Author: Wick

1 Corinthians 7:32-34 “I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; but the married man is anxious about the affairs of the world, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried woman and the virgin are anxious about the affairs of the Lord, so that they may be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman is anxious about the affairs of the world, how to please her husband.”

It is tough sometimes, when most of the Biblical writers we spend our time reading, and most ancient and modern theologians we enjoy spending our time in….were not only without children, but remained single. If only Jesus would have married, and had three little girls so that I could have a more distinct pattern to follow.

It’s helpful to realize that the “freedom to not get married” was a large pill to swallow for most ancient Jews. The fact that Jesus grew older without getting married would have seemed rather odd for most in that culture that strongly emphasized leaving generations behind you. The people receiving words like the ones above, needed encouragement that it could actually be a “good” thing to not get married. That freedom in Christ could actually mean freedom even from cultural norms and expected patterns of life.

I would agree…I probably divide my attention/love/energies/etc. in ways that someone without a wife and kids would not have to worry about. But I would also say that I have an understanding of God’s Love for the Bride of Christ, and God’s Love for us as children….in a way quite unlike anything I would’ve had, if I’d remained single.

We understand that Paul was not saying it’s better for all people to remain single. Nor would the Bible say that it’s better for everyone to experience marriage and children. But that God would be the focus, honored, experienced, and proclaimed by the life we live. Devotion to a life of celibacy and devotion to a spouse/kids can both become idols. Or they can become paths of being wholly devoted to God.

I pray that as years roll into decades…my life will be a living testimony of a husband and father who loves God faithfully and wholly. I love the praxis of it, that’s for sure…

I’ve just finished reading the book “FlashForward” by Robert Sawyer. It was a good read, and the book has inspired a television show by the same name. I will say that you can enjoy both the book, AND the television show without having too much of the plot revealed. The book is told from the perspective of people for what happened. The television show is from the perspectives of the people trying to figure out what happened. There are other major differences too, but I will let yo discover them.

In both the show and the movie, every person on the planet passes out for a little over 2 minutes. During those minutes, they experience visions of what their life will be like in the future. In the show, it’s almost a year into the future. In the book, it’s over 20 years. A lot of imagination goes into both the book and the show as far as what things may be like…how they become that way, etc.

A large portion of thought/discussion in both the show and book is: Free will. Specifically, is the future everyone saw something that is fixed….or is it something that can be changed?

Another portion of both stories, and a reason I enjoy both and think they’re great catalyst for good thought/discussion/prayer is this: How does seeing a potential future change how we live in the present?

For many of the characters, seeing a potential future does HUGE things to who they are, and how they exist in the present. I think this is a great illustration and encouragement for Christians today.

1. Just KNOWLEDGE of a potential future (i.e. the coming fullness of God’s Kingdom) offers radical transformation and freedom for how we live today. Our perspective, our hope, our goals, etc…can all be changed simply be realizing even a small part of what God has in store.

2. God goes beyond that, and actually has poured our His Spirit. Life-giving, redeeming, transforming, loving, calling forth, etc etc etc…an ACTIVE FORCE.

May we as the Church continue to speak knowledge of God’s more than potential future into the lives and creation around us. May we depend on God’s Spirit to be poured out to begin and continue that future even now…

Chapter 8 of The Holiness Manifesto is “Transformed by Grace: The Beauty of Personal Holiness” by Cheryl Bridges Johns. Johns is a professor of Christian Formation at the Church of God Theological Seminary.

She talks broadly about John Wesley’s approach to a transforming (sanctifying) grace, as well as the types of grace we experience/receive. She then goes on to list and briefly discuss each of the “Instituted” means of grace (those we see in the life of Christ), and the “Prudential” means of grace (fulfilling social and relational aspects of the gospel).

I think she does a great job in each of the means. She discusses prayer in a way that makes you hungry to spend some time in genuine prayer before/with God. She talks about fasting in a way that makes you hungry to experience hunger. She reminds us that Scriptures can be very moving and literary, rather than simply studied. She takes us through Wesley’s appreciation for the Lord’s Supper, and Christian community – including the high emphasis he placed on small groups.

She closes with some more comments on the prudential means of grace, such as charity and mercy. She takes a close look at what occurs when we experience a “crisis” moment in our life, and how it can lead to growth in grace. The way she presents it really challenges the norms of how we handle crisis today. Especially we masculine types.

We’re encouraged to be tough. To be solid. But if we follow Wesley, and many other Christian theologians (including Paul himself – Romans 5:3-5)….to not allow ourselves to fully experience crisis, is to short change a potentially very transforming experience of God. To pretend too quickly that “we’re okay”, or to swallow our emotions so we can live as if we’re “beyond that already”, could be missing an incredible opportunity for our very soul.

May we continue to seek such means of receiving transformational grace….both the ones we look forward to…and the experiences we may not have chosen….God offers to redeem/use both areas…