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One of the things I dig the most concerning the devotional material I’m in right now is the periodic introduction to canonized theologians with whom I’m not very familiar.  Bonaventure was an Italian scholar who lived a short 53 years in the 1200’s.  He was canonized by Pope Sixtus IV in 1482 and declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Sixtus V in 1588.  All of that happened long after he had passed to glory, so none of it ever got to his head.  He entered the ministry through the Franciscan ranks and rarely ventured very far from the simple values of the Order.

What caught my eye today was the opinion of the author that Bonaventure’s spirituality was mature (something I would hope we’re all trying to attain without becoming stuck in more religious ritual).  Rohr calls him a “contemplative charismatic”.  Bonaventure got the big picture by understanding that you can’t really separate your natural life from your spirituality.  The two are radically fused together.  He reasoned that the “traces” or “footprints” of God are everywhere.  The discipline of our mind given to devotion towards God, leads us to see the unification of these things:  (1) all of humanity is one big family; (2) hearing the hidden God is totally possible in a wide assortment of experiences; and (3) paying attention to His influence (that is evident everywhere) makes life exciting, an adventure, something worthy of being treasured every single day!

BUT, where this leads us is even better.  IF we are one big family, IF there is a voice to listen to (and there is), and IF His touch is on everything and everyone, it SHOULD result in a life of REAL GRATITUDE, PRACTICAL REVERENCE, and SIMPLE JOY.  Do you have any of that working inside of you right now?

So… work this deal backwards.  Are you really grateful about your life or are you so hung in your past disappointments that you bemoan a dark cloud everywhere you go?  Like Pigpen, do you bring a little emotional clutter of what went wrong instead of what is going right?  Can you bend the knee to what is mysteriously beyond you anyway; or do you have to have an answer to every question in your mind before you’ll settle in peace, knowing full well that there are no answers to some questions on this planet?  Do you see how blessed you are or do you live in your own handcrafted prison of “woe is me”?

How much more blessed do you have to be… in order to see how blessed you already are?

-MDP-

I wish I had written this.  I did not.  I suspect if you’re under the age of 40 you’ll find this confusing, odious, or maybe even a downer.  Nonetheless, it is the truth.  Read it slowly.  Then, read it again.  -MDP-

Despair and Hope by Richard Rohr

Rising and dying are closely related.  Despair, I suspect is another kind of dying and another kind of pain.  It is not so much the loss of persons as the loss of ideals, visions and plans.  For people who hitched their future or their hopes to certain stars, the loss of those stars is bitter and disabling.

It usually happens slowly as we recognize unfulfilled dreams and as we gradually face our own impotence and the “sin of the world” (John 1:29).  We are forced to let go of images: images that we built in our youth, images that solidified and energized our own self-image.  The crash of images is experienced as a death of the spirit, as a loss of hope, as a darkness almost too much to bear.  Many, if not most, become tired and cynical while maintaining the old words that have become cliches even to themselves.

Spiritual growth is the willing surrender of images in favor of True Images.  It is a conversion that never stops, a surrender that never ceases.  It is a surrender of self-serving and self-created images of self, of others, of God.  Those who worship the images instead of living the reality simply stop growing spiritually.  In this light, the First Commandment takes on a whole new power and poignancy:

“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods.” (Exodus 20:4-5)

It seems that many people, religious people in particular, would sooner relate to images than to the reality where both despair and God lie hidden.

Until we walk with this despair, we will not know that our hope was hope in ourselves, in our successes, in our power to make a difference, in our image of what perfection and wholeness should be.  Until we walk with this despair, we will never uncover the real hope on the other side of human achievement.  Until we allow the crash and crush of our images, we will never discover the real life beyond what only seems like death.

Sometimes I really want to punch Facebook in the kisser.  I genuinely have a love/hate relationship with it.  I enjoy catching up with people, the casual messaging, seeing the pictures and videos… you know, all  THAT stuff.  It really is a great tool for communication.  But sometimes I think its done nothing more than escalate our narcissistic impulses and provide a platform for people to air out their (less than clean) laundry for everyone to see.  Yes, yes, we all know your spouse/fiance/lover is the absolute “best ever” and you stay totally drunk in love with them 24/7/365, but who are you trying to convince… us or yourself?  Thanks for not posting when you have to sleep on the couch you big jerk.  Quite honestly, not all of us believe in your fairy tale and I thought some things are supposed to be private?  Guess not.

  Most mature adults also don’t give a crap what you had for breakfast nor do we want to think about whether or not you should shave or cut your frikk’n hair.  At times, it appears that we’re willing to revert to middle-school antics to get the attention we crave.  About the only thing more scary is that there are some who are so bored that they MIGHT actually care about whether you cut your hair or pimped your porn stache.  OMG!   WE HAVE GOT TO GET OUT OF OUR LOVE AFFAIR WITH THE DAMN MIRROR!

OK, please forgive me.  That was pissy and my grace tank is running a little low in this area.  I was recently reminded of a truth that we all (yes, me too) seem to misplace at times.  Anne Lamott, in her book Traveling Mercies, beautifully conveys the essence of what is stirring in my head today.  Anne writes about a particular visit she had with her best friend Pammy.  At the time, Pammy was a 35 years old woman who was loosing a battle to cancer in her body.  Little did Anne know that Pammy only had about 3 weeks of life remaining at the time of the visit.  The end was quickly drawing near.  Anne recalls the extraordinary moment:

I happily popped in that day to see my sweet friend.  I had on a new dress and I as I twirled around to show off the dress, I asked Pammy (cancer patient), “Does this dress make me look fat?”  Pammy (cancer patient) looked up at me and said, “Anne, you don’t have that kind of time.”

Oh my.  Talk about confronting the self-absorbed.  Holy schamoly!  Pammie was all over it with fatal precision.  We do NOT have that kind of time.  Can we truly afford to allow such egocentric appetites to run roughshod over our lives?  Is the shallow infatuation with our own navel gazing habits really that important?  When did our life become about us?  I imagine we’ll quickly respond with religious answers, but deep down, we all know this is a real glitch in our heart.  We might want to take a little time to consider those questions.

Last month, friends of our in Texas gathered together with their family to await the arrival of a new baby grandson.  It’s a huge family, lots of sons and daughters, lots of grandchildren, and this was just supposed to be another routine arrival of blessing.   Not  this time… nothing was routine about it.  This time it didn’t go as planned.  The baby’s mommy had complications before she made it to the delivery room and neither she or the baby boy survived it. So instead of a joyous homecoming for momma and the baby, the family planned a funeral.  Talk about stripping the fluff out of your life.  These are strong believers, people with good hearts and high family values, with lots and lots of lots of love, confronting what no one ever wants to confront.  A cigar with the patriarch of the family a couple weeks ago brought a monumental revelation:  “Time is short Mike.  We knew it, but now we believe it.”

Honestly, we don’t have a good excuse for petting our hyperactive ego or the self-absorbed infatuation with our magical life.  It is diametrically opposed to the teaching of Jesus.  We have lots to be thankful for and much to do that offers real value to life on this planet.  But, we got to wake up the fact that time is short and the clock never stops ticking.  Do we really want to spend that much of our time in those shallow waters?

-MDP-

Yesterday I walked through an ocean of white tombstones, but I went to visit one in particular.  No, not Kennedy’s… another one.  I stumbled, quite by accident, on this story a couple weeks ago.  I’ve had some interaction with this soldier’s parents.  They’re good people.  As I draw within a couple weeks of being done with this 2 year writing project, I wanted you to be acquainted with this kid.  We complain too much about things that really don’t matter.  My thanks to Ross for such a display of what it means to love well.  -MDP-

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Proverbs 17:17, NIV

I do not know this kid, but I have communicated with his parents.  Today, I want us to prayerfully read and consider the implications of this citation for Ross A. McGinnis.

Medal of Honor Citation

President George Bush presents the Medal of Honor to the parents of Ross McGinnis

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty:

Private First Class Ross A. McGinnis distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an M2 .50-caliber Machine Gunner, 1st Platoon, C Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, in connection with combat operations against an armed enemy in Adhamiyah, Northeast Baghdad, Iraq, on December 4, 2006. That afternoon his platoon was conducting combat control operations in an effort to reduce and control sectarian violence in the area. While Private McGinnis was manning the M2 .50-caliber Machine Gun, a fragmentation grenade thrown by an insurgent fell through the gunner’s hatch into the vehicle. Reacting quickly, he yelled “grenade,” allowing all four members of his crew to prepare for the grenade’s blast. Then, rather than leaping from the gunner’s hatch to safety, Private McGinnis made the courageous decision to protect his crew. In a selfless act of bravery, in which he was mortally wounded, Private McGinnis covered the live grenade, pinning it between his body and the vehicle and absorbing most of the explosion. Private McGinnis’ gallant action directly saved four men from certain serious injury or death. Private First Class McGinnis’ extraordinary heroism and selflessness at the cost of his own life, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

Spc. McGinnis was 19 years old.  There are many ways to develop today’s wisdom message.  But, what I want us to take away today is simple:  friends, family, brothers, and sisters do what is necessary to protect each other when danger, adversity and storms winds blow.  We need to appreciate the real friends that we have and dedicate ourselves to be better to them in return.

http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/ramcginnis.htm

http://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/mcginnis/

The McGinnis family recommends for donations:

http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/

Recently, Anthony Chapman preached a message to the ECF family in McGregor, TX.  Do yourself a favor and download this for your consumption.  It’s quite tasty. 

“All God has ever wanted is to relate to mankind as father.”  Anthony Chapman

To Listen click here:  Reluctant God

We do have a serious issue in the Body of Christ!  All this sniggilin has got to stop!  Watch as Sister Bernice helps set some order back into our sacred services.  It’s a good day to laugh!  Enjoy.  -MDP-

Recently, one of my sons, who happens to be married to my youngest daughter and is the father of 3 of my grandchildren, sent me a text which included a page out of A.W. Tozer’s The Pursuit of God.   This is only enough to wet your appetite, but this is what Jon sent me to review.  Take a moment and dig into this rich delicacy, laid out by a brilliant mind.  What Tozer says is very true.  There is a difference.  -MDP-

With the veil removed by the rending of Jesus’ flesh, with nothing on God’s side to prevent us from entering, why do we tarry without? Why do we consent to abide all our days just outside the Holy of Holies and never enter at all to look upon God? We hear the Bridegroom say, “Let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice and thy countenance is comely.” We sense that the call is for us, but still we fail to draw near, and the years pass and we grow old and tired in the outer courts of the tabernacle. What doth hinder us?

Let me just get on with this… I’m in one of THOSE moods.  Back in the day when I had hair and was pastoring small SBC churches in Texas, I had a knack for soul winning.  I had been well trained even before I went to seminary because nickels, noses, and souls dominate most agendas in the evangelical church.  When I was just a “layperson” (sounds lame doesn’t it) I would knock on doors for a couple of hours every Wednesday night and sometimes on Sunday afternoon.  My pockets would be full of The Four Spiritual Laws or the Roman Road tracts and I could whip out one of those bad boys if you cracked the door a half-inch.  I have no idea how many people accepted Jesus, got baptized, or joined the church because of my efforts?  I would have to say I probably made hundreds of presentations, if not nearer to a thousand.  That was my job.  Honestly, it was on my heart to do it and people got excited when God was moving.  Good preacher boys were taught that it was part of our responsibility to fulfill the Great Commission.  Although the names and numbers are no longer clear to me, here is what IS certain:  NOT EVERYONE SAID, “YES” TO JESUS EVERYTIME.  NOT EVERYONE GOT SAVED.  NOT EVERYONE JOINED THE CHURCH.

Some nights I sucked.  Some nights people wouldn’t even come to the door.  Other nights I would get cussed at or ridiculed, even threatened to be escorted from the property.  But, I don’t remember ever thinking, ‘God, you owe me an explanation’ on why I (we) didn’t win souls every time I (we) knocked on a door.  In fact, there was always a good feeling in my spirit about doing the thing that most churchgoers just don’t have the guts or a famed “call” to even make a reasonable attempt.  I knew He was with me, even though my knees were shaking.  It’s not a “play it safe” way to roll in evangelical systems, just acceptably admired in that culture.  God still cares about souls and push-back is a part of the deal.  Rejection was to be expected and rejection happened, but I’d knock on the next door anyway.  Many a night I drove home thinking, “What the heck is wrong with me?  Why do I keep doing this?  Is it really worth it?”  And, when someone got saved… man-alive did WE ever CELEBRATE and cheer in great joy!  When nothing happened, God was still given praise and we’d gear up and rededicate ourselves to press into faith and hope, only to trust for more good things to come on the next attempts!  You just kept going no matter what!

So, my Tribe pushes the envelope of FAITH in a different way.  We ask for the miraculous, signs and wonders; and again I notice that not everyone has the stomach for this kind of “spirit”-uality.  Why?  Because… ultimately, WE ARE NOT IN CONTROL IN THIS ARENA!  There are no formulas and it can get messy.  Not to get too far out there with all the crazies, the damn devil does get pissed when we start messing around with the status quo.  So, we boldly declare that God is able, anyway.  We believe that God is willing.  We hope and trust that God sees the need.  Unashamedly, we ask, pray, worship, anoint, consume and risk it all; believing that God WILL move mightily and show HIS POWER on behalf of our friends, family, community and tribe.  We see this as our cultural norm and responsibility.  So, we joyfully take whatever we get from the Lord and push past all the resistance we get in the spirit-realm!  It doesn’t touch our resolve to bring the “fruitfulness of the garden to the barrenness of the earth”!  That is what we signed up for!  Not a prearranged agreement with sterile expressions.  We said we want KINGDOM… the real deal… the rumor that we’ve always known!

The soul-winner knocks again, and again, and again, and again.   We admire them for their efforts; or at least the evangelical church does.  So why is it so unusual or strange for us to keep knocking on the door of health and healing?  Would it be the fear of man, disappointment, or our aversion to looking foolish before the LORD?  That sort of sounds like pride doesn’t it?  Fear that God’s name or reputation will be diminished?  That is total nonsense!  The devil will roar and devils of intimidation desire to label us all with their religious euphemisms and silly tags, but turn a deaf ear!  The blood of Christ still saves!  His blood washes us clean of the guilt and stain of sin!  His blood makes us whole!  How do we know this?  We’re looking at you… LIVING PROOF!

Beloved, we chose to get into this fight.  You said, we said, “We want Kingdom!”  So, let’s rumble!  Fear not and press in.  Push-back is only a reminder that damage was done.  Know that mighty things have moved and shifted in the Spirit and natural realm because of Monday night.   Seed was planted for a future harvest of supernatural faith.  Only God knows the real truth and expanse of it all!  Let’s continue to agree together that WE  WALK  BY  FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT!  That is the part of all this that He calls righteous and good.

So, So, So proud of You All

-MDP-

So, you petted the creepy bunny, you’ve almost detoxed from the self-induced sugar coma, the new duds are now crumpled at the bottom of your closet, you went to church, sang the great resurrection songs, declared the great resurrection truths and heard another great sermon on the resurrection.  What’s different now…………….. in you?  Are you more full of faith?  Are your expectations for today any different than yesterday?  What about your way… has it changed?  What else did you see?  Is your Easter done and dusted until next Spring?

I read Rohr early this morning.  These are his thoughts:

You cannot see Jesus until you have believed in him.  “When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.  Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?’  Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, ‘Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.’  Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means, Teacher)”; “Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord,’ and that He had said these things to her”  John 20: 15-16, 18, NAS.   If you accept that there was a Resurrection, that will not necessarily lead to faith.  But if you receive the gift of faith, you will necessarily experience the resurrection.  “Jesus knew that they wished to question Him, and He said to them, ‘Are you deliberating together about this, that I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me, and again a little while, and you will see Me’?  Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy’” John 16:19-20, NAS.

We cannot see love itself, but we can see what happens to those who have been loved (There is a massive difference in what manifest in a person’s life based on whether or not they believe, accept, receive and give love.  It’s even more true when it is His love! -MDP-).  We can see the power and gentleness of those who let themselves be loved by Jesus.  We know that there is endless life welling up within us.  We know that when we dare to look at others with “unveiled” faces, they begin “reflecting like mirrors the brightness of the Lord and all grow brighter and brighter as we are turned into the image that we reflect; this is the work of the Lord who is Spirit… And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is FREEDOM!”  2 Corinthians 3:17-18, JBV.

Easter is over?  Not hardly.  Just beginning!

-MDP-

Our son by marriage, Jon Egan (Paige’s babies daddy) has been involved in a new album project for The Desperation Band.  Today is the culmination of lots and lots of hard work, prayer, intense spiritual warfare and renewed joy!  We are very proud of the commitment Jon and Paige have made to get this music out into the world!

CLICK HERE TO GO DIRECTLY TO THE ITUNES LINK!!!

Thanks for celebrating with us!

– Mike & Patti –