2.07.2007

the violence of jesus

i was talking with karen the other day about the account of jesus clearing out the temple:

John 2:14-16 (New American Standard Bible)
14And He found in the temple those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables.
15And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables; 16and to those who were selling the doves He said, "Take these things away; stop making My Father's house a place of business."


i was pointing out the fact that jesus made a whip, a very purposeful and time-consuming act, before going nuts on everybody. we see in this story the anger of jesus displayed in a passionate and even violent act. here's what i want to know. what did he do with that whip? brandish it menacingly? sting the backsides of sheep and cattle? did he use it on any people?


monday i was home from work sick, so i spent much of the day on the couch reading a couple copies of geez magazine a friend had loaned me. i think i overdosed. anyway, geez is very peace-loving. my thoughts were saturated with ideas of following jesus being a way of peace as opposed to war.

here's the question: what is an appropriate expression of anger, and even violence, in this world that we can learn from jesus' example? what will i teach my son about dealing with bullies at school? about war? about justice? we seem to fear anger at times, filing it away in the sinful category. but it is a human emotion just as ligitimate as joy or sorrow or love - within the appropriate context, just as is the case with all other emotions. so when is anger appropriate, and in such cases, what is an appropriate expression of anger? is violence ever called for, ever an appropriate response? i have some theories, but i'm interested to hear what you think.


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2.03.2007

snow day

it snowed today. all day. from about 11am to 5 or 6pm. i went out and shoveled the foot of snow out of the driveway, then it started to snow again. i had been sitting inside all day nursing a budding flu or cold. thank God for drugs. the fresh air was nice.

as i watched the snow falling i was thinking about how beautiful it was, and how wierd our winter this year has been, and how thankful i am for how God has taken care of us. and how much i am loathing going back to roofing next week now that we have all this snow. some wet hands will be had for sure. strap the harness on.

i start two days a week at rustle this month. the more i spend time there, the more excited i am about serving there. i am thankful for this. it seems God has brought me so far. it seems so long ago that i sidled up to a local leader searching for a cure to a complacent spirituality. thank you sir, for shaking me back to Christ. for this i am thankful. for new life, new passion, new opportunities, new friends. i am filled with gratitude.

ever and always does God soak me with blessings. undeserved. lavished. still learning how to cope with all that kindness. i am awkward with grace.

my sister is having a baby soon. within moments i will be an uncle. freight trains could not keep me away, but the mighty dollar might. alaska is so far away. it is hard at times. karen's family lives near niagara falls. four hours seems so far when gabriel is screaming and she needs a nap while i'm dancing on rooftops. but four hours would be heavenly for my family. they're not even a four hour flight away....try thirteen with layovers and transfers. expensive. it's cheaper to go visit vincent in france. paris must be visited one day. eiffel tower here i come. feed me stinky cheese and crepe's.

i was never much of a homebody growing up. i am sure this caused my parent's consternation at times. "call home from camp to let us know how you're doing, dear." yeah, right. i never did. no phones in the canoe. even after they moved back to alaska when i was in kingston, did i miss them? sure, at times... but overall...i've been pretty happy out on my own. now that gabriel has come along i have found it harder than ever before. it would be nice at times to go visit for the weekend. if you're reading this, don't feel bad. we are all where we're supposed to be. now my sister is having a little one, and i feel the pull to go see her. love runs thick in our house.

funny thing, baby's. i never really liked them much. that is, until i had my own. now my sister is having one, my good friends are having one, and i find myself so excited to see the children, to hold them. wierd. parenthood changes things i guess. i like it.

baby's, friends, family, rustle, snow day.

lavished.

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1.23.2007

confessions on a dance floor

i had a dream last night about a guy who i really hurt by some actions i took about a year ago. i mean hurt emotionally. i tried to work it out with him right away...ask forgiveness and so forth, but he didn't want to talk to me then. i saw him recently at an event we both attended, and i was really struck by how he seemed to avoid even saying hello when he would normally (before "the incident") make a point of saying hi. i must admit i didn't go talk to him either.

this has been bothering me every time i think about it. i've managed to forget for a while, but something will happen that reminds me of the unresolved issue there. like this dream. i don't remember what happened in the dream, i just remember it was about him. i know i gotta do something to work it out, but i'm afraid to talk to him. it eats me up inside that i hurt him so much by what i did, and there's nothing i can do to make it go away. i'm left completely powerless, at the mercy of his forgiveness.

i know i need to contact him again, try to apologize again. then at least i've tried. either a friendship gets restored or i rest assured that i've done all i can.

ugghh... i hate thinking about it. makes me feel sick.

night.

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1.13.2007

some thoughts

first go check out this website called clearification. watch the videos. very funny, hilarious even. recommend provided via nathancolquhoun.com.

recently listening to bright eyes, i'm wide awake it's morning

too often i find myself navel gazing, so caught up with my own issues that i neglect those around me. i pity the fool.

then come those moments where i am drawn out of myself and reminded that there are others in my world. others who need me. others who care about my well being. i am reminded to look outside myself. often it is in these moments i find the most [insert word for good things here], when i forget myself and freely give myself to others. go figure.

talking with karen today about life, i remarked how difficult it is to admit my issues to others, to really let them see the real me in all my gritty glory. and so it goes. too long have i run independent. keeping myself at arms length from others so appearances are kept up.

sometimes i struggle with life. complicated. independent.

i left home for college when i was seventeen. never looked back. independent.

but i am learning. slowly. rustlers aren't independent. working with al and living with the rustlers is teaching me community. sharing. vulnerability. honesty. i'm a reluctant convert, slow to quench my thirst for acceptance in the safety of loving community.

karen threw a party for my birthday almost a month ago. people came, conversation flowed while food ran wild. then karen pulled out a basket full of cards, into which friends had placed love with dollar bills attached. surprise cd fund. i was speechless, overwhelmed with that awkward feeling of being given far more than i deserved. thanks dribbled down my chin as i went into myself, unsure of what to do. independent. how do i learn to let friends love me like that? they're getting under my skin. i'm falling in love with this rustler crew. "she's good people," the lead hand would say with a goofy grin and a broom in one hand. "have you heard this song?"

to my friends, and i am blessed with many, thank you. thank you for teaching me love, generosity, and community by allowing me to experience it firsthand from your lives.

there is nowhere else i'd rather be.

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12.11.2006

updater update

for your viewing pleasure, a list:

p. confession. i've grown bored with blogdom. or perhaps bored is the wrong word. i think more accurately i have found that working all day to come home tired leaves me with little in the way of creative stimulus. and if i'm not feeling creative, i'm not likely to write much since i don't want to bore you with lame crap. or bore myself with lame crap. or just produce lame crap in general.

s. gabriel is growing, smiling, making baby noises, and other miscellaneous cuteness. i would apologize for the lack of pictures, but see #1.

k. check this out for some crazy but true happenings in kazakhstan involving huge amounts of oil money, a tent that absorbs heat from the sun, and a city. seriously, it'll blow your mind. or at least make you smile incredulously.

m. big news. i have begun the process of recording an ep with matt baetz at longshot studios in kingston. very excited. save your pennies boys and girls, because some sweet tunes are coming soon to eardrums near you.

b. things at rustle (the church plant) are progressing well. we are growing together as a community and are hoping to extend an invitation to our neighborhood in january. it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...would you be mine...

g. if you want to know more, write, call, or better yet...come visit.

e. this list has been brought to you by the letter T. mmm...tea.

x. the end. bye. and thanks for stopping by. if anyone still does. which i would be shocked by since i haven't even stopped by for quite some time.

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11.14.2006

images

if you would like to see some images of folks enjoying our first ever service and open house at rustle, visit my flickr site to peruse them in all their stunning brilliance.

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10.29.2006

check it out

a family friend, mike smith, has finally been called up to play with the dallas stars. he started his second game last night against los angeles. two wins so far. go smitty.

















p.s. check out flikr for baby pictures

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9.24.2006

our little poopsickle

well, what to say. i'm tired. and happy. and tired. but i can't complain - karen is healing from giving birth plus tired plus breastfeeding. i think women got the short end of the stick on this one.

karen loves being a mom. i don't think i've ever seen her so happy. i love it.

what a stud. except this picture makes his head look funny. i love the eyes. it looks like he's communicating some sort of thought, but in reality he's just pooping. his many poop faces are hilarious.

ahhh, genetics. what a fine specimen.

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9.07.2006

grandpa's hands

gabriel brandon shillington flew into this world on a wing and a prayer. karen began active labour around 12:00-12:30 pm, we figure. she had just met with the midwife at eleven to find out she was dialated 2 cm, an increase of 1 cm from the week before. by 1:30 we called our doula to come to the house, and by 2:30 the midwives arrived. by this time karen's labour was quite intense. they did another exam at 3:00 and found out she was fully dialated! we were all shocked, and since everything was progressing so fast karen was already ready to start pushing. the midwife gave us the option of proceeding to the hospital like we had originally planned, except we would have to take an ambulance to get her there in time, or we could have the baby at home. we decided to take a chance and go to the hospital. we arrived there around 3:30 or so and at 4:48 gabriel was born. he came out in the caul, another name for the amniotic sac. karen's water never broke, and when gabe came out his head was completely encased in the sac. one midwife exclaimed that she could see him still breathing the amniotic fluid! they broke the sac and brought him out the rest of the way. the midwives were quite ecstatic about having a birth "in the caul" because it is so rare. supposedly, according to legend and what-not, a child born in the caul will never drown and is thought to have supernatural powers, to be a lucky baby, with one foot in the spiritual world and one in the physical. we stayed at the hospital for the required minimum four hours, then came home to our more comfy bed. karen is healing well and we are having a blast learning how to be parents! he is a most beautiful baby.

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9.06.2006

introducing (drum roll please)...

gabriel brandon shillington

7 lb., 4.5 oz.

all set to capture hearts

smells like baby powder

born september 5, 4:48 p.m.

thems the pics for now

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9.03.2006

dream-ology

i had a dream the other night. it went something like this:

it was night, but not pitch black. i could still see from the lights of the city around me. i was at work and found myself climbing on the top of the highest tower of a huge stone church. it was an old wooden roof, and as i reached the peak i broke through some rotted wood and began falling. it felt like a long fall through the tower and out into the huge cathedral-like sanctuary, but i didn’t feel afraid. i was thinking about the likelihood of living through the fall, wondering what i would land on, thinking i would probably die and this sucked.

next thing i knew i was at the bottom of the sanctuary looking around, wondering what i landed on. then i noticed my body. i had landed on the wooden pews, with the back of my head smashed open on the edge of one. i thought to myself that i definitely did not have a soft landing and immediately realized that i was dead. i remember being aware that i was dead, but felt no pain, and was acutely conscious of my still being me – just my body was gone. i remember also being aware that i was supposed to continue on to the afterlife, but it was my choice to do so. i had a passing thought that perhaps ghosts (understood as the spirits of dead people with unresolved issues) could exist as people who had died but had refused to move on to their afterlife. i had no desire to do this, however. i knew i needed to move on and knew that i would.

soon after i fell, my coworkers came in to see if i was ok. they saw my body there dead, and me standing nearby. i calmly explained to them that i had fallen through the roof and landed on the pew and was now dead, and i was obviously disappointed this had happened. i didn’t want to be dead, but there was now nothing i could do about it.

knowing that i needed to move on to my afterlife, i first wanted to go say goodbye to my wife. so i went home to tell her that i had a tragic accident at work and was now dead. she was distraught, as could be expected, but also handled the news fairly calmly. i remember holding her, saying goodbye, knowing this was goodbye for a long time. i remember thinking or perhaps saying for her to feel free to find another person to share her life with – wanting her to be happy, to move on with her life.

also, while all this was happening to me, she had given birth to our baby. so when i arrived to tell her i was dead, she had news to tell me. i remember feeling so disappointed and hurt that i had missed the birth of our child, and even more sad that i would miss out on watching him grow up. then she told me that she named him jebediah. i remember feeling confused and angry and hurt that she gave him that name instead of one of the names that we had discussed. i didn’t like the name jebediah, and i remember thinking that the least she could do after my tragic death would be to give the child the name i had wanted for him, or even to name him after me. she seemed at this point in my dream like she was moving on past my death and was ready to say goodbye. she wasn’t fazed at all that i didn’t like Jebediah, but seemed like she expected me to just deal with it since i wasn’t there and it was all now up to her to raise him. i remember feeling hurt by this, and very sad at having to say goodbye to my wife and child when our lives together were just beginning, sad that i would miss so much.

then i woke up.

here's some stuff i found on this website about dream interpretations. there's some interesting bits...

Death
To dream of your own death, indicates a transitional phase in your life. You are becoming more enlightened or spiritual. Alternatively, you are trying desperately to escape the demands of your daily life.
Die
To dream that you die in your dream, symbolizes inner changes, transformation, self-discovery and positive development that is happening within you or in your life. Although such a dreams may bring about feelings of fear and anxiety, it is no cause for alarm and is often considered a positive symbol. Dreams of experiencing your own death usually means that big changes are ahead for you. You are moving on to new beginnings and leaving the past behind. These changes does not necessarily imply a negative turn of events. Metaphorically, dying can be seen as an end or a termination to your old ways and habits. So, dying does not always mean a physical death, but an ending of something.
Fall
To dream that you fall and are not frightened, signifies that you will overcome your adversities with ease.
To dream that you fall and are frightened, indicates a lack of control, insecurity, and/or lack of support in your waking life. You may be experiencing some major struggle and/or overwhelming problem. It may denote that you have failed to achieve a goal that you have set forth for yourself.
To dream that you are free-falling through water, indicates that you are feeling overwhelmed with emotions. You may feel that it is easier to give up then to try to stay afloat or prevent yourself from going under.
Family
To see your own family in your dream, represents security, warmth and love. Consider also the significance of a particular family member or the relationship you have with them.
Wife
To see your wife in your dream, signifies discord and unresolved issues.
Son
To see your son in your dream, signifies your ideal, hopes, potential, and the youthful part of yourself. On the other hand, to see your son in your dream might not have any significance and is simply mirroring your waking life. The dream may also be a pun on "sun".

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8.20.2006

heart rustlings and many swears


i work on a roofing crew. by reputation, roofing crews are made up of rough men, and mine is no exception. these guys tell stories of doing things many would be shocked to hear, all as if it's no more than another normal day. three of them are facing charges that could send them to prison. i love them all.

here's the thing: i want to be a positive influence on the world around me. i am trying to learn how the love of God penetrates even the darkest places...and i am still left puzzling over this many days. i find too often i get caught up in their way of doing things more than i would like to admit. swearing is one thing. "admiring the beauty" of girls walking by is another. (rooftops afford an excellent view.)

my heart is disturbed. i feel quiet murmers within my chest, whispers that all is not well.
i am left leaning on grace.

i decided i don't like to swear. and checking out girls feels disrespectful to me. even as i write this i am hoping my wife doesn't read it. and yet...

maybe she will. i need her grace too. i am full of weakness. it is often in her words and in her arms that i find the grace of God. it is often in her presence that i am reminded where my priorities really lie, where the space i want my life to be is found.

many swears and rooftop views are not that space.


how can Jesus shine through me? how can my hands and voice become the channel he can use in the places i walk? this is the direction i long to go. this is the space i want to live in.

today i feel far away, in need of grace. tomorrow maybe i will see some jesus at work, or maybe not. either way i have to try. i have to believe that jesus will use me somehow, and that his light in my life can make a difference in dark places. i have to hope.

until next time, enjoy my brokeback picture.

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8.14.2006

squirmon















for those of you who are interested, you can listen to the talk i gave at next on july 9 here. if that doesn't work, go here and click on the link to it in the sidebar.

this sunday is the 30th anniversary of the church my grandfather helped start in kingston. this is a picture from the groundbreaking. i think he's the tall guy in the middle toward the left. the woman in the front with the blue dress is my grandmother.

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7.31.2006

week thirty-five

we are nearing the end... the midwife tells us that the baby can come anytime after 37 weeks. we finally acquired the crib and have started setting up the baby's room...still a bit more to do. we had narrowed down our list of names from about six to two, but the other day we looked at our list again and it went back up to three. no, we're not telling. ...i always get karen to smile for the camera. one of these days i'll have to take one when she's not looking so you get to see the real pregnancy! although, the little jig she did all on her own. i was just lucky enough to catch it.




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7.20.2006

newsworthy items ???

karen and i went on a cruise tuesday among the many thousand islands to heart island where we took in boldt castle. karen's nephew ken and his girlfriend karlene were visiting for a few days and went with. it was a beautiful day. we filled ourselves with fajitas later that evening. more pictures can be had on my flicker site.






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7.12.2006

pictures of the boy

the boy is about four and a half pounds now. we enjoyed seeing his chubby little cheeks in the ultrasound. he moves around all the time. it feels so amazing to put my hand on karen's belly and feel the kicks and rolls and movements. soon we get to meet him! pray for karen, she's uncomfortable most of the time. those are a hand and foot beside his face. he wouldn't move them so we could only see half of his face.


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6.28.2006

blow me down, me hearties

i apologize for the lack of postage recently. well, really my apology is nothing more than a self-serving superficiality, for i am really sorry only that my lack of postage means the trickle of comments on my blog has run dry. so here i go again on my own.

unfortunately, sometimes on my own i don't have a lot to say. here's all i've got for tonight...

recent doings:

1) working - a lot! i start at seven, and some days don't get home till seven or eight. it means that when i get home i have time to shower, eat, and go to bed. not much time for thinking, i'm afraid.

2) rustling - at the church plant (named rustle church) we are almost finished tearing out and are in the rebuilding phase. (we've been doing some desperately needed remodeling and fixing up.) we have a guy from france named vincent volunteering for a month during the summer. he's trying to learn english better via immersion while chasing God in a new country for a short time. saturday we have our big freakin' yard sale to try to get rid of a bunch of junk and get to know some neighbors.

3) speaking - i'm speaking at next july 9 on matthew 12:1-14. main idea: we often let our religious systems take over and become rigid and judgmental. jesus wants us to remember the heart of the message. something like that. it's really better than it sounds. i still haven't solidified my 3am test yet (grin and nod out to you homiletics students). i'm a bit nervous to speak as i have never spoken at next and haven't done it at all for about a year, but i am also very excited because i think the message i have is one that God has been growing in me for a couple years now. so it is exciting to see some good stuff coming after the dry spells.

4) listing - in case you haven't noticed, i just made my first ever blog list. shite - i've taken another step into bloggermania!

5) leaving - goodnight. you should also leave ...me a comment and then leave to check out this blog for the great writing and fun pictures.

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6.10.2006

in the garage

i put together another song in garageband, with the help of my brother on the drum tracks. i think it turned out pretty good. check it out at my purevolume site here. it is called 'chase me down'. i sang it at next a couple months ago.

i said goodbye to my family this morning. they took the powerbook and left for alaska. i had fun visiting with them and playing with garageband while they were here.

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new song

my grandmother died last friday. the funeral was tuesday morning. it has been a good time with family. i was up early on sunday morning so picked up my guitar and started picking around. i ended up writing a song that i sang at the funeral with my sister. my mom had brought a mac powerbook with her and i got playing around with garageband. with my brother's help, i recorded my song for all to hear. it's called "not the ending (song for grandma)". have a listen to it here. i think it's pretty good.

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5.26.2006

church? aliens? what?

i just finished reading an article my dad forwarded to me. it's a few years old, by dr. thom ranier, and is called "ten surprises about the unchurched: understanding their hearts and minds."

i have a couple questions that arise from my reading of this article, and they stem more from feelings i get while reading and thinking than from fully developed thoughts. i would like to state them for you to help me with my thinking - agree, disagree, help!

first, read the article.

second, i don't like the term, or the way the term is used, of "the unchurched." that people are placed into this category of unchurched feels to me of us/them-ism. my question is this: how can we speak intelligently and gracefully about the reality of the difference in people before an encounter with the living God and after, without categorizing and making an in/out, us/them kind of environment or way of thinking? the way dr. thom speaks of this group of people makes me feel (as one who is not unchurched, but indeed seeks to spread the message of jesus) like a missionary with all the answers looking to help the poor deluded savages. i don't think that way of thinking is helpful, respecful, or in any way good. yet i also recognize an element of truth (albeit easily twisted into error) that we have the love of God "shed abroad" in our hearts and must share that with those who don't (the error being a belief that we have the message of God and all who would find that must find it from we few who hold the truth). how can we begin to speak and think in a way that balances the truth that we have a relationship with a person who others need to encounter, without somehow placing everyone who doesn't have this relationship in an outside category. i find it frustrating even knowing how to express my thoughts in words, for as i type i find thoughts colliding. i sense in my heart there is something wrong with how we have long engaged those who need jesus. i respect the heart of what dr. thom is trying to say and do in this article. i have no issue with him, but would like to use that article and the language used in it to point out what i think is a cronic error easily made (and made by myself for many years). i would like your engagement with this issue to help me sort my thoughts out into a more understandable way of explaining what i am feeling. i hope this makes at least a little bit of sense.

thirdly, my second question/issue arises with the conclusion implied in the article, expressly or otherwise, that church (or more church) is the solution for the "problem" of being "unchurched." i would like to suggest, rather adamantly, that more church is not what people need, if by church people think religion or religious activities. if by church dr. thom and others mean engagement with the living God through community with other jesus-followers, then by all means, invite people into the midst of that! i fear, however, that the language and wording of church, unchurched, and so on leads more to religion and religious activities than it does to real engagement with God and others. i fear that too often the religious activities we engage in when we attend "church," and the satisfaction we feel from participating in something deemed good by society and larger than ourselves and shared by people across the world, mask the ability of people to really engage with the truth that is jesus christ. i know that this is probably not true in your church, but how many people do you know that attend church because they think they need some religion in their lives, or because they like the positive things they get from going on sunday mornings? how many people think they need to attend church because religious activity is deemed to somehow be a positive thing in their lives? now, i recognize that their are many positive elements in religion, but there are also many horrible elements. i propose that following the way of jesus is not a religious activity, but a completely upside down, transformational way of living that encompases, envelops, enhances, transforms, and overwhelmes any religious activity. the way of jesus forces us to move away from our "me-me-me" focused living toward a "service to others" focused living. but how often are we taught this in church? too often it is about living right, doing the right things, and all kinds of religious stuff that are usually good at heart but lose their meaning and usefulness when focus on following the way of jesus in the kingdom of God is forgotten or ignored. i fear that inviting the "unchurched" to become "churched" is a fruitless endeavor. what can we do to help people move from not following jesus in the context of healthy community to following jesus in said community rather than merely helping them move from not religious to more religious?

those are my thoughts so far. what are yours?

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