Fenway Pahk

June 11th marked my third trip to Fenway to watch the Sox since moving to Boston. Unfortunately, it wasn't their best moment in time, but I was in a box (courtesy of the wonderful people at the Sheraton), so I was handling the situation well. If you have ever been to Fenway, you know what a great ballpark it is. And, thanks to weeks of rain here in Boston, the field at Fenway was greener than ever (in comparison, the Green Monster even looked a little pale). Thankfully, the weather was gorgeous, the food was delicious (I had my "I'm at a baseball game hot dog") and the company unrivaled. Here are a few pics from the day.

Ry & Al enjoying their first game at Fenway

Al, Ging & I taking a break from the game for a photo-op

Alex focused on the game - I love this shot!

I'm so thrilled that Alex lives here!!

Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ: His Power

Last night after my meeting, I took some time to read John Piper's book, Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ. What an incredible read. I will be delving into the book again in a few weeks as part of the coursework I am taking this summer, but wanted to get ahead of the game. The book, in its entirety, was challenging and I found myself wondering... Do I really see and savor Jesus Christ? Do I value him above all things? Do I understand his worth?

It was intriguing to reflect on the reality that he is the end all of all. He is the prize. Everything that I do as a believer is with this aim: to know the glory of Jesus Christ and to be satisfied in him. I find this both exciting and difficult. Why? Simply because it's tremendous to realize that my faith is not about me, but him; at the same time, this is an awkward truth because on one level or another I really want it to be about me.

One of my favorite sections of the book was Piper's chapter entitled, "The Waves and the Winds Still Know His Voice: The Power of Jesus Christ." I was moved by the prayer at the end and wanted to share it with you.

A Prayer

O Lord, the suffering in the world is so widespread and the pain is so great! Have mercy, and waken the souls of suffering millions to the hope of some relief now and unsurpassed joy in the age to come. Send your church, O God, with relief and with the word of the Gospel that there is forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ and that no suffering here is worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed to the children of God. Protect your church, Father, from callous thoughts about calamities that leave millions destitute, and protect her also from cowing to critics, like Job's wife, who cannot trust the wisdom and power and goodness of Christ in the midst of inexplicable misery. Oh, help our unbelief. Incline our hearts to your Word and to its assurances that you "work all things according to the counsel of your will" and that "no purpose of yours can be thwarted" and that you are doing good and acting wisely in ways that we cannot now even dream. Keep us in peace, O Lord, and forbid that we murmur and complain. Grant us humble and submissive hearts under your mighty hand. Teach us to wait and watch for your final and holy purposes in all things. Grant that we would "rejoice in hope" even when present circumstances bring us to tears. Open the eyes of our hearts to see the greatness of our inheritance in Christ, and send us with tender hands to touch with mercy the miseries of the world. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

When I read this, I felt like, "God, let this be true of my life as a believer" -- that I would consider the power of Christ in the present and seek to be a vessel of mercy and hope to a world that experiences such hardship and focuses on the negative. Can you imagine what the world would look like if we, the church, actually lived our lives like this? Imagine the power of Christ, of the Gospel, going out to the broken world we live in and how the world would change... How we would change. Now, that would be something.

Breathtaking Vermont

Yesterday I took my first trip to Vermont. All I can say is, "Wow." It is a strikingly beautiful place. Unfortunately, I did not have my camera with me, so I have no pictures to offer here. I must admit that although it is quite different from Colorado, it reminds me of home. Though, the mountains have much softer edges than the Rockies and are blanketed by gorgeous trees. I felt like I was in a painting. And, driving down the meandering roads, sunroof open, windows down, I thought to myself, "This is why turbo engines were invented." Let's just say that I enjoyed the time in my Volvo. I cannot wait to go back during peak foliage this fall.

P.S. Happy Birthday to my Bro! First to reach 30... Awesome.

Psalm 42 and 43

Here is the passage I spoke of in "The Causes and the Cures" post.

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, "Where is your God?" These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng. Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon -- from Mount Mizar. Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me -- a prayer to the God of my life. I say to God my Rock, "Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?" My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, "Where is your God?" Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God."
Psalm 42


Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; rescue me from deceitful and wicked men. You are God my stronghold. Why have you rejected me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy? Send forth your light and your truth, let them guide me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. Then will I go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God. Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
Psalm 43

The Causes and the Cures

Do you ever watch the lives of your friends, listen to what they say about what is really happening in their worlds and it takes you to a place of introspection where you think deeply about your own life and faith? This is where I have been the last few days. It has been an interesting process of wondering, grieving and being reminded of well, hope, really.

Life is challenging. We become comfortable in what can be referred to as 'the ideal', so much so that at times, I think we forget what is real. Perhaps we wish to please everyone around us. Maybe we wish that things would just go back to the way they were at a happier, or less complicated point along the journey.

Sometimes along the way, we look in the mirror and don't recognize or understand the person that we see. And, we wonder, "If I don't know, who else does?" It's a paradox. We want to be known, but we don't. We are afraid of being seen for what we are. Why? Well, I suppose there are millions of reasons. And yet, faith comes into question as we explore whom or what it is that we have become. What is it that I believe? Why aren't I free? Who am I? What does this mean for me? What does it mean to the world?

My question is: Why hide? How does that benefit you? How does that change the world?

On Sunday, my Pastor, Dr. Stephen Um, gave a tremendous message on spiritual depression. He focused on the text in Psalm 42 & 43 where the writer is distressed and questioning the very things that I have seen a couple friends dealing with in recent time. Perhaps I'll add another post and write out the full text in a moment. What is interesting to me about these two Psalms is the honesty and longing that is clearly portrayed in his words.

Dr. Um talked about causes and cures for spiritual depression and I wanted to write some of what he said here.

Causes for Spiritual Depression:
1. Community Deprivation
- Living life with a "tourist" mentality and not choosing to view oneself as a resident. Determining to be in exile, to refuse to initiate and engage with others by making a choice to live in exile. The question asked is, "Why invest?"

As I thought about this after church, I wondered... Why is this dangerous? We fail to remember the VALUE of community. We forget that we MUST choose to engage with others for our own benefit. When we remove ourselves from others by living in light of the 'ideal' (how I wish things were), rather than the 'real' (what is true and what choice I have to live my life in the midst of present circumstances), we experience loneliness and we aren't known. We're not giving others the opportunity to know us.

2. Lack of Employment
- Ultimately, our identity is not in what we do; however, if we view our lives as, or believe that the contribution we are making is, insignificant, we are prone to be despondent. For instance, if we find ourselves in a position where we didn't expect to find ourselves or do not want to be in for the long haul, we lose heart.

3. External Opposition from Adversaries or the Enemy
- Perhaps we find ourselves in a "season of accusation" where we feel we cannot win. Something is wrong on every side. There is potential to find ourselves asking,
"Why me?"
"Where is God?"
"Why have I been forgotten?"
And, eventually, we will buy into the lies. We will believe that God has forgotten us, that He doesn't care, that we have lost favor or love or any number of things.

Now, onto the cures. These are really insightful.

1. Stop Listening to Yourself and Start Talking to Yourself
- Preach the gospel to your own heart. You cannot let yourself set the agenda for what you will choose to believe (the ideal). Eventually, you will start believing yourself and of course you are going to be spiritually depressed, bitter, and discouraged. Allow the gospel to send the agenda. Ask, "What is in line with the gospel?" Take time to reflect on what is true.

2. Put Your Hope in God
- Jesus received utter loneliness, abandonment and was completely forsaken by taking on our sin and the brokenness of the world. He was ultimately opposed. Yet, He endured this so that we would not be utterly lonely, abandoned, forsaken, opposed or broken. There is hope.

3. Praise Him
- Christ did all of this on our behalf. He loved us that much to endure such suffering.

Dr. Um went on to say this, "This is the moment to engage, to speak to yourself... During spiritual deprivation." I thought this was so powerful in light of the things I'm seeing these friends endure. God has not forsaken them, forgotten them or lost hold of them. He is about the business of freeing them from the ties that bind.

This inspired me to hope this weekend. Knowing that God is big enough and completely faithful to engage in the process He has them in. What's more is that as I reflected on my life and faith I realized that the Lord has often met me in times like these. He has moved me from doubt, insecurity and bondage to freedom. And, with all of my heart, I believe He will do the same for them.

Cape Considerations

Yesterday, I made my first trip down to Cape Cod. Have I ever mentioned how much I love my job? I am trying to determine what venue will host a new conference my team is planning for next spring, so I headed down to look at a couple options. The hotel I stayed at last night was so gracious and generous... They gave me a room right on the ocean!

Last night, I tossed and turned. It was raining and I've been suffering from a head cold for a few days now that kept me up and blowing my nose frequently throughout the night. This morning, I awoke early to more rain. I was a bit disappointed since I was hoping to sit out on the deck or go for a walk and spend some time with the Lord. But, being the eternal optimist that I am, I made the best of it and went to the dining room for breakfast.

Sitting by the window, I looked out on the ocean which has taken on a cloudy blue-gray-green color this morning and just watched as the waves rolled to and fro. I'm always amazed by the ocean. I think it's one of the most beautiful and mysterious things that God created. Mostly, I'm intrigued by the reality of the creatures that live in it and how the water acts as a barrier and connection between continents. Pretty remarkable.

At any rate, while at breakfast, I took some time to read Psalm 27 and I Peter. In Psalm 27, I came across something I hadn't noticed before. David is talking about God's faithfulness throughout this passage and in verse 8 he says:

My heart has heard you say, "Come and talk with me." And my heart responds, "Lord, I am coming." NTL

This struck me. I really do believe that God desires for me to come and talk with Him. It is what having a relationship is about... Knowing Him and being known. This is done through communication. BUT, how often do I allow busyness or circumstance to distract me from doing just that.

The reason I took on the conferences role in my region was for a similar purpose... to allow students to get away from the distractions of daily life and meet with the Lord. It's funny how I forget my own need for this. And, here I am, working on another conference and being pulled away from my daily life to sit and read these words.

I went on to read I Peter, but went back and reread Chapter 1:18-21 where he writes,

For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. He paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him for this purpose long before the world began, but now in these final days, he was sent to the earth for all to see. And he did this for you. Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And because God raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory, your faith and hope can be placed confidently in God. NLT

I haven't read this passage from the New Living Translation before, but love the wording, "God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life..." Isn't that true? Without Christ, my life is empty. Honestly, I do think about that sometimes. What would I do if I didn't know Christ? I cannot imagine how I would have hope in this world. And, I am humbled and grateful as I reflect on the high price that Christ paid to bring me a confident hope. What's greater is that it's not all for me, but for every person who chooses to embrace Christ.

It's interesting... at breakfast, while reading all of this, a sweet guy from Jamaica was my server. He and I chatted a bit and I discovered that he just moved up to the Cape a few weeks ago to earn money for his family. They aren't with him... They're back home. He won't see them until December. And, he went on to tell me that his little four year-old continues to cry in his absence. Obviously, his sacrifice is not on the same level as that of Christ, BUT he is suffering for the sake of his family. He is trying to make a better way for them, so their lives won't be empty. When he dropped off my bill at the table, I opened the little folder-thing and on the inside cover he had inscribed, "Prayer." I don't know if he is a Christian, but I imagine that "prayer" is the way he is moving through this time away.

It is a good reminder for me today. One, to know that God desires to meet with me and two, that through His Son, Christ, I am granted access to do that. In a culture where we do view suffering as something to avoid, I find myself very grateful today for the suffering of one. Who, through His suffering, brought everlasting hope to a world where we do find ourselves living the empty lives we inherit from our ancestors. Praise God that there is more to this life.