a wonderful Spring

This has been the most enjoyable Spring for me yet, I was telling Deb recently. Maybe it's simply appreciating more and more God's creation. It is partly the weather, as we didn't just jump into Summer from Winter, as it seems like we've done before (to the harm of Michigan fruit crops, by the way). I love to see life springing forth again, from the trees, plants, hearing the birds singing, green everywhere.

They say it may be a milder Summer, and I won't argue against that. Deb does like the heat, at least well into the 80's, if not much more than that. Summer is her favorite time of the year, and I can understand that, since I've seen her shiver even in the Summer (over cold, cold homemade ice cream, to be fair). It is a good time to enjoy the outdoors, and go camping and/or hiking. Autumn with the relief from the hottest part of Summer, the beautiful change in colors of the leaves, and the festivals that go traditionally with harvest time, is a not distant second for me, to Spring.

I like Spring, Fall, Summer and Winter, in that order. I like them all, but we "Michiganders" can be prone to complaining about the long Winters here. Winter is beautiful, and I am thankful, given all the lake effect (from Lake Michigan) cloudy days we have in the Winter, particularly through the first half of it, that we do have snow, which for the issues it brings does brighten the atmosphere considerably. And snow has a beauty all its own, especially right after it has fallen. We've had close to record amounts of snowfall over the past two winters. In spite of the difficulties of Winter, I'd miss it, if we lived in a warmer climate.

What is your favorite season, and why? Maybe what is your least favorite, or the order you would rate them?

culture

Last evening Deb and I enjoyed visiting Holland, Michigan which has the Tulip Time Festival on now. We enjoyed the Klompen Dancers again, and of course the tulips planted in the downtown area.

This area is rich in its culture, many Dutch people having settled here generations past. "If you ain't Dutch, you ain't much." I'm not aware of Deb or I having any Dutch ancestry, so I guess that applies to us!

Culture is simply expressions in various ways of what it means to be human. It is interwoven with both good and evil. Expressions of our humanity reflect God's good creation. But we're all impacted by the Fall, which means that what is sinful becomes a part of human culture, and what is good in human culture can become sinful, when we let it take the place of God in our lives.

I'm reminded of the book of Ecclesiastes. The perspectives there are from people who seem to want to live life to the full in content and in manner. The writer (or writers) wants to experience everything, and he wants to do so, so completely that these normally good things become ends in themselves, or the end and goal for himself. In other words they become idols in one's heart.

But in the end the book comes around to the abrupt conclusion: "Fear God and keep his commandments!" Knowing that God will bring every hidden thing into judgment, whether it is good or evil.

I don't think Ecclesiastes pushes culture aside. It simply warns us to see culture for what it is: in part God's good gift to humanity, but impacted by human folly and sin.

I saw nothing sinful about the Klompen dancing. The costumes are delightful, and the wooden shoes. And the dancing. We do well to embrace our humanity. Culture to a significant degree is a gift from God. Though we need discernment to see what might creep in that is not reflective of God's goodness and will.

At the same time we must not let culture or any part of it become our center. God in Christ and his kingdom must be our center. Then all God's gifts can be for us a blessing and not a curse. And an expression of the very image of God in us as humans in ways that reflect not only God's good creation, but his new creation in Jesus. Ultimately redeemed in Jesus.

Just a few thoughts. It was fun; we both enjoyed it. Was nice to be there and spend time together in that way.

What might you like to add here?

science and faith

On an earlier post I came out for a belief in evangelical faith and evolution. Of course I know nothing about origins myself, but made my decision on the basis of what I was reading from others.

Today I want to share a new web site and blog from a renowned, well respected scientist who is also a Christian evangelical, Francis Collins. RJS, herself a fine scientist and professor, having written many interesting, helpful posts on Jesus Creed, introduced both the blog and the website. I want to learn all I can from both, having found Francis Collins' book, The Language of God, both interesting and compelling.

While Christians, especially here in the United States are going to disagree on origins for some time to come, I think it is good to see other options which still hold to Scripture as the word of God with a commitment to the orthodox Christian faith.

My interest in this is due both to my concern for people unnecessarily losing their faith when seeing the scientific evidence for an old earth and universe, and for evolution. And just because I like to see and try to understand what people have studied and observed, and are thinking. A reading true to Scripture is not at odds with mainstream science. The problem in mainstream science is when it adheres to a naturalistic bias which not only rules out the possibility of something beyond what can be scientifically observed, but lets their science be impacted by that in a way that actually hurts their work. Of course, again, I take this from second hand reading from scientists. Theologians committed to the faith and Scripture are beginning to work on this, alongside such scientists.

I know this is a heavy, controversial subject, and I tend to shy away from controversy, unless I think it serves an important purpose. And in this case, I believe it does.

What would you like to say on this? Anything at all. Some of the most intelligent (more so than I) and committed Christians I know disagree with me on this. But I welcome anyone's thoughts.

a nice weekend

Deb pulled out all the stops with a very nice birthday celebration for me yesterday- though just me and her, which in some ways make it nicer, of course! Along with that we planted a tree, as it was Arbor Day. I do love trees, so that's appropriate. This Red Point Maple, budding, as you can see here along with a needy lawn. This is how it looked when I walked in the door yesterday, greeted by my lovely wife, Deb.

I surprised Deb today with a visit to one of our favorite places around here, Meijer Gardens. I've shared pics from a past visit on this blog, before. We had high winds and heavy rain off and on, but still managed to have a very nice time there, seeing some butterflies indoors, red-winged black birds (a favorite of Deb's), daffodils (another of Deb's favorites), the horse sculpted in the tradition of Leonardo Da Vinci, a farm house and barn built as in the 1930's, and more. Some pics of our time there today:

After getting to our car and having our evidently too cheap umbrellas broken by the wind, we had a good time reading from Scot McKnight's 40 Days Living the Jesus Creed, and a prayer and Scripture from The First English Prayer Book. And later, as we were walking around the park, and as we were leaving, I couldn't help but sing, For the Beauty of the Earth (the tune). Words so meaningful for celebrating life and our Father's wonderful world.

Last but not least the latest pics of our sweet granddaughter, Morgan!

a long, cold winter

This winter we've had plenty of snow as you can see from this picture of Deb. She stands beside one of the two major snow piles. I had to learn to use my legs more and my back less, through all the shoveling. Deb usually helps me more than well, but we now have only one shovel left. Deb is 4 feet 11 inches (149.86 centimeters). We're looking forward to Spring!

a great blog

I would like to give highest recommendation to a blog of one whom I am privileged to be acquainted with, and a friend, and fellow worker at RBC Ministries. Entitled The Wonder of Creation. Dean Ohlman is an amateur naturalist, intellectual and really just a great guy. I wish they would have him speak in our weekly chapel, because the one time he spoke years ago on simplicity, is still etched in my mind. This blog is a part of the ministry there.

If you love creation, if you are not afraid of reading fully the two books of God- Creation/Nature and Scripture, if you love beauty and want to enjoy it firsthand for yourself, if you believe we are stewards and therefore have a responsibility from God for this earth, and if you want to learn to grow in your love and appreciation of God's good world, this is a wonderful place to stop. Dean regularly gives us thoughts worth chewing on and living out, along with some breathtaking and interesting photos.

On this posting this week, Dean talked about the sun pilllars, something I saw on the way home the day before. Along with other beauties and curiosities surrounding that morning.

Give this blog a look, and leave a comment if you are so inclined.

Any day I'd sit under Dean and learn all I could. And I'd best put into practice what he says in ending every posting:

"See you outdoors!"

no cloning of Christians

No two Christians are precisely the same; no two people on the face of the earth or whom God has made are, for that matter, either. Even those identical twins with genetics the same are still different as well as having different experiences, and end up with different perspectives, even if quite similar.

I've been told I read too much by other Christians, some of them reading very little. Do I think reading is a good thing? And do I think more people should read, and that perhaps most everyone should read more than they do? Yes, to all of that.

But do I think everyone should read the same things, have the same interests, and want to read (I'm a "wannabe reader") as much as I want to. No, not at all. In fact the world would be a boring place if everyone was like me, and just like me on this. We need good variations to just begin to try to scratch the surface of all of God's works and of all that pertains to God's world.

When Paul suggested that people should be like him, he was suggesting that to be so in accordance with who they are. I'm never expected by God to be anyone other than who I am as he created me, and now is remaking me in the image of Jesus. Therefore I can enjoy immensely the good gifts of others without feeling in the least bit threatened. Why? Because God has given to each and everyone of us good gifts for the benefit of others. And ending up blessing us, as well.

So we need to relax, and just be who we are. And accept others as they are. With the one proviso that we continue to grow and become who we are meant to be, and who we are in Jesus. Together doing so, each a unique expression from God of Christ himself.

What might you like to add to this?

Derived in part from this book, Where God Happens: Discovering Christ in One Another, by Rowan Williams.

blessing from evil attacks

In Job's story, we see in the end how that even though Job had spoken what was right about God, and his friends had not- and I take it that somehow Satan was behind the words of his friends in their misapplying God's truth and their lack of understanding in it- and in spite of all Job suffered in losing seven children, as well as losing his health, yet through it all God blessed Job, not only temporally (of course he never got back the first seven children), but also spiritually. Job gained new insight as to who God is and thus who Job was, as well. Not merely a head knowledge, but an encounter with God in seeing God through his great works, as well as anew and afresh in his own life.

I want to give a plug for a new blog of a friend of mine at work, Dean Ohlman. He joins Mart DeHaan, who has an equally fine blog, blogs from RBC Ministries. I'm especially excited about Dean's blog, because it addresses a deficiency I have, and a longing. To know God more through his creation. Creation is so wonderful, "the natural world." The older I get, the more I love it. Dean is an amateur naturalist, and a wonderful thinker and writer. Take a good look at his blog and just see the beauty there, both in pics and in words.

Back to Job. God is at work even in Satan's attacks. Yes, Satan was attacking, not God. But God uses all, including Satan's attacks, to work to draw Job closer to himself. Through the encounter, Job sees God and himself in a new way. Though righteous and no one on earth like him before, he is closer to God after this trouble and encounter.

I think this is true for us. It involves both the impact of life itself, which often includes our sin and consequences that follow, be they little or big. And it involves the new way in which we learn to live as a result. Not based on feelings, but based on a relationship with God through Christ in which we seek to live in God's way for us in Jesus. Thankfully grace is there to help us. The goal being that living in the way of Jesus becomes more and more natural to us. That this is more and more who we really are, as we increasingly grow in conformity to the image of our Lord.

Just a few thoughts related to the post yesterday. What would you like to add here?

interesting fun

Deb and I at Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, yesterday. Much to write on it, and not enough time to do so. It was interesting fun and quite a walk/work out.