Doc Aub's

It’s sad to see the old house go. Change always involves letting go of the past, and there’s always an element

of sadness that goes along with that, even with the excitement of moving forward. Ah, the memories…

I was plagued by recurring bouts of tonsillitis when I was a kid. It was typical for me to come down with it a couple of times a year or more. And so we would go, and sit, and wait. The waiting was part of the torture. As much as I enjoyed that sun-porch full of weird and wonderful strangers coming and sitting and standing and going, beneath it all was the foreboding realization that I was there to see the doctor. Finally to have my name called… the strange looking implements hanging here or laying there around the office provoking images of unimaginable horrors … the tongue depressor … that cold stethoscope roaming around my hot little chest… hoping against hope that a prescription for penicillin would be in order… that faint smile and that slow withering voice ... “I think I’m going to have to give you a needle” !!!

Did I really hear it?! Was this really happening to me?! The mere thought of the invasion of that long pointy object into my tender little body was more than I could stand. Could anything possibly be worse?!

I smile today as I write those words. A catastrophe of life shaking proportions then. Today, a mere prick of the skin. Yeah, it’s sad to see the old house go, but how big a deal is it when we consider what God has for us moving forward?   

Unfailing Love

Two hospitals in Edmonton announced this week that they are opening 'Angel’s Cradles' where

mothers can anonymously ‘drop off’ their babies. While it is illegal in Canada for parents to abandon their children, and while Child and Family Services is obligated by law to try and track down parents who do, police have stated that they will not charge mothers who leave their babies in safe places. Spokespersons for the hospitals say that the medical staff will not attempt to identify or find the parent unless the child is found to be harmed.

Officials say that the service is meant “to provide an alternative to unsafe abandonment, such as leaving a newborn in a trash bin or back alley”. The new ‘service’ in Edmonton is inspired by a similar ‘service’ being offered by a hospital in Vancouver over the past three years.

Read the story here

I certainly don’t want to stand in judgment of a young mother that finds herself in such a desperate situation that she would feel that this is the only or best course of action for her and her child. The announcement did remind me however of a passage of Scripture…

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
 your walls are ever before me.”  Isa 49:15,16

It’s hard for us to conceive of the anguish involved in abandoning one’s own child. But while it is, thankfully, not a common occurrence (the hospital in Vancouver has only had one child dropped off in the three years it has been offering the service), it can and does happen.

The truth is that, as much as we love and honour our parents, and as much as they love and do for us, as parents, we do fail. As human beings, our love, though ferociously loyal a lot of the time, particularly when it comes to our children, is not perfect.

But, let’s be reminded that when we talk about the love and care of God, we are talking about a perfect love; a love that never fails.   

The shepherd king of Israel also spoke of God’s love in these same terms.

“Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.”  Psa 27:10

The phrase ‘unfailing love’ is a phrase that occurs numerous times in Scripture (4 times in Psa 107 alone) but it is always in reference to God’s love for us because only God’s love is perfect.

Got a few moments? Have a listen.

One Thing Remains

Easy as Pie

This past Sunday, as part of the morning teaching time, I used a simple illustration to communicate some important truth about life. I actually used a number of them. I love illustrations. They don’t replace, nor should they ever usurp the place of Scripture, but it’s hard to get around the fact that Jesus used illustrations continuously. There is also the whole body and tradition of the wisdom literature of Israel. Those writers drew constantly upon the observable world around us (Creation) to illustrate the truth of numerous life principles. The simple reason for this is that illustrations (good ones anyway) help us in our understanding.

Life is complex, not simple. We used to think it was simple. We used to think that a cell was a simple thing. But modern science, if it has proved anything at all, has proved that life is complex. However, it has been and continues to be the glory of what the Bible calls wisdom to make the complex simple.

Charles Mingus is credited with saying:

“Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity.”

Another version of Mingus’ words has it as,

 “Making the simple complex is easy. Making the complex simple, awesomely simple, now THAT is genius.”

More recently, Steve Jobs highlighted the power of this precious ability to simplify the complex.  

“Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”

So, how do we do that? I think one way (following the examples in Scripture) is to recognize patterns or systems in nature that bring order and balance to life. Life in this world consists of a seemingly limitless number of activities and experiences and needs and wants and so on, all interconnected somehow and interdependent. But when we observe the created world around us we observe a sense of order and harmony that is both inspiring and instructive.

Even the things in nature that might appear random at first glance turn out to be in fact intricate patterns. Patterns are created by order, not chaos. There is no randomness to life. Life depends on organization. Organisms are very thoughtfully and intentionally (‘fearfully and wonderfully’) organized. Human beings are certainly no exception to the rule, each of us the result of being ‘knit together’ in our mother’s womb. (Psa 139)

One of the examples I used this past Sunday was the simple baking of a cake. In order to bake a cake you need to have the right amount of the right ingredients in the right order and then you need to process them correctly. Some things you exclude because they aren’t good ingredients for a cake. In life, some ingredients you exclude because they aren’t good ingredients for your life. But it's not just a matter of having the right ingredients. You have to have the right amounts of each. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing. We need to have just the right balance. Don’t work too much, play too much, rest too much … but make sure you have the right amounts of each.

The order is important as well. I think most of us have heard the story about the teacher fitting all of the big rocks and the little rocks into the jar and how the secret is to put the big rocks in first. Establishing our priorities first is a critical factor. And all of this too speaks to the ‘chemistry’ or interconnectedness of the different elements or aspects of life and how each relates to the others and the interplay back and forth between the different parts.

And, of course when you have the cake (or pie!) all made, you get to slice it and eat it. And you can slice it anyway you want, but you can’t have your cake and eat it too. 

As complicated as life often feels, the answers to our frustrations can often be something as simple baking a cake or slicing a pie. God is good!  

A Good Laugh

With all of the big intense things happening in our world these days it can be hard not to focus on them. In

fact, we can even feel guilty for not allowing them to fill up our thoughts. We can feel ‘insensitive’ or ‘out of touch’ if we are talking about other things that might seem trivial in comparison to some of these ‘larger’ stories. You know the ones I mean.

But here is something really important about our God. He is so big that He can be on top of everything, the big and small alike. While He is most certainly aware and involved in global issues of catastrophic impact, He also sees each tear you cry. He has the hairs on your head numbered. He sees the tiny sparrow fall.

And there is a sense of balance in all of this. Because sometimes we need the mental break that comes from some of the more trivial matters of life, whether that’s doing the laundry or having a good laugh.

Laughter is an important case in point. God created us with a sense of humor. I think we have all (I hope we have anyway) been entertained by that delightful video of the quadruplet babies on the bed with their mom laughing at their silly dad. To laugh is to take things lightly. And sometimes we need that. Don’t get me wrong. We don’t take God lightly, but we need to learn not to take ourselves so serious. And the Bible does tell us to make light of our troubles.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.    2Cor 4:16,17

Is it too much to say that laughter is biblical. I don’t think so…

“When the Lord brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.”    Psa 126:1-3

And as for the big stuff? Well, it’s rather comforting to remember that there are no big things for God.

And, for those who haven’t seen the video or just want to watch it again (it’s only 1 minute long) here’s a link to provide you with your daily laugh.

quadruplet babies laughing

42

It’s playing right now in theatres everywhere. It tells the inspiring true story of number 42, baseball Hall Of Fame legend, and civil rights icon, Jackie Robinson. I haven’t seen it and I probably won’t. I would if I thought they would tell the true story; the real story.

True, the movie may well portray a good sense of the incredible injustice and abuse suffered and the triumph of the man who would become the first black man to play major league ball effectively breaking what was called the baseball ‘color line’. In 1947 Jackie Roosevelt Robinson did just that playing first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers. But the problem with the movie is not what it tells but what it leaves out. How did he do it? Where did he find the strength to endure? And why? They left out the most important part. And why would they do that you may be wondering? Well, in case you didn’t know, Jackie Robinson’s strength of character came from his personal faith in God.   

Not only that, but Dodgers’ General Manager Branch Rickey who, at the time, chose Jackie Robinson to be the man to ‘break the color barrier’, did so based, not only on Jackie’s Christian faith and character, but also because of his own personal faith in Christ and his desire to seek social justice for black Americans because of it.

Knowing that the first black man who would break into the racist world of big league ball in twentieth century America would have to endure horrendous abuse, Rickey not only sought out a man he believed had the kind of faith convictions to persevere under such attacks, but used his initial meeting with Jackie to read from Jesus’ teachings in the sermon on the mount to confirm the need for a man who would have the God given ability to ‘resist the temptation to retaliate’ having ‘guts enough not to fight back’. Robinson agreed committing himself to be that man. These men weren’t just playing baseball! These men were setting out to conquer social injustice for the cause of Christ!!! (Apparently, the film does give a nod to Rickey’s faith, like throwing a scrap to a dog.)

Why would the producers leave Robinson’s faith out of this movie? It wasn’t because Robinson was quiet about his faith. He talked openly about it. In a 1950 newspaper interview he explained how he got down on his knees beside his bed to pray before going to sleep. The fact is that personal faith in God played a CENTRAL role in Jackie Robinson’s life and they left it out of a movie that is supposed to tell his story?! How negligent (is deceitful too strong a word?) is that? You decide.

But, it’s not just this movie. Go to Wikipedia and there is a lengthy article on Robinson and all of his accomplishments, which are many and great, along with a section on his personal life. Do a search for the words ‘faith’ or ‘God’ or anything related to his beliefs and you won’t find anything.

So, where is the integrity in that? The secular world constantly dismisses believers as hypocrites, and yet they have no hesitation to rewrite history to support their own views.

So, if you do decide to go see this movie, at least watch it with the understanding (something those sitting around you won’t have) of the back story, which is the real story; the true story of Jackie Robinson.

Keith Green

So, this past Sunday during the sermon I made reference to Keith Green and asked for a show of hands for those who knew who he was. I was shocked when such a very few hands went up. But, since then I did some checking and realized that it has been over 30 years now since his untimely death.

Keith Green was a Christian singer/songwriter who died in a plane crash when he was only 28 years old.

If you aren’t familiar with his music, then you really owe it to yourself to check it out online. He was so much more than a musician. He had a profound impact on me personally as a new believer and I know that to be true for a great number of others as well.  

And, for fun, I’d be interested in some of you sharing with me your favourite Keith Green song. So respond with a comment and let me know and we’ll share some memories.

I couldn’t find my own favorite, ‘The Grace By Which I Stand’, because there seem to be some copyright issues attached to it. I know that Keith wouldn’t be impressed by that as he consistently gave his music away.

But there is no shortage of his songs online. That’s for sure. So, here is one you might recognize even if you didn’t realize who wrote it.

'O, Lord, You're Beautiful'  Live audio 

Social Media

I’m really thankful for all of the wonderful technology that we have ready access to. And when it comes to communications technology I am thankful for the incredible advances made in my lifetime that have brought us things like the internet and social media. I am thankful because it allows us to share our lives like never before. What a blessing!

“We read to know we are not alone” wrote C. S. Lewis. We could say the same about writing. The use of the written word has been elevated to amazing heights by the new technologies. Just think about how the spoken word (unless it is recorded) simply goes off into the air never to be reheard (except allowing that God is able to recover those very words spoken to the wind  - for example see Matthew 12:36). But the written word is a recorded word that is saved for posterity and perpetuity. Writing … the printing press… computer key boards … it’s all old technology now, but these technologies as they continue to develop allow us to share with others in more and more powerful ways.

Are there problems? Oh yeah! But, it is really no different than any other technology. The chainsaw comes to mind; a very powerful tool and one worthy of immense respect. So are words. Technology itself is amoral. It’s all in how we use it. Anything can be used for great harm or for greater good. I was reminded of this some time ago when a young lady made the news because she had gotten herself in trouble for posting some of her indiscretions online. Her words ended up coming back on her and used against her. The purveyors of conventional wisdom at the time were preaching their version of the moral of the story - be careful people what you post online because it becomes so public. Not bad advice but it does miss the more important point – be careful what you think, say and do, whether you think it might become public or not. The real problem isn’t that someone might see what we have done/posted. The real problem is that we would do/write it in the first place. The real problem is not that we might be found out. The real problem is that God already knows. As it is, our present culture seems far more concerned about being found out than it does about us being what we are supposed to be.  

These are powerful tools for sure. And they can be used for great harm or great good. They can be used with wisdom, skill and virtue. They can be used carelessly, ruthlessly and with poor judgment. The technology is there. It’s up to us how we use it. It can be a great friend, other than the fact it knows nothing of forgiveness.