the Bible. Take a look at the curriculum of many seminaries today. What in the world are they really learning? Are they getting a proper foundation for a strong faith with ability to teach. (Not to mention my real pet peeve–no leadership training and experience. They send their students into churches to be leaeders when they have no clue. And those of us in the congregateions are much the poorer for it.)

But with Bible studies popping up like dandelions in the spring, where are the teachers with a background of serious study?

Oh, let us just Google it.

Google helps us find stuff that you could never find. When I was a graduate assistant, my professor had me researching for a chapter of a book he was writing. I lived in the library for a while. Found little.

But….

Google is only discerning when it brings you ads that the algorithms suggest would be interesting to you. Especially in Bible study, it will give you what it finds.

If you are using that for your education, you could easily be led astray. Theories and half-truths abound like an exploding rabbit popoulation. 

Picking your best guides should not be left to chance. Don’t believe everything you read. As I writer, I understand the irony.

By the way, the footnotes in your study Bible–they are not part of the Bible. They are the words of a scholar. Mostly they are of great use, but still consider the comments carefully.  And paraphrases. Beware.

Take care. Use your God-given brain to think about things before just clinging to a theory.

Again I warn, be careful and think thoroughly about what you read.

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Reading The Bible From Different Perspectives

May 4, 2015

We were walking along the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus. So many events had happened over the past few days, that we just couldn’t get our heads around them. What did they all mean?

Was Jesus really the Messiah? It certainly didn’t appear so. He didn’t fulfill any of the Scriptures that we had been taught about the Messiah. Yet, after he was cruelly beaten by Pilate, he was killed by crucifixion. Stranger still, his tomb was mysteriously empty.

We talked and talked, but we just could not figure it out.

Then a stranger joined us. He asked what we were discussing as we travelled. We asked where in the heck had he been the past few days. Hidden under a stone?

Then the stranger, obviously a man of great learning, explained to us the very scriptures we were trying to understand. It was so obvious when he explained them. When we stopped for the evening, we shared a meal. When he broke the bread and offered a blessing, then we recognized him.

Often when I read the stories in the Bible, I like to read as if I were there. Just like reading a good novel. You become part of the action. I invite those in my classes to do the same.

There is a man I read fived days a week, Jon Swanson at 300 Words a Day, who has a doctorate in communications. I didn’t even know you could get a doctorate in that. Even more, he can actually communicate!

He likes to share the Bible as story. His new video series on YouTube, The Bible for my Friends, is worth watching.  He is working on 52 ways to read the Blble. Some of these are sure to resonate. And maybe even lead to a deeper understanding of God.

Let go. Read with imagination instead of intellect or emotion for a refreshing change.

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Why Priests

July 21, 2014

The first time I took a deep dive into the book of Hebrews, I went about half-way in. Then something just didn’t sound right. So, I went back to the beginning and pulled out a copy of the book (or essay or whatever, it’s definitely not a letter) and read it along with the author of the exegesis. I thought, what in the world is this guy reading? Closed the book and never read another work by Hal Lindsey–one of the major proponents of knowledge of the secrets of the end of time.

I wrote a post about Why Priests? by Garry Wills a few weeks ago. This is a much better exegesis of the Hebrews. It is researched, scholarly yet readable (we’ll see if my wife makes it through–the test for readability) and well thought through. Not the least of which is that Wills seems to be Augustinian at the core–as am I.

Read this book if you are drawn to deeper understanding of the Bible. I like these works that stretch my thinking and increase my knowledge.

The thing is, I also have never considered priests or ministers as some sort of super-humans with some mysterious power. Every time I considered going to a seminary, I would think through and consider the curriculum and conclude that for the most part a seminary degree is just a ticket into a club. I’m with the the wit (was it Groucho Marx or Mark Twain?) who said “I wouldn’t join any club that would have me as a member.”

I think the model of church that is best for today combines the best of the Acts 2 house churches (small groups) with a combined larger church where you can hear the best of teachers and collectively provide service with much greater impact than a few people working alone. See Bill Hybels, Andy Stanley, Rick Warren and many others.

Find your group or groups. Search out good teaching. Study, pray, serve. Follow Jesus.

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Tricks Our Minds Play on Us

April 2, 2014

Why is it that we hold some beliefs so firmly in the face of overwhelming evidence against them?

I notice this in religion, where people are convinced of the truth of a passage in the Bible, except that there is no such passage. Take a look at political discourse, that is, if you can with a measure of objectivity. Mostly it’s just a parroting of a mixture of opinion and fact–usually with precious little fact–held firmly as fact.

Pondering this question years ago led me to study brain science–at least from the standpoint of an educated layperson. My favorite works were by Antonio D’Amasio.

The current book open on my Kindle reader is Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova. One chapter on deductive reasoning really delves into findings on how our brain tricks us. It is well known in many circles that the mind will believe anything we tell it to believe. Well, it can also tell us we saw something that we never saw with our eyes. It is now legendary in legal trial circles that the worst evidence is eyewitness evidence.

I try to remember this research often as I trust my memory. Sometimes the memory is good. I interview many people for my day job. I’ve only had one instance where I misquoted the intent of my source in the past 16 years.

The secret is focus, paying close attention to the speaker, concentrating. The conversation comes back with only a few notes for important points.

There are things that happen where you didn’t have such focus. You thought you read it, when maybe you only heard it somewhere. You thought you saw the incident, when maybe your attention was elsewhere and only diverted over to the incident and then returned.

This means that we need to intentionally sharpen our awareness of what is around us. Be mindful of what we see, do and read. Go back and read again. Question our assumptions and test them.

Live with intention, not as if in a dream.

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How Did You Get Where You Are

March 31, 2014

Are you doing now what you thought you’d be when you started out?

I loved science as a kid. Electronics, especially, fascinated me. I learned about circuits. I learned math that was way beyond what they were teaching in school. Enough so, that I always tested well in standardized tests on math. I learned a lot of science that is still with me.

This was all outside of school. I think I learned some things in school, but to this day most of my education is outside the walls of Academe. (Note to educators 😉

Writing always had an attraction to me. So, after working in engineering-related jobs for many years, I started writing (which requires thinking, by the way).

Jesus, John, Peter and the rest of the original group must have been somewhat similar. They were very smart, and they knew a lot. But several times in the Gospel accounts they are referred to as “uneducated.” I think that is because they were educated outside of the “Ivy League” of the day. They weren’t part of the establishment.

As an aside, I looked into studying in a seminary a long time ago. It wasn’t attractive. The course of study was weird to me. And, I viewed it as just an apprenticeship toward getting into the “club” so to speak–being an official pastor. Not an attractive option to me then–or now.

Take a look at John, whose Gospel I’m studying right now. He wrote in Greek. His logic is somewhat complex. I think the same person wrote the Gospel, the three letters and the Revelation because the logic is the same and the vision is consistent–although you can see growth.

John probably came from a wealthy family. Learned the family trade of fishing. Became an intimate disciple of Jesus. Became a leader of the early movement. Probably Peter being the organizer and John being the intellectual visionary. Then he moved to Ephesus and taught a community. Was exiled to an island. And became a writer.

I think what John did was a mixture of intentionally learning and following the proddings of God. I think that’s how I’ve wound up where I am.

So, how did you get where you are? There is, of course, still time to follow the little whispers of God suggesting things you should be learning and doing.

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Learn By Copying First, Then Creating

December 26, 2013

I’ve had several days with the grandkids over the past five weeks. They are old enough, especially the oldest who is six, to start playing with a little more sophisticated toys.

Have you noticed how some of the “creative” toy companies have come out with more structured toys? Specifically Legos. You used to get a box with maybe a couple of examples on the lid and then you just let the kid start creating. Now, there are specific toys. I’ve been helping Wyatt build Nijagas (or something like that–I’m afraid that I’ve lost touch with kid culture).

Originally I’d have had a negative attitude about such structure. But I’ve discovered that he’s learning some tremendous lessons that are appropriate to his age.

He is learning to follow instructions on how to build something. In so doing, he’s learning about the different types of blocks and what they do. As he masters these, then, if he is so inclined, he’ll move on to creating his own masterpieces.

Every artist I’ve ever studied has begun by mastering all the techniques that came before. The great ones then extend the practice by adding their own insights and techniques.

Leaders study other leaders. Practice what they learned. Study some more, and become eventually great leaders.

Even spiritually. I think a lot about the very short scene we have about Jesus’ life where he was 12 (which was “older” than today’s 12 in developed nations) and studying with the greatest teachers at the time in his culture. Even Jesus didn’t just drop in a spiritual master. He was human, too, and had to learn. He was just predisposed to focus on the right questions.

That is the value of learning and practicing the traditional spiritual practices. You practice, and practice, and practicce.

Almost no one is born a master craftsman or spiritual guru. But we can all become a master at something. Just by spending 15 minutes first thing in the morning developing the practice of study and meditation will, over a lifetime, bring you to spiritual maturity.

Start by learning the basics and copying someone or something good. Then add to the practice and become a master–even a spiritual master.

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His Heart Is Bigger Than His Brain

December 4, 2013

“Forgive him. His heart is bigger than his brain.”

That was supposed to be a funny put-down of cousin Eddie by Clark Griswald in Christmas Vacation. It implies that he wasn’t the brightest bulb in the candleabra, so to speak.

The phrase sort of stuck in my brain, so I meditated on it for a while.

It occurred to me that this has practical implications. I am by nature an analytical person. I tend to think about things a lot. My university education reinforced that tendency. But as I got deeper into spiritual practices and I discovered that other people really do exist, my attitude toward the message in the Bible changed.

John Ortberg captured the idea with a sentence in a message he gave a few years ago–“You see, Jesus is most interested in the condition of your heart.”

Paul reinforced that a few times in his writing where he would tell his story about being an intellectual and then having a life-changing transformation.

Jesus and Paul were not anti-intellectual (the “brain” part). Indeed, they were both scholars. I think that there is nothing in the New Testament that does not emphasize the condition of your heart. Perhaps summed up succinctly by James who emphsized that if your heart is right, then your actions will be right. One follows the other as day follows night.

Exercising our brain is good. We need to study in order to have background and depth for faith.

Our hearts need to be bigger than our brains. It is not enough to study and gain knowledge. We need to have our hearts fixed on Jesus and let our actions flow from that. Indeed, our study will also flow from that posture.

We develop our brains through study and thinking. We develop our hearts through trusting Jesus as our guide and saviour, living a life of putting others ahead of ourselves, practicing prayer, meditation, service, worship, celebration.

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God is the Same Forever

November 11, 2013

I have been reading Genesis and Exodus with a small group this year. It’s easy to see how misconceptions arose from partial readings of the text over the years. But when you read the entire text and digest it, there are many interesting things to absorb.

Abraham and his progeny were not the only followers of the One God throughout that time. Abraham met others occasionally—note Melchizedek for one. So did Moses. It was just that one tribe was singled out to be the torchbearers for God. Let’s just say there were mixed results.

God was far more merciful than some teachings would suggest. God was also then, as now, intolerant of sin and worshiping of objects as gods.

God’s message to the people through his prophets changed somewhat as the social and cultural circumstances changed. When Moses was trying to forge a people out of the group of former slaves, God was concerned about keeping them pure—uncorrupted by those surrounding peoples who worshiped a number of other Gods. Therefore, he ordered them not to conquer a city and intermingle with the people. He rightly perceived that especially the women would bring their gods into the households of the Hebrews and corrupt the worship of God.

By the time of the prophets after David and throughout the time of the Babylonians and Persians, the world was becoming multi-cultural and the Hebrews had to learn to live in a more hostile world where they were not a dominant force in the land. By the time of Jesus and the early church, it was accepted that the world was multicultural and that Christians needed instruction on how to live in such a world while maintaining their moral practices.

I guess I’m thinking about this because I was brought up on a theology that the “Gods” of Old Testament and New Testament are different. That, of course, is an untenable position. God is God—never changing since before the universe was created and after the universe has passed away.

God does speak to people in the context of their environment. Our societies have become ever more complex. Population keeps growing. We travel and mingle with people from a variety of cultures and backgrounds more today than ever before. God’s message to his prophets necessarily changes to give answers to different questions.

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