Engagement (Thoughts from "Call To Commitment")

"Some of you," she would say, "have got to stay home and make the same sacrifices as those who got to Indochina and take years to prepare, learning the language, the customs and such things. You must learn a new language also, the language of the world, so that those who are worldly and sophisticated, but spiritually illiterate, can understand you. You must do everything they do, and do it better - but without sin. Read better and more broadly than they do, entertain better and more charmingly, dress better and have a knowledge of all the things in which they are interested, so that you can understand their point of view. If you do not do this, you will speak not only a foreign language in this pagan country, but one that repels."

- Elizabeth O'Conner, Call To Commitment

The quote above was spoken to Gordon Cosby, Elizabeth-Anne and Mary Campbell by Mrs. Campbell while they were contemplating missionary service. After I read her comments I was whisked away to the courts of Babylon and four young men enslaved by an evil empire...

"As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. ... And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom."

- Daniel 1:17, 20

Turning all this as a light on my own life as a "suburban missionary" complexity seemed to melt away into the simple reality of engagement. Following Christ is not our removal from the World but movement toward it. How much does the "Christian Sub-culture" alienate us from those we are here to give our lives to? What does it look like for us to excel with purity? How do we become "students of our culture" while maintaining our "kingdom citizenship"? Tough questions that need solid, practical answers.

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."

- James, Book of James 1:26-27

Quote for Thought...

Prompted by posts on Christian Charette’s blog, I just finished an article chronicling an interview with N. T. Wright called “Mere Mission.” Here’s a sample:

“It is possible to say more or less all the orthodox Christian affirmations, but to join them up in the wrong story. It's possible to tick the boxes that say Trinity, Incarnation, Atonement, Resurrection, Spirit, Second Coming, and yet it's like a child's follow-the-dots. The great story—and after all the Bible is fundamentally a story—we've got to pay attention to that, rather than abstracting dogmatic points from it. The dogmas matter, they are true, but you have to join them up the right way.”

“The key to mission is always worship. You can only be reflecting the love of God into the world if you are worshiping the true God who creates the world out of overflowing self-giving love. The more you look at that God and celebrate that love, the more you have to be reflecting that overflowing self-giving love into the world.”

For the full interview CLICK HERE.

Code Breakers

No...not "the DaVinci Code"...the honor code!

Here's the deal, we had a discussion group this morning around a movie called "Code Breakers". It's an ESPN movie about a 1950's West Point Football team and a student cheating scandal. It's a well done film and provides a great starting point for discussion on subjects like truth, honor, relationship, and responsibility.

I would like to discuss some of the themes here. So go rent the movie some time this week/weekend and we'll through some questions out and see what happens.