God's New Project

"Jesus' resurrection is the beginning of God's new project, not to snatch people away from earth to heaven, but to colonize earth with the life of heaven. That, after all, is what the Lord's Prayer is about."

- from Surprised by Hope, by Tom Wright

Brisbane Floods, and Where is God?

A couple of weeks ago there was major flooding in my city and the surrounding areas, and in fact in an unbelievably large portion of the eastern states of Australia. Some towns are still waiting to see if their river banks will hold. The sheer amount of water is inconceivable, and the effects have been devastating. Many people have lost loved ones, and many more have lost their homes and businesses. And as if that wasn't enough, in the last few weeks a great number of these have since found out that their insurance doesn't cover this kind of flood.

If you entertain the notion of God (whether you believe there is one or not), it doesn't take long before the questions start rolling in...

If there is a God, why didn't he do something? Is he really all that powerful? And if he is powerful, is he really all that good? What kind of person would allow people to suffer like this?

I do believe that God is good and that he loves us immensely, and thankfully the Bible does have some answers for these questions.

First, the sad reality is that there is suffering in this world. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, bush fires, AIDS, SIDS and cancer are all part of the world we live in. Unfortunately, that's just how this world is. And it affects all of us, whether you believe in God or not.

This would be utterly demoralizing if that was the end of the story. But thankfully it isn't.

The incredible hope of the Bible is that one day God will restore this world. One day God will rebuild it and transform it into a more beautiful, more amazing, more life-giving universe. The Bible promises that in this new world there will be no more crying or pain, no more anguish, no more suffering, because the old world will have passed away. Not only that, but our own bodies (of those who belong to God) will also be restored and transformed - no longer subject to sickness, decay, cancer, or even death itself. One of the writers in the New Testament, Paul, describes this transformation as being something like that of a caterpillar to a butterfly. And those who have already died will be resurrected and given new life and a new body too. I can't wait for this new world, and new way to experience the depths and greatness of it. This is hope.

And what about in the meantime? Do we just wait it out, suck it up, and suffer through this world? Absolutely not. There's hope for right now too. Jesus' life and message when he was on earth was that this new world - which he called the kingdom of heaven - is even now breaking into our world. While the complete restoration is still in the future, the process has already started. It started with Jesus. Practically, he lived it out, and showed others how to live it. Things like love, grace, forgiveness, beauty, joy, mercy, compassion - heaven breaking in. And when we live like this, we're bringing light into the darkness.

But even more than that, Jesus' resurrection was the inauguration of this new kingdom of light. Easter Sunday was the start of an entirely new week. Yes, Jesus died, like we all do. But he then defeated death, and God resurrected him, wonderfully transformed. Now death means nothing to Jesus - it has no power whatsoever. He was the first to be resurrected - and all who believe and live this truth will follow later - and right now he is the reigning king of this world. Just think for a second about the implications.

And right now we can build for this kingdom, helping it break into this world. Jesus told us to pray for God's kingdom to come, on earth as it is in heaven, and now we can join with God to be the answer to that prayer. The restoration has begun. Yes, there is still darkness, tragedy and pain, but that's not all there is. Heaven is breaking in.

Many people who've lost homes in the last couple weeks have said while they were shocked by the damage, they were absolutely stunned by the generosity, compassion and selfless hearts of the thousands of people who came to help them get back on their feet again. Over 22,000 people flooded into Brisbane with mops, buckets and spades, from all over Australia and New Zealand - to help out their neighbours and friends - but more often to help complete strangers. Thousands of volunteers had to be turned away because there were just too many.

In the midst of pain, there can be breathtaking beauty, overwhelming love, inconceivable generosity. God is not absent, and he is not uncaring. He is building a new world, and it's already begun. Look for it, pray for it, see it breaking in, be a part of bringing heaven more fully into earth. And live in hope for that day when God will completely restore everything.

Sunday Services

This one might be a little controversial. Love to hear your thoughts! This is taken from Neil Cole's Organic Church....

"When you imagine the amount of resources, energy, and time invested in a service held only one day a week, it is remarkable. With all the importance placed on this event, you would expect there to be a lot of scriptural directives to make sure people get it right. But if you search all of the New Testament looking for the commands or injunctions having to do with this important weekly event, you will find them sadly missing. Instead you will find verses, chapters, and entire books that speak to how we are to live together as a spiritual family. You will find commands and injunctions to serve and worship, but not just one day a week. How is it that we have gone so far away from the pure and simple priorities of the Scriptures?..."

"We find it nearly impossible to even think about church without a Sunday morning service event, but this is not the biblical norm. When we read of church life, we read into the scriptural text this idea. Try reading your New Testament without a once-a-week service. In fact, there is much evidence that believers got together with their church families daily, not once a week - and the gathering had more to do with a meal together than with sanctimonious liturgy.

"How did we ever get to the place where church was nothing more than a one-and-a-half-hour service on a single day of the week at a specific location? I assure you, in Jesus' eyes, the Church is much more than that! He doesn't limit His Church to a building, a location, or a time frame."

Sunday Lunches

No Such Thing

The Prince

Hundreds of years before Jesus, the prophet Ezekiel reiterates the law for God's followers...

"The prince will be required to provide offerings that are given at the religious festivals, the new moon celebrations, the Sabbath days, and all other similar occasions. He will provide the sin offerings, burnt offerings, grain offerings, liquid offerings, and peace offerings to purify the people of Israel, making them right with the Lord."

- Ezekiel 45:17

The prince will provide everything that is needed to make people right with God. And when Jesus came, that's exactly what he did.

Thanksgiving Thoughts from Annie Leonard

"Let's opt out of the frenzy this year.
"Our out-of-control consumption has taken a toll on the planet, on our family budgets, and on workers from FoxConn in China to Walmart in New York. And it has taken a toll on the quality of our lives at home.
"We have more and cooler stuff than our parents and grandparents could have ever imagined, but we pay dearly. We spend more time working and shopping than they did and we spend much less time in leisure, on vacation and with friends. What is the use of a brand new Pottery Barn table if we don't have a gang of friends and neighbors to gather around it?
"If we're going to figure out how to build an economy and society that is healthy for people and the planet, this Friday is a good place to start.
"Let's opt out of Black Friday. Choose family over frenzy."


- Annie Leonard, Choose Family Over Frenzy

For the story to be great...

It isn't necessary to win for the story to be great, it is only necessary to sacrifice everything.

- from A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, by Donald Miller

Psalm 103:8

The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.

How to Make a Beautiful Garden

1. Clear out everything that's not beautiful, or that you just don't want there. Kill the things that might come back later.
2. Decide what beautiful things you want to put in your garden.
3. Plan them out in a nice way, making sure that they're in a place where they can get lots of sunlight (things don't grow well in the dark).
4. Dig holes for the new plants, and put them in.
5. Fertilise everything.
6. Mulch everything, to lock it all in, keep the weeds away, and improve the soil quality over time.
7. Water everything thoroughly.
8. Over time, make sure you keep taking out the bad things that come up, and watering everything. You'll need to trim the beautiful plants too from time to time, to keep them nice and to train them to grow in the right ways - otherwise they will get ugly. They might look a little ugly at first when you trim them, but they'll come good and look even better afterwards.

Be aware the initial set up is very quick (most gardens you can completely turn around in a day), but the care and love to help it grow into a beautiful place takes a very very long time - growth happens very slowly, but slow growth results in stronger and more lovely gardens.