My Blog

Breaking 80 before it Breaks Me!

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0500

Just when you think you might be accomplishing something in the game of golf... reality sets in... and you crash quicker than poor Icarus did from flying too close to the sun. The date in question was Tuesday, September 6, 2011. I was at Mahoney Golf Course playing with Jim, Bill, Alex, and Al. I know this makes 5 not 4 but Mahoney didn’t seem to mind, so why should you. This was my first time at Mahoney. Usually, I do not play all that well on a new golf course. I seem to find all the places where you do not want to hit the golf ball. But that Tuesday things were different. My golf ball seemed to go where I was looking. My long game, my short game, and everything in between were humming on all 4 cylinders. And then success got the better of me. All I had to do to break 80 was not double bogey the last hole. I could shoot a bogey and still break 80. So, what did I do... I promptly shot a triple bogey (7)on the last hole and shot 81.
If my memory serves me right, I did the same thing some ten years ago when the golfing gods seem to take pity or overlook what I was doing on the golf course. Except ten years ago, I had to par the last hole (4) and I made a bogey (5) and shot 81 again! Breaking 80 shouldn’t be such a big deal. Golfers young and old do it all the time... except me. I get anywhere near shooting 80, I tense up, think about too much... and promptly choke. Suddenly, I become one of the Three Stooges out there hitting my ball all over the place. Needless to say this gives me all kinds of respect for the professional golfer who overcomes the conditions but most importantly overcomes his or her nerves to succeed!
Gosh, I wish I knew what that feeling was like. I guess I never will as it seems my destiny to prove the truth of Romans 3:23 “For all sin and fall short of the glory of God.” And true to form I have been know to say a few choice words under my breath every time I come up short... just like the priest in Caddy Shack. Please pray for my redemption... especially on the golf course.

Swimming with Dolphins rather than Sharks

Sun, 23 Jan 2011 14:32:29 -0600

It has been nearly two weeks since returning from Jamaica but I still can not get Jamaica out of my mind. I suppose it might have something to do with the weather. I say this because my return to Lincoln was delayed by three days because of a snow-ice storm in Charlotte. For two and half days, I was at Charlotte Douglas Airport trying to get out but couldn’t. I had no less than 4 flights booked and canceled because of the storm. I guess this was my punishment for spending six days in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.

The weather there was a balmy 80 to 90 degrees! Perfect compared to the below freezing temperatures here in Nebraska and much of the United States. But as warm as the weather is in Jamaica, I found the people to be even sunnier. The hospitality shown by my host and host family, Father Kenute Francis, showed me a Jamaica that many tourists never get to see. From the sandy beaches to the lush green mountains, Jamaica offers spectacular views that takes one’s breath away. And, yet, when one considers the abject poverty and the living conditions that most Jamaicans live in, one’s breath is taken away as well. For this reason every one in Jamaica lives behind bars to keep the robbers out and to keep them safe within. It was an adjustment to view (through iron bars!) from the balcony of St. John’s Rectory the breathtaking scenery below of the beach and the hotels.

St. John’s Primary School is next door the rectory. Father Francis was gracious and eager to show me the church school his son attends. The staff and the students call him “Chairman” because he is chair of the Board of Directors at the school as well as being the Rector of the church. Needless to say, Father Francis is busy keeping up with his pastoral duties and administrative duties. And, yet, he took the time to show me his beloved Jamaica.

One highlight of my trip was worshipping in St. Mark Anglican Church in Brownstown on January 6, 2011. 3 out of the four bishops were there in attendance, as this service was hosted by the Women’s Auxiallary. I was one of the only men (non clergy) in attendance. It was an awe inspiring sight to see the women dressed in their church colors from their respective churches sitting together. Needless to say with 3 bishops, rectors from their respective churches, and deacons (students in training to be priests) formed quite a processional. Presbyterians can learn a thing or two ( or not) about pomp and circumstance from our Anglican brothers and sisters.

The other highlight of the trip was worshipping with Father Francis in his church on January 10, 2011. Father Francis invited me to help him bring the Word to the congregation. We did a conversational style sermon from Matthew’s story about the wise men worshipping the baby Jesus. Father Francis reminded his congregation that 15 years ago, he and I did a conversational sermon when supplying a country church as students at Columbia Seminary. It was a joy to see how his congregation worshipped the Lord... despite their lack of affluence. And, yet, to this worshipper, they possessed much influence because they had the love of Jesus written on their hearts and their faces.

I owe Kenute a big thank you for showing me his beloved Jamaica through the eyes of his worshipping congregation. This trip did much to restore my spirit... so much so... that I have entitled my visit, “Swimming with Dolphins rather than Sharks.” The one day I got to do the typical touristy thing and visit “Dolphin Cove,” I was invited to swim with the dolphins and to swim with the sharks as part of my VIP package. I politely declined the invitation to swim with the sharks, saying, “I do that every day back home as a pastor of a church but would love to swim with the dolphins.” Swimming with the dolphins was a truly enjoyable and rewarding experience (see my album pictures) as my whole Jamaican visit was. Again, special thanks to my host, Father Francis, for keeping the sharks away throughout my visit. If only he could do the same back home in Lincoln.

Rescued for All to See

Wed, 13 Oct 2010 14:34:25 -0500

Many people around the world are glued to their T.V.’s, computer screens, radios, ipods, mp3 players, and ipad or any other communication device not previously mentioned, waiting the glorious news as one miner after another is rescued from the bowels of the earth.
In Greek mythology, Hades does not give up the dead so easily... just ask Hercules, Theseus, and Persephone how hard it is leave once you have entered the realm of the underworld. And it wasn’t either for the 33 trapped for over two months (since August 5, 2010) in a shelter in case of a cave-in. What the miners had to endure first eating next to nothing and drinking next to nothing until they were spotted and supplies could be piped down was heroic and miraculous indeed. And when video became available, we saw first hand how they looked and were amazed at their spirits. We then found out that these miners never gave up hope and the importance of maintaining group discipline and cohesion. Turns out the miners were organized into three groups that ate together and exercised together and did pretty much everything together. Just as organizational specialists saw life lessons from Shackelford’s failed trip to the South Pole and his heroic trip back to safety, so, undoubtedly, will they find lessons in this rescue.
But I would like to focus our attention on the importance of hope in getting through a crisis. Hope has an eschatological dimension that is often under appreciated or misunderstood. When hope in this life or in the next life diminishes so does our spirit. It is the spirit that gives human beings the will and the ability to transcend their present circumstances to do heroic things... of which we read about in Greek Mythology or in the news like the miners rescue. We have seen when organizations or individuals give up on hope that death soon follows.
The Good News of the Gospel is, indeed, good news for those who face death.
Death, the abode of Hades, need not be the end. Because Jesus was raised by the Spirit on the third day says the faith tradition, God will raise us, too, to new life. Jesus in the Gospel of John is described as the Resurrection and Life. This word order is important for it suggest that eternal life begins again for those who die in the Lord. So, in this sense, Death has lost its power and sting so says Paul in 1st Corinthians 15:55. In many ways death has become a rite of passage from this life to the next life. And to think this has become possible because of the heroism of Jesus Christ sends chills up my spine.
Jesus has performed the ultimate rescue for humanity caught in the bowels of the underworld.
As C.S. Lewis once noted, “just because it is a myth doesn’t make it less true if it actually happened.” Jesus actually did what Hercules was purported of doing... descended into Hades... and returned to tell about it... except Jesus did one better than Hercules... he freed all held in death’s grip. Now this is tale that gives us hope when faced with the existential reality of death... as the miners did... and as we will... one day.

A Ripple Across the Pond and the World

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 16:36:23 -0500

This is one controversy that won’t go away. It is about the stated desire to build an Islamic Community Center/Mosque several blocks from Ground Zero in the old Burlington Coat factory building. There can be no doubt that the Imam who presents a moderate face of Islam to the West and who has been used by the State Department to convince Muslims around the world that the United States is not at war with Islam-- only a militant version of Islam that attacked us on 9/11. Ironically, this cultural and worship center which was to engender peace and goodwill among the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam has done nothing of the sort. Moreover, their efforts to show that one can be a good American and a good Muslim highlighting that Islam and democratic ideals can peacefully coexist has backfired up to this point.
This is especially true for those who see this request to build a mosque/community center so close to Ground Zero in a Crusaders context. It didn’t help that the Imam decided to call this community center the “Cordoba House” commemorating the Moors victory over the Spanish in 8th century AD and that the Muslims took over the existing church and made it into a mosque. It has been my experience that symbols are powerful reminders of the past and call to mind the kind of future we intend to live into. It would be worth having discussions about what kind of future does the Imam envision Islam having with the West and in particular with the US. Does he intend for Islam to peacefully coexist with our constitution and democratic rule where the rights of minorities are protected?
In Great Britain there is a push by the ever growing Muslim minority for Sharia rule to govern Muslim enclaves. There is a world difference of between theocratic rule and democratic rule. We need to be careful not to view this request to build a mosque/community center with the name “Cordoba House” only through our Western ideals and values. We need to view this request also through the lens of history and how militant Islam is on the rise and just how little Moderate Islam has failed to rebuke these hate-mongers. It makes one wonder if even those who are moderate do not secretly wish to see Islam continue its march of territorial conquest. Just as Islam was on the march in crossing the straits of Gibraltar in the 8th century and continued into Europe and wasn’t stopped until the late 17th century on the outskirts of Vienna, it seems to be on the march again as it migrates to the West not with hordes of soldiers but true believers in the ideal of restoring the Caliphate and Islamic rule. Clearly anyone can see that Western values of freedom to do as one please and to serve no higher value than self is a threat to Islam which values obedience to the will of God at all costs. Christianity also values obedience to the will of God but, also, values tolerance as an effective mitigating factor to extremism. You will recall that religious extremism had embroiled Europe in religious wars not so much with Islam but more among themselves-- Catholics against Protestants, Protestants against Protestants.
Thankfully, we grew tired of the centuries of bloodshed to choose a different path. Maybe this is the way forward? If Islam could value tolerance as highly as it does obedience to the will of God, then this would be an effective antidote to religious extremism. One can only hope that they (and we) tire of the bloodshed to choose a moderate path and to that end I think the Mosque/Community Center is a good idea but not with its initial name and initial location. I am glad to see that the project has been given a new name-- Park 51. Now if only it can be given a new location to be worked out so that the ideals of the community center can be realized.
The world is watching. Let the ripple effect be positive so that Muslims in this country and across the world see that America is not at war with Islam-- only with religious terrorists. And that America truly is a place where all religions can thrive when we respect one another and tolerate differences in living out our God given freedoms-- even the freedom to build a mosque, a synagogue, and a church of our choosing. Tell me what you think.

Tiger Woods and Hitting Rock Bottom

Fri, 13 Aug 2010 13:50:58 -0500

Tiger Woods wasn’t totally surprised when he walked of the Firestone course in Akron, Ohio with a combined score of 18 over par. He had expected his golf game to hit rock bottom much sooner considering where his personal life is at the moment-- in the midst of getting a very expensive divorce. The once laser like focus is not there. Tiger seems distracted by many things off the course which only mirrors what is happening on the course.
But Tiger is too good of a golfer not to have his game come around. “Will he win more majors?” I believe so. “Will he surpass Jack Nicklaus record 18 majors? I have my doubts. I say this because the young guns coming up are not afraid of Tiger Woods as his peers are... which makes it harder for him to win golf tournaments the older he gets. This was the perfect year to make a run at Jack’s record with half of his 14 majors coming at venues he had won at before... like the Masters, like the US Open at Pebble Beach, like the British Open at St. Andrews. The only remaining major yet in the year is the PGA at Whistling Straits-- a links style course along Lake Michigan in Kohler, Wisconsin. With a good opening round of one under par, I expect Tiger to be contending for the title come Sunday. And I wouldn’t be surprised to see him host the Wannamaker trophy especially since one golf writer wrote him off this week as the worst professional golfer on the planet.
And yet I believe this victory would bring little solace to an individual whose life has truly hit rock bottom. Jesus said it best, “What does it profit a person to gain the whole world but forfeit his soul. What can a person give in exchange for his soul?” Certainly not the Wannamaker trophy-- for Tiger is need of redemption not on the golf course but in real life. Until he finds redemption in his personal life, his exploits on the golf course can be liken to Sisyphus pushing the rock up a steel hill only to have it fall back on him the closer he got to reaching the top.