Liminality

I find moments of reflection to be vital for the decisions and directions we choose for the future. In 2008, I have come across some significant discoveries. This is my Top Five Countdown. 5) Life is daily…what you do with your days is how your years turn out Your days make up your years. The way I choose to live today is the way I will be next year and later on in my life if I don’t change. This step inevitably makes me reflect on my life. What am I doing with my days? What would I rather be doing? If I am here this year, where do I want to be next year and what steps do I need to take to get there? Personally, I never want to stop growing, learning, discovering, adapting, etc. In order for that to happen, I must realize that the choices I make today, affect who I am later in life. 4) Working reaches goals…Listening to your life (and acting upon what you hear) makes dreams come true. I go on silent retreats. I love them. The reason why I do is because I have b...

What you can’t see in yourself, you will never be able to see in others. If you don’t recognize your strengths, how will you see it in people around you? If you don’t see yourself as God’s Beloved, how will you communicate that to others? You help usher in the Kingdom and people listen for God’s word through you. If you don’t claim your identity daily in Christ, how can people walk with you? What you don’t see in yourself, you will never be able to see in others. Your true identity is as a child of God. This is the identity you have to accept. Once you have claimed it and settled in it, you can live in a world that gives you much joy as well as pain. The temptation to disconnect from that deep place in you where God dwells and to let yourself be drowned in the praise or blame of the world always remains. Gradually, though, you will begin feeling more connected and become more fully who you truly are – a child of God. There lies your real freedom. [1] We must c...

In the Gospel of John, Jesus sums up pretty much everything by saying, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). He said it at the supper that he knew was the last one he’d have a mouth to eat. Happiness turns up more or less where you’d expect it to –a good marriage, a rewarding job, a pleasant vacation. Joy, on the other hand, is as notoriously unpredictable as the one who bequeaths it. [1] There is difference between joy and happiness. Happiness is quick and momentary. Something can make you happy but a few seconds later the feeling is gone. Joy is more than this. Regardless, both joy and happiness seem to be tied to the choices we make in life. You are constantly facing choices. The question is whether you choose for God or for your own doubting self. You know what the right choice is, but your emotions, passions, and feelings keep suggesting you choose the self-rejecting way. Self-rejectio...

For some people holiday seasons can be tough. They are the times when people express their deepest love and affection for the ones she/he considers deserving. This inevitably forces people to remember the ones that do not get to share in the moment. We are compelled to reflect on friends and family that are no longer with us; and for those of us who are single, it forces us to realize that we don’t have someone to share the holiday season with. Either way, death and heartbreak are real reasons that keep people from experiencing great joy during the holiday season. I know for me, I experience loneliness during this time of year because I’m still single. When I go home, I go home to a family that is entirely married except me. Whether I want to think about this or not, I’m forced to answer the question: “So, when you planning on getting married?” My response has recently been one with quite a lot of sarcasm, “Oh! That’s right. I’m still single.” Regardless, if we a...

Friday afternoon I was sitting in Starbucks writing a paper and reviewing my sermon for Sunday. There was a young man, no doubt in college, sitting in a sofa chair straight across the room. Busy checking Facebook and texting his friends every other second, I could not help but notice him. As I was watching I saw this older gentleman constantly circling him and looking over his shoulder. I stopped what I was doing to watch this moment unfold. The boy took his ibuds out of his ear and asked the older gentleman if he could help him with anything. (This was an incredibly awkward moment for me and everyone else in ear distance) The older gentleman helped himself to the adjacent seat and said, “Son, you look lost. Do you go to church anywhere?” “No.” The young man said concernedly. “You’re not going to tell me why I should are you?” The older gentleman replied, “If you will let me I would love to tell you about my church. We are the new Community Church in town and have been...

Rob Bell in his “Everything Spiritual” tour said there is no word in Hebrew that means spirituality. The reason for this was because spirituality was not seen as separate or distinct from ordinary life. Every part of life, decision-making and events were seen as spiritual. Jesus never once asks his disciples how their spiritual life was being fed or how they felt their spiritual life was going. It would not have made sense to ask these questions. To live is to be spiritual. To be human is to carry a spirituality that connects your earthly self to a heavenly realm. I believe it is advantageous for all of us to carry this same understanding of the divine. Whether you define it as Spirituality, Christ, God, Holy Spirit, divine intervention or pure luck, it is evident to me that something bigger than this life is alive and moving in this world. I call this God. For some of us I fear we make distinctions between life and spirituality. Life is what we do from Monday ...

McAfee School of Theology on its founding day planted an acorn outside of its main theology building. This was to symbolize the spiritual growth the students at McAfee were to endure. An acorn is planted into the ground and when nurtured properly grows into a mighty oak tree. What seems to start as such humble and meek beginnings is actually the start of something much bigger. When a seminary student enrolls then it is presumed that they are like the acorn. They have a ton of potential and need a place to plant their roots. When nurtured, they grow into a mighty oak that can bear the joys and frustrations of life, ministry and Christianity. But is that all? Does the acorn symbolize anything else? I think it does. I think it symbolizes how our faith grows. Our Church History professor, Dr. Loyd Allen, lectures on two different types of growth: inorganic and organic. Inorganic growth is when something grows more of the same. Money in the bank when drawing intere...

This past week the New York Times wrote: From far away, this is how it looks: There is a country out there where tens of millions of white Christians, voting freely, select as their leader a black man of modest origin, the son of a Muslim. There is a place on Earth — call it America — where such a thing happens. (NYTimes) I have to say I am completely proud to be an American. Forty years ago America fought for the rights of all people. The fact that color and race did not deter American’s from voting for the candidate of her/his choosing is commendable. For those who did not vote democratically and decided to stick with the Republican Party I congratulate you as well for not being deterred for voting for a woman vice president. These are interesting times in America . People are not being judged by the color of their skin or the sex of their humanity but by the content of her/his character (King). This is a step in the right direction. Ladies and Gentlemen: ...

Not all time in life is equal. Moments occur that carry significant meaning while others pass by without any thoughtful reflection. Times that seem to get remembered are times that are shared with others. We carry with us memories of first dates, vacations, parties, recitals, ball games, birthdays, movies and so much more. The gift is not the experience but who we experienced it with. For example, I will never forget eating fondue. The experience of sitting in a dark corner booth with overpriced, undercooked food that I was supposed to cook myself in boiling bowls of water, cheese and chocolate sitting before me was supposed to be the novelty of the experience. Granted the food was good but that was not what sustained this pleasant memory. The memory was with the company. I shared myself with another person. Together we attempted to not overcook the food to the point it dropped off our metal tongs and into the boiling water, cheese and chocolate. We shared stories ...

This past Sunday my church celebrated its 170th Anniversary. That’s right, we were established in 1838. The service was wonderful. We had two members Mr. Curtis and Ms. Mott speak at the very beginning. They are two of our most dedicated members. They have won this recognition because both of them have been members for over 70 years. They told stories and shared memories. There was not a dry eye in the room. To see two saints sitting before you reflecting on how God has never stopped moving and working in the rural town of West Point was a sight to behold. It was at that time that I was reminded of just how faithful our God is and how much love our God has for all people. That morning I preached on the future of the church. I chose to do this because I wanted to paint a picture that bookended Mr. Curtis and Ms. Mott’s time of reflection by saying the Church’s work in this world is far from over. God is still alive and God is still using us. That morning I saw clearly ...

This past week I attended Catalyst Conference. It was a leadership conference for young, Christian leaders. CEO’s, business leaders, evangelists, non-profit presidents, authors and pastors came together and delivered a nine session, two-day event with the emphasis being “Coming Together.” In the midst of the conference I found myself experiencing great joy, excitement, hope and encouragement for the future of the church while listening to business-minded people such as Tim Collins, author of Good to Great , Seth Godin, author of Tribes , and financial guru Dave Ramsey. The problem I had with the conference, however, was with the pastors. All the pastors were emerging church leaders who’s church were multi-thousand in number and predominately Caucasian. As a matter of fact, all the pastors were Caucasian males except one: She was African American. Despite the demographic being extremely lopsided, it was the violent overtones and segregating comments within their messages that bother...

Leslie Criss is an editor of a newspaper in Tupelo, MS. Here is a letter she rights about a group from Ole Miss writing to the KKK. The link above is the letter to the KKK...it is worth your time to read. "The Daily Mississippi Editorial Board in an open letter to the KKK" http://www.thedmonline.com/an_open_letter_to_the_kkk Last Wednesday as my dentist poked my enamel with a metal instrument, he spoke of the upcoming presidential debate at Ole Miss. "I sure hope nothing happens to him," he said. "That would set Mississippi back three decades." My stomach immediately began to hurt. He didn't even have to put a name to the masculine pronoun. I knew he wasn't talking about John McCain. He was referring to Barack Obama. "There are a lot of good ol' boys in the Delta," he continued, as he delivered the delightful news that one tooth might be developing a crack. With metal in my mouth, I couldn't respond,...

Without a doubt, inerrancy is a hot topic in Christian circles. Some believe that the entire Bible (word for word) is inerrant. Others believe that the inspiration behind scripture is inerrant and therefore scripture should be deemed as so. Another group relies on the original manuscripts of the Bible to be inerrant. This group acknowledges disagreements in scripture but counters it by suggesting the original manuscripts are not ambiguous. There is a fourth group that chooses not to use the word inerrant to define scripture but recognizes scripture as the “inspired” word of God. What is inerrancy? Webster defines it as “lack of error in science or matters of faith.” A synonym for this word is infallibility. Theologians do not agree on the definition of this word and as far as I can tell are not trying to universalize the definition of this loaded word. I am not promoting one viewpoint in this blog but simply am raising the issue. How do you see scripture intersect...