Writing doesn’t come naturally to me. I’m actually so far out of practice with any serious writing that it takes me quite a while to even get simple paragraphs down. In business you become trained to write short and sweet, totally antithetical to my personal style of verbal communication. That’s why writing here is a bit more fun, but also a bit more work. One day I do promise to document some of the changes that have occurred in my life the last year or so, but I really want to take the time to do it right. So for the moment why don’t we tackle some of the side thoughts I’ve been working through for the last few years…..
Relationships. For those who had the pleasure of sitting in while I was leading weeknight Bible studies at Livonia over the last few years I was there, you know that “relationships” was a point that I started to harp on over and over. Now as a Lutheran I do believe that Law and Gospel is a proper filter to be looking at Scripture through, but as a subset of “Gospel” I believe this idea of relationships takes some important precedence. When I spoke about them, I said that I believe that they are some of the most foundational, fundamental building blocks of Christianity….and I still feel that way. A little story of Jesus speaking about the most important commandments went like this:
Mark 12:28-33
28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29 "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
32 "Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
NIV
If you want to see how The Father intended for us to live, make sure your relationships are in order. There is no such thing as a “good” relationship with God and yet having bad relations with those around you. If anything, this is one of the things that really led me to question this whole idea of Baptist autonomy. To claim to love your neighbor, but then to state that you have no responsibility toward them seemed a little ridiculous to me. But that’s all a little off topic and really a whole essay in and of itself. But that’s another writing for another time.
As we got a little closer to my 31st birthday, I’ve had some chances to look at various relationships in my life. About three weeks ago Julie and I went back to LBC for my brother’s Deacon Ordination. It was a fun time to reconnect with people that I would still consider family even though we don’t attend the same church anymore. As a matter of fact I’d say there’s probably quite a bit we’d disagree about nowadays, but I still love them to death. It was a good chance to reconnect and catch up. That same day Julie and I also babysat her friend’s daughter. So I developed a new relationship with my little 9 month old friend. It’s amazing what a nap on the couch together can do for two people.
Last weekend I got sick, but I didn’t give up on my weekly racquetball game. Why? Well, Julie would probably attribute it to a lack of common sense but the chance to get out with my friends once a week is a hard tug to resist. Of course then I was sick the rest of the weekend and spent it on the couch. I couldn’t even get out to church. But you know what was weird about that? I really wanted to go worship. In the short time that we’ve been going to this church I have really come to love the place. I hated the chance to miss seeing God in action and in community. That’s a feeling I haven’t had in a while.
And just this weekend many of my friends came over just to hang out for the night to celebrate my birthday (Julie’s idea, not mine). But you know what? I loved every minute of it. And a buddy of mine even called me that day just to talk for an hour and catch up. That’s the best part about relationships (romantic or otherwise). Take it from a guy who did the whole long distance dating thing for way too long (including a couple of intercontinental trips), it’s never about the distance, it’s about the effort.
Ok, I’ve rambled on long enough. You’ve gotten an update on my life and a look at my thoughts. Poor you. Probably should go back and re-edit this thing for, oh, I don’t know, coherency. But I won’t. On nights when Julie is on call I just feel like rambling, so ramble it is. Despite every part of my introverted personality that screams for solitude, it was great having my friends around. Who knows? I may grow to be a social creature yet…
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