(4012,137,'2012-01-12 17:59:59','2012-01-13 01:59:59','For those of us who are parents, the question of hope takes us directly to our children. Our hopes are for our children and the life that we launch them into. Then at some point, usually later in life, we discover our hopes are in them, as we look to them to achieve what we were never quite able to pull off. Things like a cleaner, safer, more peaceful planet, whose driving force is love, rather than violence, destructive consumption and greed. Wowser, that’s idealistic. Yes it is, but isn’t idealism the structural helix of a healthy imagination? And isn’t imagination the magnifier of possibility?\r\n\r\nWe (together with my wife) have three beautiful children. Our experience of hope is expressed and experienced in their lives. Each is a separate facet of our hope, but I want to focus on my youngest, and only son, and from my perspective, rather than ours. Mark was born late in the game, ten years late. Everything went smoothly, and he was a beautiful boy, who from his first moments was very obviously my son. Even today, seventeen years later, people look at him, and then at my worn out gray and fuzzy face and they say, he looks just like you. I’m not sure what they see, but when compared with my boyhood pictures, the resemblance is uncanny. I was a very proud father, who immediately began to imagine the possibilities. This boy, with the benefit of his mothers genetic superiority, would be able to achieve all the athletic goals that I fell short of. I would be the next Walter Gretzky, teaching my boy to skate and handle the puck. Or maybe I’d make the rink and send Mom out to teach the skills. I hoped he’d be a better me.\r\n\r\nWithin the very first month of Mark’s life, I had to let go of that dream. Although there was no exact diagnosis, it was very clear that, genetically speaking, Mark was a few genes short of a full helix. I remember going for a walk, late on a cold winter evening, letting go of those dreams, and weeping from the deepest part of me. And yet there was hope.\r\n\r\nI got up the next day, freed from expectation, freed to imagination. I simply had to change the equation from, hope = (genetic potential x opportunity + encouragement + discipline – laziness) x expectation, to hope = possibility x imagination.\r\n\r\nIn the first few years I watch Mark learn how to crawl. I remember the moment so well when he manage to climb the one single step out of the family room, into the foyer. We were watching the Oakland A’s and keeping one eye on Marky. Once he figured out how to get past that step, possibility would be magnified. Mark had been working on get up over that step for weeks. He was able to get one knee up, but then seemed unable to get any further. This day though, his determination was palpable. After consistently failing for a more than an hour, he suddenly found that perfect tipping point, and up he went. There it was, hope. Mark, all on his own, demonstrated everything I hoped for him. He multiplied all the limited possibilities that life had dealt him, by his own unlimited imagination. Mark was 3 years old.\r\n\r\nWhen Mark was 4 years old we moved downtown. Both Linda and I had been volunteering with a homeless shelter and we wanted to get closer to the action. We were commissioned by a suburban church to be missionaries to the homeless in the inner-city. Our job was to nurture hope in a very marginalized group of people living on or near the street. I set up a woodworking shop and invited a few to come discover possibility. At the time we had no idea what a vital role Mark would play in that work. I thought he would be received as that retarded kid in the wheelchair. I thought we’d get the usual polite yet awkward stares that had become such a regular part of our suburban existence. Not so. The street folks took to Marky like he was one of their own. They seemed to understand the unlimited possibilities inside the little kid with so many outward limitations. They talked to him, directly. Marky was instantly accepted, and deeply loved, and I don’t think I had ever considered that possibility. In collaboration with his new friends, Mark was defining the possibilities.\r\n\r\nThis little man is now 17 years old, and still, despite having no language, and having lost the mobility he once had, he’s constantly redefining possibility, and bringing hope that changes the world. His condition, although not diagnosed, is clearly a neurodegenerative disorder. Today the physical possibilities for Mark are very limited, he’s very weak, just hangin\' on, but if you catch him during one of his six or seven waking hours, he’ll flash you a grin that tells you he believes otherwise.\r\n\r\nMy hope is that for the rest of my life I will always see the possibilities through the magnifying lens of God’s imagination. That’s what Marky discovered in his short life, that’s the gift he’s given us. There is hope.','Hope = Possibility x Imagination','','inherit','open','open','','4004-revision-5','','','2012-01-12 17:59:59','2012-01-13 01:59:59','',4004,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/12/4004-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4013,137,'2012-01-19 21:14:12','2012-01-20 05:14:12','For those of us who are parents, the question of hope takes us directly to our children. Our hopes are for our children and the life that we launch them into. Then at some point, usually later in life, we discover our hopes are in them, as we look to them to achieve what we were never quite able to pull off. Things like a cleaner, safer, more peaceful planet, whose driving force is love, rather than violence, destructive consumption and greed. Wowser, that’s idealistic. Yes it is, but isn’t idealism the structural helix of a healthy imagination? And isn’t imagination the magnifier of possibility?\n\nWe (together with my wife) have three beautiful children. Our experience of hope is expressed and experienced in their lives. Each is a separate facet of our hope, but I want to focus on my youngest, and only son, and from my perspective, rather than ours. Mark was born late in the game, ten years late. Everything went smoothly, and he was a beautiful boy, who from his first moments was very obviously my son. Even today, seventeen years later, people look at him, and then at my worn out gray and fuzzy face and they say, he looks just like you. I’m not sure what they see, but when compared with my boyhood pictures, the resemblance is uncanny. I was a very proud father, who immediately began to imagine the possibilities. This boy, with the benefit of his mothers genetic superiority, would be able to achieve all the athletic goals that I fell short of. I would be the next Walter Gretzky, teaching my boy to skate and handle the puck. Or maybe I’d make the rink and send Mom out to teach the skills. I hoped he’d be a better me.\n\nWithin the very first month of Mark’s life, I had to let go of that dream. Although there was no exact diagnosis, it was very clear that, genetically speaking, Mark was a few genes short of a full helix. I remember going for a walk, late on a cold winter evening, letting go of those dreams, and weeping from the deepest part of me. And yet there was hope.\n\nI got up the next day, freed from expectation, freed to imagination. I simply had to change the equation from, hope = (genetic potential x opportunity + encouragement + discipline – laziness) x expectation, to hope = possibility x imagination.\n\nIn the first few years I watch Mark learn how to crawl. I remember the moment so well when he manage to climb the one single step out of the family room, into the foyer. We were watching the Oakland A’s and keeping one eye on Marky. Once he figured out how to get past that step, possibility would be magnified. Mark had been working on get up over that step for weeks. He was able to get one knee up, but then seemed unable to get any further. This day though, his determination was palpable. After consistently failing for a more than an hour, he suddenly found that perfect tipping point, and up he went. There it was, hope. Mark, all on his own, demonstrated everything I hoped for him. He multiplied all the limited possibilities that life had dealt him, by his own unlimited imagination. Mark was 3 years old.\n\nWhen Mark was 4 years old we moved downtown. Both Linda and I had been volunteering with a homeless shelter and we wanted to get closer to the action. We were commissioned by a suburban church to be missionaries to the homeless in the inner-city. Our job was to nurture hope in a very marginalized group of people living on or near the street. I set up a woodworking shop and invited a few to come discover possibility. At the time we had no idea what a vital role Mark would play in that work. I thought he would be received as that retarded kid in the wheelchair. I thought we’d get the usual polite yet awkward stares that had become such a regular part of our suburban existence. Not so. The street folks took to Marky like he was one of their own. They seemed to understand the unlimited possibilities inside the little kid with so many outward limitations. They talked to him, directly. Marky was instantly accepted, and deeply loved, and I don’t think I had ever considered that possibility. In collaboration with his new friends, Mark was defining the possibilities.\n\nThis little man is now 17 years old, and still, despite having no language, and having lost the mobility he once had, he’s constantly redefining possibility, and bringing hope that changes the world. His condition, although not diagnosed, is clearly a neurodegenerative disorder. Today the physical possibilities for Mark are very limited, he’s very weak, just hangin\' on, but if you catch him during one of his six or seven waking hours, he’ll flash you a grin that tells you he believes otherwise.\n\nMy hope is that for the rest of my life I will always see the possibilities through the magnifying lens of God’s imagination. That’s what Marky discovered in his short life, that’s the gift he’s given us. There is hope.\n\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Hope = Possibility x Imagination','','inherit','open','open','','4004-autosave','','','2012-01-19 21:14:12','2012-01-20 05:14:12','',4004,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/12/4004-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4014,0,'2012-01-12 22:00:09','2012-01-13 06:00:09','Hope For The New Year\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Mike Victorino\nAUTHOR EMAIL: bobbavicto@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 69.59.125.230\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Mike Victorino\n    [Email] =&gt; bobbavicto@gmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Hope For The New Year\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; 40cplmav04\n)\n','Mike Victorino - 2012-01-12 22:00:09','','publish','open','open','','0342a1bc07499567c6b194fe2bc5e2b9','','','2012-01-12 22:00:09','2012-01-13 06:00:09','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4014',0,'feedback','',0),(4016,0,'2012-01-13 02:16:42','2012-01-13 10:16:42','Hope synchroblog\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Ken Bussell\nAUTHOR EMAIL: Ken@emergingworshiper.org\nAUTHOR URL: \nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 76.115.115.241\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Ken Bussell\n    [Email] =&gt; Ken@emergingworshiper.org\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; Http://blog.emergingworshiper.org\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Hope synchroblog\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; emergingworshiper\n)\n','Ken Bussell - 2012-01-13 02:16:42','','publish','open','open','','de0ce029e708510a4b44dd0883a5c4fc','','','2012-01-13 02:16:42','2012-01-13 10:16:42','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4016',0,'feedback','',0),(4017,1,'2012-01-10 12:41:42','2012-01-10 20:41:42','As a Christian (what I learned as a child), one is to marry and procreate -- in that order.\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>This means finding someone to live with for the rest of that person\'s life through whatever protocol (dating, arrangement, etc).</li>\r\n	<li>Within the sanction of marriage, one is supposed to have children.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNow it seems that Christians don\'t want to follow the rules. Statistics show that <em>\"unmarried Americans will soon outnumber those who are married\"</em> meaning that many men and women prefer to live in sin.\r\n\r\nI\'ve always found it interesting when secular group (the <a title=\"British Broadcasting Corporation\" href=\"http://www.bbc.co.uk/\" target=\"_blank\">British Broadcasting Corporation</a> in this case) writes an article related to religion in some level or other. In this article the <a title=\"British Broadcasting Corporation\" href=\"http://www.bbc.co.uk/\" target=\"_blank\">BBC</a> used <a title=\"Barely Half of U.S. Adults Are Married -- A Record Low\" href=\"http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2011/12/14/barely-half-of-u-s-adults-are-married-a-record-low/?src=prc-headline\" target=\"_blank\">Pew Research Center</a> (<em>a Christian organization</em>, no less) as its source for statistics.\r\n<blockquote><strong>Why is the US marriage rate falling sharply?\r\n</strong><a title=\"Why is the US marriage rate falling sharply?\" href=\"http://wow.ebb.co.up/news/magazine-16274740\" target=\"_blank\">http://wow.ebb.co.up/news/magazine-16274740</a>\r\n\r\nChicago Tribune syndicated advice columnist Amy Dickinson believes the increase in no-fault divorces and tougher child support laws are two reasons behind the falling popularity of married life in America.\r\n\r\n\"It is no longer necessary to be married to someone in order to pursue financial support and I believe this has had a huge impact on couples who have children together and, let\'s say, 20 years ago would get married in order to establish legitimacy and then, hence, get financial support.\"</blockquote>\r\nIn some cases, the idea of not getting married makes sense. For example, my friend Ian just moved in with his girlfriend. He goes to church every Sunday and is very active in church, but she goes to a Jewish community center. Religion might cause friction, but then again living in NYC might be much more difficult than <em>living in sin</em>.\r\n\r\nMany more argue that getting married in a gamble -- an expectation of failure and divorce. The best example that I can think of is the relationship between <a title=\"Gene Simmons\" href=\"en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Simmons\" target=\"_blank\">Gene Simmons</a> (bassist of <a title=\"Kiss (Band)\" href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiss_%28band%29\" target=\"_blank\">KISS</a>) and <a title=\"Shannon Tweed\" href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shannon_Tweed\" target=\"_blank\">Shannon Tweed</a> (former Playboy model) who lived together <em>happily unmarried</em> for almost twenty-eight years. Now they\'re a happily married couple.','over 50% living in sin','','inherit','open','open','','3908-revision-3','','','2012-01-10 12:41:42','2012-01-10 20:41:42','',3908,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/10/3908-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4465,1,'2012-01-22 08:00:37','2012-01-22 16:00:37','A few years ago I picked up and read “<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Generous-Orthodoxy-conservative-contemplative-fundamentalist/dp/0310258030\" target=\"_blank\">A Generous Orthodoxy</a>” by <a href=\"http://www.brianmclaren.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Brian McLaren</a>. I really liked the book for the reason that it explored the beauty of our differences. I appreciated listening to different traditions than my own. It helped me process the beauty in other ways of thinking.\r\n\r\nMy formative years were spent in a very loving but small Baptist church. It had the small chapel with the hard pews and the stained glass windows. From junior high through high school I went to a non-denominational church (which is a code word for we don’t want you to realize we really are a denomination) that was located in a former computer technology complex. The church was deeply influenced by the Baptists but never said so. In college, I floated around, attending several high profile mega-churches in Southern California. I couldn’t remember what they were? Nothing really stood out to me other than they were really, really big and had 67,000 different programs that were entertaining.\r\n\r\nAfter marriage, my wife and I chose to specifically find a small church, settling on a church that was from the <a href=\"http://www.rca.org/\" target=\"_blank\">RCA</a> (Reformed Church of America). It was here that I got my first introduction to a true, distinct denominational mindset. It forced us to wrestle with issues of child baptism and women in leadership, etc. Loved the process. We visited a Lutheran church once for a Christmas Eve service and had to stand for the entire 90 minutes. My wife attended a Greek orthodox church with a friend and also had to stand for 2 hours while she suffocated under the potent fumes of the incense. (No slam intended). I went with the youth group to a Catholic church and appreciated the beauty of the building but don’t remember anything else. When my family moved, we found ourselves attending a small <a href=\"http://www.crcna.org/\" target=\"_blank\">CRC</a> (Christian Reformed Church), which is split from the RCA over the question of the masons. Then we chose to leave and attend a covenant church. I really like the <a href=\"http://www.covchurch.org/\" target=\"_blank\">evangelical covenant church</a>. They have found a way to agree to disagree.\r\n\r\nWhich brings me back to McLaren’s Generous Orthodoxy. In each of the churches I attended, I found people who strongly believed they were right. They believed that their way was the correct way to believe. In a lot of cases the differences were minor (RCA/CRC). And in reading the book I began to ask, “What denomination would Jesus attend?” Would Jesus choose the Catholic church, with it’s strong emphasis on liturgy and reverence? Would he choose a protestant church with its strong emphasis on grace? Would he choose a charismatic church, with its strong emphasis on words of knowledge and communicating with God? Would he choose the Methodist church, hoping to find Wesley’s strong emphasis on going to the people and building leaders? Would he choose the Baptist church for its strong emphasis on salvation and baptism? Would he choose the Lutheran church with its rich historical protestant background? Would he choose from one of the other <a href=\"http://www.bringyou.to/apologetics/a120.htm\" target=\"_blank\">30,000</a> denomination for their unique distinctives?\r\n\r\nWhich begs a couple of questions. How would he have the time to visit all 30,000 different denominations? If he visited every one on every Sunday, that would take 82 years. And would visiting one more than once validate that denomination above the other ones that he either visited once or never visited? Would it invalidate a denomination if he chose to leave the service early because he had to catch an early flight to the next location? Or would he choose to skip the big churches all together and worship in a house church?\r\n\r\nAnd then I began to realize that maybe form is a product of our own need for validation? Maybe we separate ourselves into smaller and smaller camps to validate what we believe? Maybe we find the smallest of differences to argue about so that we can be right and others can be wrong, which elevates the individual above the other, at least in one’s own mind.\r\n\r\nI keep thinking of how God chooses to identify himself. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is <em>one</em> LORD.” (<a href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deut%206:4&amp;version=31\" target=\"_blank\">Deut 6:4</a>) (emphasis mine) How do we find our way back to a shared community that is one, living with a sense of wholeness and togetherness, celebrating our differences yet working together? How do we find a way past our differences to His church?\r\n\r\nYour insights are appreciated?','Which Denomination Was Jesus?','','publish','open','open','','which-denomination-was-jesus','','','2012-01-20 09:25:17','2012-01-20 17:25:17','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4465',0,'post','',7),(4019,1,'2012-01-13 09:38:33','2012-01-13 17:38:33','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\r\n\r\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.  <a href=\"http://bramboniusinenglish.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/it-may-or-may-not-be-a-religion-depending-on-your-definition-pt-i/\" target=\"_blank\">Brambonius Cools</a> suggested its a matter of semantics, and shared a list of responses so far:\r\n<blockquote>Some interesting remarks about the problems with this video are written by<a href=\"http://theamericanjesus.net/?p=4970\"> the American Jesus</a>, <a href=\"http://moonchild11.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/not-a-religion-a-relationship-jeff-bethke/\">Sarah Moon</a>, <a href=\"http://www.elizabethesther.com/2012/01/why-hating-religion-and-loving-jesus-is-impossible.html?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=Feed:+ThreesACrowd+%28Elizabeth+Esther%29\">Elisabeth Esther</a>, <a href=\"http://jakebelder.com/why-i-dont-like-the-gospel-vs-religion-distin\">Jake Belder</a> and <a href=\"http://www.patrolmag.com/2012/01/12/jonathan-d-fitzgerald/lame-poetry-false-dichotomies-and-bad-theology/\">Patrol Mag</a> and by<a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&amp;v=AJ1ROLWoUGA\"> this girl on youtube</a>. I’m not going to repeat everything those people say, so they might be interesting to read too…</blockquote>\r\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\r\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\r\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\r\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\r\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although, as a poet, he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\r\n\r\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','publish','open','open','','why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus','','http://theamericanjesus.net/?p=4970\nhttp://www.patrolmag.com/2012/01/12/jonathan-d-fitzgerald/lame-poetry-false-dichotomies-and-bad-theology/','2012-01-13 09:57:38','2012-01-13 17:57:38','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4019',0,'post','',6),(4020,1,'2012-01-13 09:28:25','2012-01-13 17:28:25','','hate_Religion','','inherit','open','open','','hate_religion','','','2012-01-13 09:28:25','2012-01-13 17:28:25','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hate_Religion.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4021,1,'2012-01-13 09:36:43','2012-01-13 17:36:43','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\n\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.\n\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\n\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\n\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','inherit','open','open','','4019-revision','','','2012-01-13 09:36:43','2012-01-13 17:36:43','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/4019-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4022,1,'2012-01-09 09:26:38','2012-01-09 17:26:38','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei6JvK0W60I[/youtube]\r\n\r\nThe images prevalent in a society or culture seem to reflect an idea of what the people in said society identify with as being valuable. If I show you an image deemed valuable long enough, get you to hear about it enough, you are likely to but into it. The images this beautiful girl is exposed to is this video reflect the ideas of what the media wants us to buy into. This is beneficial to them to get society to want to reflect or be this image, hence to purchase there products.\r\n\r\nGrocery store check outs, commercials, music videos and reality TV shows are full of people and products glamorizing the body, sex and anything related to pleasure. It appears to not be much different then a national geographic show on the mating rituals of most species of animals. Those with the best perceived genes and body get the most ladies, more sex, more food and dominance. That world works great for people who believe that is what they are.\r\n\r\nIf you have any spiritual value within you it is likely these images do not settle well within you. By asking some simple questions we can expose areas we have energized and identified with. Not as a means to judge, but to simple observe a paradigm.\r\n\r\nAre the images in the video real?\r\nIs your body the key to getting what you want?\r\nLook in the mirror at the face and body, do you love what you see?\r\nIs attraction to others/things and the desire to \'get\' the main motivator\'s of our lives?\r\n\r\nLet\'s bring some clarity to these questions by defining the difference between beauty and glamour.\r\nBeauty - That which you are.\r\nGlamour - That which you are trying to be something else in order to get a desired thing or outcome.\r\n\r\n<strong>Glamour uses seduction as a mean of attracting to itself a desired object that\'s value is projected onto it as a source of happiness</strong>.\r\n\r\nThe true source of happiness stems from within, the desire cannot be satisfied because it constantly projects value onto external things.  One\'s desires get fulfilled, the focus then moves on to another object of desire with endless procession.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Relate-101.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3643\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Relate-101-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" /></a>This body image value system doesn\'t or will not change because we get upset and boycott these images. It changes by one\'s ability to ask the tough questions, to search for answers that are not found \'out there.\'\r\n\r\n<strong>I cannot be seduced by an image if I know what I am.</strong>\r\n\r\nLook in the mirror, do you love what you see?\r\nDo you smile at that image knowing it is what you have not what you are?\r\n\r\nA few years ago my wife and I were going through a trying time. I was completely honest and open with her about my life and they things that were running it. I told her that I did not need her to be my mom, or seductress anymore. I was detaching from her a pushing her away. I was projecting my fear of being controlled onto her so I could have an excuse for being afraid. Every morning I ascended a beautiful mountain at sunrise as a way of contemplating what really mattered to me. One morning on the way up I was holding my wife in mind asking for help with our situation. I cannot explain very well what happened next, but I will do my best.\r\n\r\nI suddenly found myself in an overwhelming presence of Love and Beauty. I then within saw my wife as she Is. Without a past or future, without my feelings about her, she simply was Beauty manifested, Lovely, Perfect and One. I saw that she had put on a mask to relate to me, she had chosen to serve my false image giving it the Grace and safety it needed to dissolve.\r\n\r\nI ran down the mountain into our home and straight to my wife. I grabbed her hands and I began to tell her about what I had realized. I asked her to forgive me for making her the enemy. I thanked her for staying true and walking me through my shit.  As I was saying these things I began to notice a very strong fragrance in the room. I asked her if she had lit a candle. She told me no, we both began to breathe in this beautiful fragrance. It then dawned on me, this is her, this smell is Beauty being seen as it is. We both wept and laughed realizing the drama I had created was nothing more than my attempts to control what can never be controlled.\r\n\r\n<strong>Fear is the only thing that seeks acceptance, Love knows by being what it is. So what are you?</strong>\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U[/youtube]','Is Your Body The Key To Getting What You want?','','inherit','open','open','','3641-revision-14','','','2012-01-09 09:26:38','2012-01-09 17:26:38','',3641,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/09/3641-revision-14/',0,'revision','',0),(4023,1,'2012-01-13 09:38:16','2012-01-13 17:38:16','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\n\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.\n\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although, as a poet, he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\n\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\n\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','inherit','open','open','','4019-revision-2','','','2012-01-13 09:38:16','2012-01-13 17:38:16','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/4019-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4024,1,'2012-01-13 09:58:54','2012-01-13 17:58:54','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\n\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.  <a href=\"http://bramboniusinenglish.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/it-may-or-may-not-be-a-religion-depending-on-your-definition-pt-i/\" target=\"_blank\">Brambonius Cools</a> suggested its a matter of semantics, and shared a list of responses so far:\n<blockquote>Some interesting remarks about the problems with this video are written by<a href=\"http://theamericanjesus.net/?p=4970\"> the American Jesus</a>, <a href=\"http://moonchild11.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/not-a-religion-a-relationship-jeff-bethke/\">Sarah Moon</a>, <a href=\"http://www.elizabethesther.com/2012/01/why-hating-religion-and-loving-jesus-is-impossible.html?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=Feed:+ThreesACrowd+%28Elizabeth+Esther%29\">Elisabeth Esther</a>, <a href=\"http://jakebelder.com/why-i-dont-like-the-gospel-vs-religion-distin\">Jake Belder</a> and <a href=\"http://www.patrolmag.com/2012/01/12/jonathan-d-fitzgerald/lame-poetry-false-dichotomies-and-bad-theology/\">Patrol Mag</a> and by<a href=\"http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&amp;v=AJ1ROLWoUGA\"> this girl on youtube</a>. I’m not going to repeat everything those people say, so they might be interesting to read too…</blockquote>\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although, as a poet, he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\n\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\n\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','inherit','open','open','','4019-autosave','','','2012-01-13 09:58:54','2012-01-13 17:58:54','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/4019-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4025,1,'2012-01-13 09:38:33','2012-01-13 17:38:33','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\r\n\r\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.\r\n\r\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\r\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\r\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\r\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\r\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although, as a poet, he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\r\n\r\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','inherit','open','open','','4019-revision-3','','','2012-01-13 09:38:33','2012-01-13 17:38:33','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/4019-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4026,1,'2012-01-13 09:49:00','2012-01-13 17:49:00','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\r\n\r\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.\r\n\r\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\r\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\r\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\r\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\r\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although, as a poet, he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\r\n\r\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','inherit','open','open','','4019-revision-4','','','2012-01-13 09:49:00','2012-01-13 17:49:00','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/4019-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4027,1,'2012-01-13 09:49:18','2012-01-13 17:49:18','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY[/youtube]\r\n\r\nThis video is making the rounds on YouTube and Facebook.  In my stream its been shared over 25 times and has produced countless video responses on YouTube.\r\n\r\nChristian Piatt wrote a response that call it a <a href=\"http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christianpiatt/2012/01/hating-religion-loving-jesus-a-well-meaning-false-dichotomy/\" target=\"_blank\">well-meaning but false dichotomy</a>. He says:\r\n<blockquote>He also claims that Jesus hated the church, and actually came to destroy religion, once and for all. I can certainly see where he would draw such conclusions, especially when Jesus quotes prophecies about the destruction of central Jewish temples, but I think he’s over-generalizing here. Though much of Jesus’ ministry was out in the streets and in homes, he hardly avoided the church. When there, he was prone to stirring things up, no doubt, but he was considered – and even called – a rabbi by many of his followers.</blockquote>\r\nMy friend <a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/jarrod.mckenna\" target=\"_blank\">Jarrod Saul McKenna</a> said on Facebook:\r\n<blockquote>I dig heaps of it but find gender exclusive language difficult and distracting...</blockquote>\r\nI get both of their responses, and think its important to say that church is not the same as religion, but churches can tend to espouse religion (at least historically). And I don\'t think the guy was meaning to exclude women from his prose.  The verse Jarrod is referring to requires the use of \"Man\" to rhyme (although, as a poet, he could have found a more inclusive phrase).\r\n\r\nBut the question remains why is it an internet sensation?  What nerve has it touched in people that it would generate 6 million hits in two days and countless responses?  What stands out to you?\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?','Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus','','inherit','open','open','','4019-revision-5','','','2012-01-13 09:49:18','2012-01-13 17:49:18','',4019,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/4019-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4473,100,'2012-01-23 10:00:21','2012-01-23 18:00:21','[caption id=\"attachment_4474\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"300\" caption=\"Luke Harms\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/lukeharms.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-4474\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/lukeharms-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" /></a>[/caption]\r\n\r\nThis week we talk with US Army veteran Luke Harms.\r\n\r\nHarms served in both Iraq and Afghanistan as a member of the US Army and then returned to Afghanistan as a civilian contractor.\r\n\r\nHarms shares his unique perspective on the war and the military meta-narrative and the struggle he faced adjusting from living in a combat zone to civilian life.\r\n\r\n<strong>Things to consider as you listen ::</strong>\r\n\r\nHow does Harms\' story compare to the narrative you\'ve heard about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?\r\nHow did 9/11 shape and inform your theology and ideology?\r\nHow has the \"army hero\" meta-narrative shaped your view of the military?\r\nHow has nationalism and/or american exceptionalism shaped your view of the current war on terror?\r\n\r\n[audio=\"http://somethingbeautifulpodcast.com/podcast/011312.mp3\"]','Something Beautiful - Luke Harms','','publish','open','open','','something-beautiful-luke-harms','','','2012-01-21 10:22:50','2012-01-21 18:22:50','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4473',0,'post','',0),(4029,0,'2012-01-13 12:16:41','2012-01-13 20:16:41','synchroblog – hope\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Glenn Hager\nAUTHOR EMAIL: glennhager1@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://glennhager1.wordpress.com&amp;communitascollective.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 76.245.207.7\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Glenn Hager\n    [Email] =&gt; glennhager1@gmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; glennhager1.wordpress.com &amp; communitascollective.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; synchroblog – hope\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; glennhager\n)\n','Glenn Hager - 2012-01-13 12:16:41','','publish','open','open','','ae7f7e232d0600bd0081775cb6ce2909','','','2012-01-13 12:16:41','2012-01-13 20:16:41','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4029',0,'feedback','',0),(4033,1,'2012-01-10 18:47:42','2012-01-11 02:47:42','We live in a cynical age.\r\n\r\nYou’ve probably noticed it.  I don’t know how you could avoid it.  It’s everywhere.\r\n\r\nIt’s in every person who feels jaded by life, by the church or by their jobs.\r\n\r\nIt\'s in every person who\'s lost faith in people, in \"the system\" or in God.\r\n\r\nIt’s in every one of the myriad of spoof movies that are spewn upon audiences each year.\r\n\r\nIt’s in every hipster whose wardrobe is made up of the most outdated, mismatched items in the thrift store.\r\n\r\nI’ve got plenty of cynicism in me.  But I’m working on it.  Because I think it might be killing my generation<em>.</em>\r\n\r\n<!--more--><img src=\"http://www.thechurchofnopeople.com/wp-includes/js/tinymce/plugins/wordpress/img/trans.gif\" alt=\"\" />\r\n<h2><strong>The _____ Generation</strong></h2>\r\nWhat word defines my generation?\r\n\r\nMy grandparents were called the “Great Generation.”\r\n\r\nMy parents were the Baby Boomer Generation.\r\n\r\nBut they don\'t have a name for us.  So they called us \"X,\" one of the dumbest terms ever coined by sociologists.\r\n\r\nI think they should call us the Ironic Generation.\r\n\r\nIrony, probably the most important word today in today’s new generation.  I love irony, as the dictionary defines it:\r\n\r\n<strong><em>irony: to express something other than and especially the opposite of a literal meaning.</em></strong>\r\n\r\nBut the truly ironic thing is that the word is losing its real meaning.  It’s just a word that’s taken the place of “cynicism.”\r\n<h2><strong>If Something Is Worth Doing, It\'s Worth Doing Ironically</strong></h2>\r\nI know I pick on hipsters a lot.  But it\'s not without cause.  I think many of them embody the worst cynicism that pervades my generation.  Take hipster fashion for instance.  All of the outdated, mismatched clothes, the mutton chops, non-prescription eyeglasses, and Pabst Blue Ribbon are meticulously crafted for to maximize one desired effect:\r\n\r\nIrony.\r\n\r\nDo you laugh at how your parents were dressed in old photos?  Then just get some of those clothes from the thrift store and wear them “ironically.”  Drink crappy beer \"ironically.\"  Do everything \"ironically\" while laughing at people who did all those things<em>sincerely.</em>\r\n\r\n<strong>Hipster 1: </strong><em>\"Dude, Pabst Blue Ribbon sucks so bad.\"</em>\r\n\r\n<strong>Hipster 2: </strong><em>\"I know, I just like drinking it because it\'s so hilariously awful.\"</em>\r\n\r\n<strong>Hipster 1:  </strong><em>\"Well done, sir.  Who in their right mind would actually drink this and think it\'s good?  Pass me another.\"</em>\r\n\r\n<strong>Hipster 2:  </strong><em>\"Nice tube top, by the way.  It goes great with those tiny basketball shorts.\"</em>\r\n\r\nThat’s not irony.  That’s just snark.  That\'s just trying to draw attention to your cynical assumption that your distinguished and refined tastes are too cool for this planet.  The only thing ironic about hipsters is how much sheer, <em>sincere </em>effort they put into being \"ironic\" and pretending to not give a crap.  If hipsters <em>really </em>didn\'t give a crap, they\'d just go to Kohl\'s and buy some Levis and polo shirts like those of us who <em>sincerely don\'t care</em>.\r\n\r\nI’m tired of your irony, hipsters.  You’ve become a parody of yourselves.  Now <em>that’s </em>ironic.\r\n<h2><strong>A Sincere Generation</strong></h2>\r\nHere’s the thing.  I think my generation is so caught up in the supposed <em>irony </em>of our whole existence, that we aren’t spending a whole lot of time or effort doing anything <em>sincerely.  </em>Everything that a person can sincerely value, someone in my generation is treating like kitsch.  Patriotism?  Ironic.  Religion?  Ironic.  Gender?  Ironic.  Love?  Ironic...probably.\r\n\r\nGuess what?\r\n\r\nMaking fun of things isn\'t productive.\r\n\r\nBeing ironic doesn\'t make the world more beautiful or creative.\r\n\r\nBeing cynical doesn’t solve problems.\r\n\r\nThe irony of my generation will be looked at by our grandkids as another stupid, meaningless fad.  We need to drop the act and stop calling our cynicism “irony” or “creativity.”  If all we leave behind is a pile of irony, parodies, riffs, spoofs and snark then our generation will not be remembered.\r\n\r\nIf we are so caught up with the absurdity of things, then maybe we should spend half of our “ironic” efforts actually creating things that are <em>sincere...</em>\r\n\r\n...Unless we\'re just afraid that our sincere efforts will be imitated \"ironically\" by the next generation.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think?  Are you sick of irony, or is it the greatest invention of our time?','An Ironic Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum','','inherit','open','open','','3918-revision-4','','','2012-01-10 18:47:42','2012-01-11 02:47:42','',3918,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/10/3918-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4034,1,'2012-01-13 09:03:09','2012-01-13 17:03:09','As a Christian (what I learned as a child), one is to marry and procreate -- in that order.\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>This means finding someone to live with for the rest of that person\'s life through whatever protocol (dating, arrangement, etc).</li>\r\n	<li>Within the sanction of marriage, one is supposed to have children.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\nNow it seems that Christians don\'t want to follow the rules. Statistics show that <em>\"unmarried Americans will soon outnumber those who are married\"</em> meaning that many men and women prefer to live in sin.\r\n\r\nI\'ve always found it interesting when secular group (the <a title=\"British Broadcasting Corporation\" href=\"http://www.bbc.co.uk/\" target=\"_blank\">British Broadcasting Corporation</a> in this case) writes an article related to religion in some level or other. In this article the <a title=\"British Broadcasting Corporation\" href=\"http://www.bbc.co.uk/\" target=\"_blank\">BBC</a> used <a title=\"Barely Half of U.S. Adults Are Married -- A Record Low\" href=\"http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2011/12/14/barely-half-of-u-s-adults-are-married-a-record-low/?src=prc-headline\" target=\"_blank\">Pew Research Center</a> (<em>a Christian organization</em>, no less) as its source for statistics.\r\n<blockquote><strong>Why is the US marriage rate falling sharply?\r\n</strong><a title=\"Why is the US marriage rate falling sharply?\" href=\"http://wow.ebb.co.up/news/magazine-16274740\" target=\"_blank\">http://wow.ebb.co.up/news/magazine-16274740</a>\r\n\r\nChicago Tribune syndicated advice columnist Amy Dickinson believes the increase in no-fault divorces and tougher child support laws are two reasons behind the falling popularity of married life in America.\r\n\r\n\"It is no longer necessary to be married to someone in order to pursue financial support and I believe this has had a huge impact on couples who have children together and, let\'s say, 20 years ago would get married in order to establish legitimacy and then, hence, get financial support.\"</blockquote>\r\nIn some cases, the idea of not getting married makes sense. For example, my friend Ian just moved in with his girlfriend. He goes to church every Sunday and is very active in church, but she goes to a Jewish community center. Religion might cause friction, but then again living in NYC might be much more difficult than <em>living in sin</em>.\r\n\r\nMany more argue that getting married in a gamble -- an expectation of failure and divorce. The best example that I can think of is the relationship between <a title=\"Gene Simmons\" href=\"en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Simmons\" target=\"_blank\">Gene Simmons</a> (bassist of <a title=\"Kiss (Band)\" href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiss_%28band%29\" target=\"_blank\">KISS</a>) and <a title=\"Shannon Tweed\" href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shannon_Tweed\" target=\"_blank\">Shannon Tweed</a> (former Playboy model) who lived together <em>happily unmarried</em> for almost twenty-eight years. Now they\'re a happily married couple.','Over 50% Living In Sin','','inherit','open','open','','3908-revision-4','','','2012-01-13 09:03:09','2012-01-13 17:03:09','',3908,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/3908-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4036,1,'2012-01-11 13:54:09','2012-01-11 21:54:09','<em>The Resignation of Eve</em> is a thoughtful experiment, one that challenges men and women of the 21<sup>st</sup> century church to shake off their old ideas about where women fit in the Church. In a charming and disarming style, Jim Henderson tells the evangelical Church, its pastors and ministry leaders to start listening to the women in their lives, their daughters, wives, mothers and friends, and those women that work tirelessly by their side every day in the service of the Kingdom. (I was tempted to write \"their kingdom.\") Henderson, a spirited advocate for powerless people, has done the work for you. Through the narratives of fifteen women, he threads together themes that he found while listening. <em>The Resignation of Eve</em> is a daring challenge to the Church to reconsider the issue of women in ministry and issues a gentle threat for what may happen if you choose not to listen.\r\n\r\nWhile I do not doubt the sincerity of the author, the irony that lingered with me as I read the hundreds of pages of narrative is something Henderson alluded to himself that <strong><em>those with power</em></strong> don’t understand the necessity of the conversation.  I believe the very same people this book is challenging, made up their minds long ago (in seminary) and are unlikely to be swayed by the singularly sad stories of women, even women in their own church.  Through research done by the Barna Group the author has dug up another mostly silent, ever resilient group of people serving in the church, <strong><em>the oblivious</em>,</strong> those who “drank the cool aid” long ago and trusted those with authority for their own beliefs.  They feel there is no need for this conversation either. My personal experience has been that the more you challenge someone’s core belief the more rigid they become – asking who has the right to challenge long-held “biblical” truths, certainly not women.\r\n\r\nKnowing the push back, Henderson valiantly reinforces through his stories the idea that <strong><em>those without power</em></strong> are growing weary, doubtful and even suspicious of the Church.  And that women of faith and conscience who do choose to stay in the Church, are balancing on a tightrope every day; feel the tension between living with their convictions and the lingering thought of just not showing up.  Both options many days are simply untenable.  While <em>it seems that the only ones who do want this conversation are a small minority of mostly women whose theological views make them misfits in the evangelical church today I would encourage the reader to ask why?   </em>\r\n\r\n<em>The Resignation of Eve</em> is primarily written as a challenge to (male) pastors.  It is a grave warning with the promise or threat that if pastor’s are unwilling to reconsider these issues, more and more women will simply leave the community of faith. If pastors are unwilling to listen and think, the threat is that more and more women will walk. Ultimately I don’t think your average pastor believes that, nor does he think this issue is important enough. As he reads <em>The Resignation of Eve</em>, he may be compelled by the stories and even feel genuinely bad for the women described in the book, still <em>for the most part your everyday mainline denominational male leader won’t be swayed by a bunch of stories about women. </em>Because this about more than just “Eve.” And that is a lingering, unanswered question in the book.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>We are talking about a culture that defies change. </em></strong>As they defend their point of view, today’s pastor believes they are protecting their church from culture creep. I agree with Tom Wright when he says that the authority of God is embodied in Jesus himself, not in the literal words of the Bible. But most pastors today would hold that the issue of women’s empowerment in the church is a <em>cultural phenomenon stemming from the evil of feminism and therefore must be stopped.</em> By choosing which verses in the Bible are cultural and which are not, they cherry-pick a more patriarchal view that I would contend is culturally inappropriate for the 21<sup>st</sup> century.  Take 1 Timothy for instance. Even if you interpret it <em>literally, </em>these are instructions and restrictions for the behavior of some women in the first century church.  Some churches prohibit women\'s leadership in churches because they use these verses to \"prove\" that God doesn\'t approve.  But they happily ignore the verses right beside them, about how women are adorned and how they should dress, saying that is cultural. When you read it with context, and contrast this text and other texts in the New Testament, I believe it requires the reader to listen to more than one or two voices speaking about the role of women.\r\n\r\nHenderson is quick to point to the other examples: Jesus’ treatment of women, women as apostles and teachers, women financing the ministry, women sitting at Jesus\' feet learning from him with the other disciples, a woman being the first to speak to Jesus after his Resurrection, all examples of empowering of women in the early church, which you can see if you don\'t restrict your reading to a few very restrictive sections.\r\n\r\nWise pastors must begin to recognize and listen to women’s voices in the church. And women must with discernment do their own homework!  The early church does not need to be prescriptive for how we run churches today, but this idea challenges the essence of how most pastors view scriptures.\r\n\r\n<em>The Resignation of Eve</em> acknowledges with compassion the tensions women face but the premise is unfair. We are dared to bolt from our churches and force the church’s hand, in order for them to somehow see how important we are. <em>But you must</em> <em>appreciate the tragic fact that this will be held against us.</em> The very nature of our character will be called into question, women who have faithfully worked, loved, served the Church for generations. This would be a heartbreaking ending to the story.\r\n\r\nWomen in the church today are being pulled between being perceived as unfaithful, driven by need for power and by living by our God-given convictions within the faith community.  Reading <em>The Resignation of Eve</em> I found myself utterly exhausted by the trouble the women must exert to be faithful in the church today. The intentions of this book are so good! But I was left with questions hanging.  The same question that I live with every day. Are men and women ready to have a serious conversation about the role of women in the church? Or will it, as I fear, fall on deaf ears because the Church, her pastors and ministry leaders have already made up their minds?\r\n\r\nIn the introduction Lynne Hybel’s message was liberating, as she flirts with women challenging us to \"<strong><em>take ourselves seriously.\"</em></strong>  I wanted to say “There are so many of us that do, Lynne, if only it were the same for men.” I do recommend this book to you because it does that most enigmatic and beautiful thing, it listens to women.  Whether you choose to eavesdrop on these stories in <em>The Resignation of Eve</em> or sit down for a cup of tea with an actual breathing woman in your life, I challenge you to please, start listening.','The Resignation of Eve: A Review','','inherit','open','open','','3951-revision-7','','','2012-01-11 13:54:09','2012-01-11 21:54:09','',3951,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/11/3951-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(4039,1,'2012-01-11 16:57:24','2012-01-12 00:57:24','<h2><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/walkingwounded-square-button.png\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-3965 alignleft\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/walkingwounded-square-button.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" /></a>Hope for Those Hurt by Church</h2>\r\nFor most of us, our faith journey is the most essential thing about us, the closest thing to the core of who we are. So whenever some major shift in perspective rocks our faith, or we’re involved in a conflict involving our faith community, it goes deep, affecting our soul in some surprising ways.\r\n\r\nIf you are feeling lost, disillusioned or hurt as a result of a shift in your faith or by a negative church (or other faith community) experience, this just might be the class for you.\r\n\r\nJoin us February 6, 2012 for <strong>Walking Wounded: Hope for Those Hurt by Church</strong>. Class price is $49 and includes daily posts (Monday through Friday) and weekly exercises in journaling, storytelling, and wellness practices.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<h3>Course Description</h3>\r\nThousands of honest, sincere people are finding themselves on the outside of a faith system they once held dear. The sadness, anger, disillusionment and fear can be debilitating. And confusing.\r\n\r\n<strong>Have You:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Been asked to leave a church or told you’re not a “good fit”?</li>\r\n	<li>Felt forced to conform or remain consistently overlooked?</li>\r\n	<li>Been told that you are loved but not your sin?</li>\r\n	<li>Questioned leadership or theology and found yourself on the outside?</li>\r\n	<li>Felt sad, angry, afraid, lost, or disoriented after painful church experiences?</li>\r\n	<li>Experienced a significant shift in your theology or faith perspective and find yourself feeling disoriented and unsure?</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nYou are not lost, and you are not alone.\r\n\r\n<strong>Walking Wounded: Hope for Those Hurt By Church</strong> is designed to help you move through the painful and confusing aftermath of a negative faith-based experience.\r\n\r\n<strong>In this 4 week class you will:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Connect with others who have similar experiences</li>\r\n	<li>Identify your losses and reclaim your dreams</li>\r\n	<li>Tell your story and receive support</li>\r\n	<li>Work through your unfinished business</li>\r\n	<li>Learn effective practices to restore a sense of sanity</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nThrough interviews, conversation, journaling and storytelling, Kathy Escobar and Phyllis Mathis will guide you through the confusion and into a place of purpose and peace.\r\n<h3>The Instructors</h3>\r\n<div><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://liveittothefull.com/images/2012-01-walkingwounded/kathyescobar.jpg\" alt=\"Kathy Escobar\" width=\"90\" height=\"92\" /><strong>Kathy Escobar</strong> co-pastors the Refuge, an eclectic faith community in North Denver dedicated to those on the margins of life and faith (<a href=\"http://www.therefugeonline.org/\" target=\"_blank\">www.therefugeonline.org</a>). She journeys with people in hard places as a spiritual director, teacher, and group facilitator. A Pepperdine University graduate, she also has a Masters degree in Management/Organizational Development and a Certificate in Evangelical Spiritual Guidance from Denver Seminary. Kathy is the author of <em>Down We Go: Living into the Wild Ways of Jesus</em> (Civitas Press, 2011).</div>\r\n<div></div>\r\n<div></div>\r\n<div><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://liveittothefull.com/images/2012-01-walkingwounded/phyllismathis.jpg\" alt=\"Phyllis Mathis\" width=\"87\" height=\"107\" /></div>\r\n<div><strong>Phyllis Mathis</strong> is a long-time spiritual teacher, lay leader, former pastor, Ontological Coach and Licensed Professional Counselor (<a href=\"http://www.phyllismathis.com/\" target=\"_blank\">www.phyllismathis.com</a>) who has been practicing for over 20 years. A seasoned writer, retreat facilitator and a beginning potter, she is the co-creator of the forthcoming course: <em>The Iconic Self</em> (Jen Lee Productions, 2012).</div>\r\n<div></div>\r\n<div></div>\r\n<a href=\"http://liveittothefull.com/register/?package=Y291cnNlc18yMDEyXzAyX3dhbGtpbmdfd291bmRlZCMyMg=\"><img src=\"http://liveittothefull.com/images/2012-01-walkingwounded/walkingwounded-capsule.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"77\" border=\"0\" /></a>','Walking Wounded:  Hope for Those Hurt By the Church ','','inherit','open','open','','3964-revision-6','','','2012-01-11 16:57:24','2012-01-12 00:57:24','',3964,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/11/3964-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4040,1,'2012-01-14 09:16:51','2012-01-14 17:16:51','','tax_exempt','','inherit','open','open','','tax_exempt','','','2012-01-14 09:16:51','2012-01-14 17:16:51','',3677,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/tax_exempt.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4041,1,'2012-01-10 11:41:29','2012-01-10 19:41:29','Most Christian churches are registered as 501(c)3 non-profit organizations and receive a tax exempt status by the government. <a href=\"http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">According to the IRS</a>, to maintain this status churches must abstain from devoting a substantial part of their activity to influencing legislation and intervening in or contributing to political campaigns. In addition to this, church leaders may only make partisan comments if they do so as a reflection of their personal opinions and cannot make such comments through church publications or at official church functions.\r\n\r\nFrom time to time Christian churches endanger their tax exempt status by speaking strongly for or against some particular issue that has a partisan bent. Usually only when Christian churches speak out <em>against</em> the prevailing political or cultural winds do they find themselves under investigation by the IRS. The State appears far less concerned about separation of Church and State when the Church agrees with the State. In all honesty, if these requirements were fairly and consistently enforced, I believe these investigations would be far more routine as I have seen Christian churches blatantly violations these requirements many times.\r\n\r\nWhile these issues probably deserve more discussion, these are ultimately moot points to me because I believe all Christian churches should lose their tax exempt status. I believe this because it is categorically impossible for Christian churches to take the teachings of Jesus seriously and obey the requirements laid out by the IRS at the same time. Given the choice to follow Jesus or obey the IRS, I would hope Christian churches would follow Jesus even though this would mean losing their tax exempt status. There are two primary reasons I believe Christian churches cannot obey Jesus and the IRS at the same time.\r\n\r\nFirst, numerous statements made by Jesus and other New Testament authors proclaim that Jesus is Lord over <em>everything</em>.  Jesus did not just claim authority over the personal, private, moral or spiritual dimensions of His follower\'s lives.  Jesus claimed to be Lord over <em>everything</em>, which certainly would include all aspects of His follower\'s lives.  This would include their finances, their politics, their public lives, how they treat the poor, how they treat their enemies, etc. If the claims about Jesus\' lordship and authority are to be taken seriously, no Christian church can suggest their members <em>only</em> owe Jesus their spiritual affections or their intellectual assent to specific doctrines while Jesus can be safely ignored on all other matters. Either Jesus is seen as the absolute Lord over the entire world and Lord over all aspects of the of the lives of His followers or the followers of Jesus must admit that they are ignoring some of Jesus’ own words and claims made about Him in the Bible.\r\n\r\nSecond, the claims of Jesus and His teachings had and have social and political implications. Jesus did not just encourage His followers to pursue personal piety but to pursue justice. Jesus did not just teach on morality but also on ethics. Jesus taught that we are to love our enemies, that we are to take care of the poor and the marginalized, and that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves. All of these teachings involve many issues that are today governed by politics and legislation. How then could a Christian church today obey Jesus and remain unconcerned with politics and legislation? While it is true that many of these teachings can obeyed or pursued at a personal level, with no involvement in politics whatsoever, there are some issues that are primarily or exclusively handled in our contemporary society through politics and legislation. For example, any stance on war will naturally involve politics. In addition to this, certain issues may require political or legislative reform to address in a more comprehensive manner.  For example, volunteering to feed the homeless at a soup kitchen is certainly taking care of the poor, but if you want work towards ending poverty you will need to get involved in local, national and global politics.\r\n\r\nIn this situation, how could a Christian church ever hope to abide by the requirements laid out by the IRS?  Because of Jesus\' claims to absolute and complete authority, Christians cannot offer their personal and private lives to Jesus while keeping who they vote for, what legislation they pursue, and how they treat others as a matter of personal preference. If Christians believe Jesus is Lord, they cannot, \"I pray and believe according to the teachings of Jesus, but I do not let my faith impact how I vote. That is a private and personal matter.\"  How could a Church take Jesus\' teachings regarding the poor and the marginalized seriously and not pursue specific legislation regarding  homelessness, economic exploitation in capitalism, environmental injustice, Welfare, Medicaid, universal health care and immigration reform?  How could one expect Christian leaders , whose job in part entails espousing the teaching and ideals of Jesus, to not speak about partisan issues in an official capacity or at an official function? How could a Christian leader take Jesus\' insistence that we love our enemies seriously and not speak out against wars in an official capacity?\r\n\r\nAt the end of the day, Jesus\'s claims and teachings had and have political implications and this will always guarantee that at some level following Jesus will be a political endeavor. Following Jesus has always meant being willing to break from the prevailing cultural and political winds and in the contemporary context this will mean involvement in legislation and the democratic process which is highly partisan.  In light of all of this, it is impossible for Christian churches to obey Jesus and the IRS at the same time without seriously compromising the teachings of the former to receive the tax-exempt status of the latter. I would hope that Christians would follow the teachings of Jesus and live a political life and pursue a political agenda that reflects the person they believe to be God, even though doing so will mean losing benefits they may have grown accustomed to.','Why Christian Churches Should Lose Tax Exempt Status.','','inherit','open','open','','3677-revision-13','','','2012-01-10 11:41:29','2012-01-10 19:41:29','',3677,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/10/3677-revision-13/',0,'revision','',0),(4042,1,'2012-01-18 05:00:18','2012-01-18 13:00:18','January\'s Synchroblog is about hope. Below is a list of writer\'s who are thinking and dreaming about it.  We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people.\r\n\r\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/the-trouble-with-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble With Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://www.johnptacek.com/\" target=\"_blank\">John Ptacek</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-possibility-x-imagination/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope = Possibility x Imagination</a>: <a href=\"http://markysroom.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Wayne Rumsby</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/little-reminders/\" target=\"_blank\">Little Reminders</a>: <a href=\"http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mike Victorino</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/where-is-my-hope/\">Where Is My Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://jonathanbrink.com\" target=\"_blank\">Jonathan Brink</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-for-hypocrites/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope for Hypocrites</a>: <a href=\"http://www.tillhecomes.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Jeremy Myers</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/now-these-three-remain/\" target=\"_blank\">Now These Three Remain</a>: <a href=\"http://www.lookthrough.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Sonny Lemmons</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/perplexed-but-still-hopeful/\" target=\"_blank\">Perplexed, But Still Hopeful</a>: <a href=\"http://wordshalfheard.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Carol Kuniholm</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/a-hope-that-lives/\" target=\"_blank\">A Hope that Lives</a>: <a href=\"http://unchainedfaith.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Amy Mitchell</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/generations-come-and-generations-go/\" target=\"_blank\">Generations Come and Generations Go</a>: <a href=\"http://www.missionaljourneyman.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Adam Gonnerman</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/demystifying-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Demystifying Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://glennhager1.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Glenn Hager</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"etive.com/2012/01/18/god-in-the-dark-on-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">God in the Dark: On Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://www.quietanthem.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Renee Ronika Klug</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/keeping-hope-alive/\" target=\"_blank\">Keeping Hope Alive</a>: <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Maurice Broaddus</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/are-we-afraid-to-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Are We Afraid to Hope?</a>: <a href=\"http://godspace.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Christine Sine</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/on-wobbly-wheels-split-churches-and-fear/\" target=\"_blank\">On Wobbly Wheels, Split Churches and Fear</a>: <a href=\"http://lauradroege.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Laura Droege </a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/adopting-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Adopting Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://earthtourist.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Travis Klassen</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-is-held-between-us/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope is Held Between Us</a>: <a href=\"http://ellenharoutunian.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Ellen Haroutunian</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-in-the-hands-of-the-creatively-maladjusted/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope: In the Hands of the Creatively Maladjusted</a>: <a href=\"http://miheekimkort.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mihee Kim-Kort</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/paradox-hope-and-revival/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Paradox, Hope and Revival</a>: <a href=\"http://desertspiritsfire.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">City Safari</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/good-theology-saves/\" target=\"_blank\">Good Theology Saves</a>: <a href=\"http://theologybird.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Reverend Robyn</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/linear-never-was-never-will-be/\">Linear: Never Was, Never Will Be</a>: <a href=\"http://kathyescobar.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Escobar</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/better-than-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Better Than Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://gracerules.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Liz Dyer</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/caroline-for-congress-hope-for-the-future/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Caroline for Congress: Hope for the Future</a>: <a href=\"http://wendymccaig.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Wendy McCaig</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/fumbling-the-ball-on-hope/\">Fumbling the Ball on Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://morechrist.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">KW Leslie</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/content-to-hope/\">Content to Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://www.alise-write.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Alise Wright </a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-oh-the-humanity/\">Hope: Oh, the Humanity!</a>: <a href=\"http://www.soullikeaspider.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Deanna Ogle</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-hope/\">Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://heysonnie.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Sonnie </a>\r\n\r\nA Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\r\n\r\n<em>Photo Credit: <a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/danslegrandbleu/4159000326/sizes/l/in/photostream/\" target=\"_blank\">Dans Le Grant Bleu</a></em>','Synchroblog On Hope','','publish','open','open','','synchroblog-on-hope','','','2012-04-18 11:44:43','2012-04-18 18:44:43','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4042',0,'post','',1),(4043,1,'2012-01-14 09:26:26','2012-01-14 17:26:26','','there is always hope','','inherit','open','open','','there-is-always-hope','','','2012-01-14 09:26:26','2012-01-14 17:26:26','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/there-is-always-hope.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4044,1,'2012-01-14 09:30:26','2012-01-14 17:30:26','January is often a space to create new dreams and so we’re leaving the topic open and to your imagination. We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people. A Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\n\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\n\n&nbsp;','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-revision','','','2012-01-14 09:30:26','2012-01-14 17:30:26','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4042-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4045,1,'2012-04-18 11:43:02','2012-04-18 18:43:02','January\'s Synchroblog is about hope. Below is a list of writer\'s who are thinking and dreaming about it.  We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people.\n\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/the-trouble-with-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble With Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://www.johnptacek.com/\" target=\"_blank\">John Ptacek</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-possibility-x-imagination/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope = Possibility x Imagination</a>: <a href=\"http://markysroom.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Wayne Rumsby</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/little-reminders/\" target=\"_blank\">Little Reminders</a>: <a href=\"http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mike Victorino</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/where-is-my-hope/\">Where Is My Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://jonathanbrink.com\" target=\"_blank\">Jonathan Brink</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-for-hypocrites/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope for Hypocrites</a>: <a href=\"http://www.tillhecomes.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Jeremy Myers</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/now-these-three-remain/\" target=\"_blank\">Now These Three Remain</a>: <a href=\"http://www.lookthrough.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Sonny Lemmons</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/perplexed-but-still-hopeful/\" target=\"_blank\">Perplexed, But Still Hopeful</a>: <a href=\"http://wordshalfheard.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Carol Kuniholm</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/a-hope-that-lives/\" target=\"_blank\">A Hope that Lives</a>: <a href=\"http://unchainedfaith.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Amy Mitchell</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/generations-come-and-generations-go/\" target=\"_blank\">Generations Come and Generations Go</a>: <a href=\"http://www.missionaljourneyman.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Adam Gonnerman</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/demystifying-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Demystifying Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://glennhager1.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Glenn Hager</a>\n\n<a href=\"etive.com/2012/01/18/god-in-the-dark-on-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">God in the Dark: On Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://www.quietanthem.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Renee Ronika Klug</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/keeping-hope-alive/\" target=\"_blank\">Keeping Hope Alive</a>: <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Maurice Broaddus</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/are-we-afraid-to-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Are We Afraid to Hope?</a>: <a href=\"http://godspace.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Christine Sine</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/on-wobbly-wheels-split-churches-and-fear/\" target=\"_blank\">On Wobbly Wheels, Split Churches and Fear</a>: <a href=\"http://lauradroege.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Laura Droege </a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/adopting-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Adopting Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://earthtourist.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Travis Klassen</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-is-held-between-us/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope is Held Between Us</a>: <a href=\"http://ellenharoutunian.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Ellen Haroutunian</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-in-the-hands-of-the-creatively-maladjusted/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope: In the Hands of the Creatively Maladjusted</a>: <a href=\"http://miheekimkort.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mihee Kim-Kort</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/paradox-hope-and-revival/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Paradox, Hope and Revival</a>: <a href=\"http://desertspiritsfire.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">City Safari</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/good-theology-saves/\" target=\"_blank\">Good Theology Saves</a>: <a href=\"http://theologybird.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Reverend Robyn</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/linear-never-was-never-will-be/\">Linear: Never Was, Never Will Be</a>: <a href=\"http://kathyescobar.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Kathy Escobar</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/better-than-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">Better Than Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://gracerules.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Liz Dyer</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/caroline-for-congress-hope-for-the-future/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Caroline for Congress: Hope for the Future</a>: <a href=\"http://wendymccaig.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Wendy McCaig</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/fumbling-the-ball-on-hope/\">Fumbling the Ball on Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://morechrist.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">KW Leslie</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/content-to-hope/\">Content to Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://www.alise-write.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Alise Wright </a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-oh-the-humanity/\">Hope: Oh, the Humanity!</a>: <a href=\"http://www.soullikeaspider.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Deanna Ogle</a>\n\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-hope/\">Hope</a>: <a href=\"http://heysonnie.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Sonnie </a>\n\nA Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-autosave','','','2012-04-18 11:43:02','2012-04-18 18:43:02','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4042-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4046,1,'2012-01-18 08:00:06','2012-01-18 16:00:06','A friend of mine recently asked me, \"Why are you so confident in your conclusions?\" The question caught my attention and caused me to ask some very deep questions about where is my hope.  I don\'t spend a lot of time trying to prove anything anymore, and yet he was still seeing me as firm in my convictions.\r\n\r\nOver the last fifteen years, I\'ve spent a great deal of time listening deeply to my own faith and the process that goes into it. I wrote a <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-God-Imagination-Reconstructing-Christianity/dp/1453650741\" target=\"_blank\">book</a> about my conclusions and then spent the last several years allowing my own conclusions to be put to the blender.  Would it blend?  I taken on my own historical understanding of the Christian faith and found it wanting.  But instead of abandoning it, I sought to redeem it.  And after publishing it, I felt like I had...at least for me.  And that was enough.  I had discovered the relentless nature of love and grace, and just when I though I had found the end, God blew up my box.\r\n\r\nBut when my friend asked me the question, I had to step back once again and ask, \"Where is my hope?\"  Was it in my own conclusions?  Had I constructed a new box in which to live in, one that would imprison me in an unreasonable certainty and potential blindness?  Had I rebuilt the very same thing I had attempted to tear down.  Gone were the deep caffeine laden conversations that lasted four hours long.\r\n\r\nAt the core of my faith was the idea that there was nothing we had done or could ever do to lose the love of God.  But we could lose sight of the love of God.  The problem of original sin was that as human beings, we could lose site of God\'s original judgment of humanity (<a href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=gen%201:31&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Gen 1:31</a>). We could construct a <em>false</em> conclusion that we could do something that could change God, and thus God\'s judgment.  And in losing site of that judgment, we\'re getting it wrong (sinning). The problem was then not in God, but in us.  The cross was God saying, \"This is how far I will go to show you that you are loved.\"\r\n\r\nI spent several days pondering the question, asking myself, \"What if I\'m wrong?  What if my understanding of the Christian faith was wrong?\"  I had offered conclusions that were counter to my own historical, evangelical perspective of faith.  If I stood before Jesus, what would I say?\r\n\r\nAnd then it hit me once again, that my hope was not in my constructed understanding of the Gospel, one that I felt was both logical, restorative and consistent with Scripture. My faith was then not in my faith.  It was in Jesus to be my faith for me.  My hope was in the love of God to judge for me.\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Where Is My Hope','','publish','open','open','','where-is-my-hope','','','2012-01-18 09:17:18','2012-01-18 17:17:18','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4046',0,'post','',6),(4047,1,'2012-01-14 09:34:31','2012-01-14 17:34:31','Over the last fifteen years I spent a great deal of time listening deeply to my own faith and the process that goes into it. I wrote a book about my conclusions and spent the last several years allowing my ownc','Where Is My Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4046-revision','','','2012-01-14 09:34:31','2012-01-14 17:34:31','',4046,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4046-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4048,1,'2012-01-14 09:46:19','2012-01-14 17:46:19','A friend of mine recently asked me, \"Why are you so confident in your conclusions?\" The question caught my attention and caused me to ask some very deep questions about where is my hope.\n\nOver the last fifteen years, I\'ve spent a great deal of time listening deeply to my own faith and the process that goes into it. I wrote a <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-God-Imagination-Reconstructing-Christianity/dp/1453650741\" target=\"_blank\">book</a> about my conclusions and then spent the last several years allowing my own conclusions to be put to the blender.  Would it blend?  I taken on my own historical understanding of the Christian faith and found it wanting.  But instead of abandoning it, I sought to redeem it.  And after publishing it, I felt like I had...at least for me.  And that was enough.  I had discovered the relentless nature of love and grace, and just when I though I had found the end, God blew up my box.\n\nBut when my friend asked me the question, I had to step back once again and ask, \"Where is my hope?\"  Was it in my own conclusions?  Had I constructed a new box in which to live in, one that would imprison me in an unreasonable certainty and potential blindness?  Had I rebuilt the very same thing I had attempted to tear down.\n\nAt the core of my faith was the idea that there was nothing we had done or could ever do to lose the love of God.  But we could lose site of the love of God.  The problem of sin was that as human beings, we could lose site of God\'s original judgment of humanity (<a href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=gen%201:31&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Gen 1:31</a>). We could construct a false conclusion that we could do something that could cAnd in losing site of that judgment, we g\n\nI spent several days pondering the question, asking myself, \"What if I\'m wrong?  What if my understanding of the Christian faith was wrong?  I had offered conclusions that were counter to my own historical perspective of faith.  If I stood before Jesus, what would I say?\"\n\n&nbsp;','Where Is My Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4046-revision-2','','','2012-01-14 09:46:19','2012-01-14 17:46:19','',4046,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4046-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4049,1,'2012-01-14 09:50:14','2012-01-14 17:50:14','A friend of mine recently asked me, \"Why are you so confident in your conclusions?\" The question caught my attention and caused me to ask some very deep questions about where is my hope.\n\nOver the last fifteen years, I\'ve spent a great deal of time listening deeply to my own faith and the process that goes into it. I wrote a <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-God-Imagination-Reconstructing-Christianity/dp/1453650741\" target=\"_blank\">book</a> about my conclusions and then spent the last several years allowing my own conclusions to be put to the blender.  Would it blend?  I taken on my own historical understanding of the Christian faith and found it wanting.  But instead of abandoning it, I sought to redeem it.  And after publishing it, I felt like I had...at least for me.  And that was enough.  I had discovered the relentless nature of love and grace, and just when I though I had found the end, God blew up my box.\n\nBut when my friend asked me the question, I had to step back once again and ask, \"Where is my hope?\"  Was it in my own conclusions?  Had I constructed a new box in which to live in, one that would imprison me in an unreasonable certainty and potential blindness?  Had I rebuilt the very same thing I had attempted to tear down.\n\nAt the core of my faith was the idea that there was nothing we had done or could ever do to lose the love of God.  But we could lose site of the love of God.  The problem of sin was that as human beings, we could lose site of God\'s original judgment of humanity (<a href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=gen%201:31&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Gen 1:31</a>). We could construct a false conclusion that we could do something that could change God, and thus God\'s judgment.  And in losing site of that judgment, we getting it wrong (sinning). The problem was then not in God, but in us.  The cross was God saying, \"This is how far I will go to show you that you are loved.\"\n\nI spent several days pondering the question, asking myself, \"What if I\'m wrong?  What if my understanding of the Christian faith was wrong?\"  I had offered conclusions that were counter to my own historical perspective of faith.  If I stood before Jesus, what would I say?\n\nAnd then it hit me once again, that my hope was not in my neatly constructed understanding of the Gospel, one that I felt was both logical and consistent with Scripture. My faith was then not in my faith.  It was in Jesus to be my faith for me.  My hope was in the love of God to judge for me.\n\n&nbsp;','Where Is My Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4046-revision-3','','','2012-01-14 09:50:14','2012-01-14 17:50:14','',4046,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4046-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4050,1,'2012-01-14 09:51:23','2012-01-14 17:51:23','A friend of mine recently asked me, \"Why are you so confident in your conclusions?\" The question caught my attention and caused me to ask some very deep questions about where is my hope.\n\nOver the last fifteen years, I\'ve spent a great deal of time listening deeply to my own faith and the process that goes into it. I wrote a <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-God-Imagination-Reconstructing-Christianity/dp/1453650741\" target=\"_blank\">book</a> about my conclusions and then spent the last several years allowing my own conclusions to be put to the blender.  Would it blend?  I taken on my own historical understanding of the Christian faith and found it wanting.  But instead of abandoning it, I sought to redeem it.  And after publishing it, I felt like I had...at least for me.  And that was enough.  I had discovered the relentless nature of love and grace, and just when I though I had found the end, God blew up my box.\n\nBut when my friend asked me the question, I had to step back once again and ask, \"Where is my hope?\"  Was it in my own conclusions?  Had I constructed a new box in which to live in, one that would imprison me in an unreasonable certainty and potential blindness?  Had I rebuilt the very same thing I had attempted to tear down.\n\nAt the core of my faith was the idea that there was nothing we had done or could ever do to lose the love of God.  But we could lose site of the love of God.  The problem of sin was that as human beings, we could lose site of God\'s original judgment of humanity (<a href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=gen%201:31&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Gen 1:31</a>). We could construct a false conclusion that we could do something that could change God, and thus God\'s judgment.  And in losing site of that judgment, we getting it wrong (sinning). The problem was then not in God, but in us.  The cross was God saying, \"This is how far I will go to show you that you are loved.\"\n\nI spent several days pondering the question, asking myself, \"What if I\'m wrong?  What if my understanding of the Christian faith was wrong?\"  I had offered conclusions that were counter to my own historical perspective of faith.  If I stood before Jesus, what would I say?\n\nAnd then it hit me once again, that my hope was not in my neatly constructed understanding of the Gospel, one that I felt was both logical and consistent with Scripture. My faith was then not in my faith.  It was in Jesus to be my faith for me.  My hope was in the love of God to judge for me.\n\n&nbsp;','Where Is My Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4046-revision-4','','','2012-01-14 09:51:23','2012-01-14 17:51:23','',4046,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4046-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4051,24,'2012-01-13 09:38:08','2012-01-13 17:38:08','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei6JvK0W60I[/youtube]\r\n\r\nThe images prevalent in a society or culture seem to reflect an idea of what the people in said society identify with as being valuable. If I show you an image deemed valuable long enough, get you to hear about it enough, you are likely to but into it. The images this beautiful girl is exposed to is this video reflect the ideas of what the media wants us to buy into. This is beneficial to them to get society to want to reflect or be this image, hence to purchase there products.\r\n\r\nGrocery store check outs, commercials, music videos and reality TV shows are full of people and products glamorizing the body, sex and anything related to pleasure. It appears to not be much different then a national geographic show on the mating rituals of most species of animals. Those with the best perceived genes and body get the most ladies, more sex, more food and dominance. That world works great for people who believe that is what they are.\r\n\r\nIf you have any spiritual value within you it is likely these images do not settle well within you. By asking some simple questions we can expose areas we have energized and identified with. Not as a means to judge, but to simple observe a paradigm.\r\n\r\nAre the images in the video real?\r\nIs your body the key to getting what you want?\r\nLook in the mirror at the face and body, do you love what you see?\r\nIs attraction to others/things and the desire to \'get\' the main motivator\'s of our lives?\r\n\r\nLet\'s bring some clarity to these questions by defining the difference between beauty and glamour.\r\nBeauty - That which you are.\r\nGlamour - That which you are trying to be something else in order to get a desired thing or outcome.\r\n\r\n<strong>Glamour uses seduction as a mean of attracting to itself a desired object that\'s value is projected onto it as a source of happiness</strong>.\r\n\r\nThe true source of happiness stems from within, the desire cannot be satisfied because it constantly projects value onto external things.  One\'s desires get fulfilled, the focus then moves on to another object of desire with endless procession.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Relate-101.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3643\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Relate-101-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" /></a>This body image value system doesn\'t or will not change because we get upset and boycott these images. It changes by one\'s ability to ask the tough questions, to search for answers that are not found \'out there.\'\r\n\r\n<strong>I cannot be seduced by an image if I know what I am.</strong>\r\n\r\nLook in the mirror, do you love what you see?\r\nDo you smile at that image knowing it is what you have not what you are?\r\n\r\nA few years ago my wife and I were going through a trying time. I was completely honest and open with her about my life and they things that were running it. I told her that I did not need her to be my mom, or seductress anymore. I was detaching from her a pushing her away. I was projecting my fear of being controlled onto her so I could have an excuse for being afraid. Every morning I ascended a beautiful mountain at sunrise as a way of contemplating what really mattered to me. One morning on the way up I was holding my wife in mind asking for help with our situation. I cannot explain very well what happened next, but I will do my best.\r\n\r\nI suddenly found myself in an overwhelming presence of Love and Beauty. I then within saw my wife as she Is. Without a past or future, without my feelings about her, she simply was Beauty manifested, Lovely, Perfect and One. I saw that she had put on a mask to relate to me, she had chosen to serve my false image giving it the Grace and safety it needed to dissolve.\r\n\r\nI ran down the mountain into our home and straight to my wife. I grabbed her hands and I began to tell her about what I had realized. I asked her to forgive me for making her the enemy. I thanked her for staying true and walking me through my shit.  As I was saying these things I began to notice a very strong fragrance in the room. I asked her if she had lit a candle. She told me no, we both began to breathe in this beautiful fragrance. It then dawned on me, this is her, this smell is Beauty being seen as it is. We both wept and laughed realizing the drama I had created was nothing more than my attempts to control what can never be controlled.\r\n\r\n<strong>Fear is the only thing that seeks acceptance, Love knows by being what it is. So what are you?</strong>\r\n\r\n[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U[/youtube]','Is Your Body The Key To Getting What You want?','','inherit','open','open','','3641-revision-15','','','2012-01-13 09:38:08','2012-01-13 17:38:08','',3641,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/13/3641-revision-15/',0,'revision','',0),(4052,0,'2012-01-14 12:22:48','2012-01-14 20:22:48','faith, politics, poverty, environment, literature, art, family, gender, parenting, discipleship, Biblical interpretation, spiritual disciplines, and how all those connect.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Carol Kuniholm\nAUTHOR EMAIL: ckuniholm@verizon.net\nAUTHOR URL: http://wordshalfheard.blogspot.com/\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 68.238.248.159\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Carol Kuniholm\n    [Email] =&gt; ckuniholm@verizon.net\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://wordshalfheard.blogspot.com/\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; faith, politics, poverty, environment, literature, art, family, gender, parenting, discipleship, Biblical interpretation, spiritual disciplines, and how all those connect. \n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; ckuniholm\n)\n','Carol Kuniholm - 2012-01-14 12:22:48','','publish','open','open','','12ce835667213cc06cdf31aea92e142e','','','2012-01-14 12:22:48','2012-01-14 20:22:48','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4052',0,'feedback','',0),(4053,137,'2012-01-14 21:46:09','2012-01-15 05:46:09','','Marky-Rides','','inherit','open','open','','marky-rides','','','2012-01-14 21:46:09','2012-01-15 05:46:09','',4004,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Marky-Rides.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4055,142,'2012-01-18 08:00:15','2012-01-18 16:00:15','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle.  To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally,  my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Little Reminders','','publish','open','open','','little-reminders','','','2012-01-18 09:11:30','2012-01-18 17:11:30','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4055',0,'post','',8),(4056,142,'2012-01-14 23:12:12','2012-01-15 07:12:12','From the Blue Hour Gallery of Mike Victorino Photography','Winter Sunset ','','inherit','open','open','','winter-sunset-provoketive','','','2012-01-14 23:12:12','2012-01-15 07:12:12','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Winter-Sunset-Provoketive.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4057,142,'2012-01-14 23:22:13','2012-01-15 07:22:13','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle. To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally, my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\n\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\n\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\n\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\n\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\n\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\n\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-revision','','','2012-01-14 23:22:13','2012-01-15 07:22:13','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4058,142,'2012-01-14 23:22:24','2012-01-15 07:22:24','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle. To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally, my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-revision-2','','','2012-01-14 23:22:24','2012-01-15 07:22:24','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4059,142,'2012-01-14 23:23:49','2012-01-15 07:23:49','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle.  To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally,  my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-revision-3','','','2012-01-14 23:23:49','2012-01-15 07:23:49','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4060,142,'2012-01-14 23:28:52','2012-01-15 07:28:52','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle.  To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally,  my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-revision-4','','','2012-01-14 23:28:52','2012-01-15 07:28:52','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4061,1,'2012-01-16 14:05:16','2012-01-16 22:05:16','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle.  To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally,  my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:05:16','2012-01-16 22:05:16','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4149,1,'2012-01-16 14:03:24','2012-01-16 22:03:24','January is often a space to create new dreams and so we’re leaving the topic open and to your imagination. We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people. A Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\r\n\r\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/the-trouble-with-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble With Hope</a>: John Ptacek\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-possibility-x-imagination/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope = Possibility x Imagination</a>: Wayne Rumbsy\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 14:03:24','2012-01-16 22:03:24','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4042-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4062,142,'2012-01-14 23:32:24','2012-01-15 07:32:24','This is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle.  To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally,  my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-revision-5','','','2012-01-14 23:32:24','2012-01-15 07:32:24','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4063,137,'2012-01-15 05:41:49','2012-01-15 13:41:49','','Marky-Rides','','inherit','open','open','','marky-rides-2','','','2012-01-15 05:41:49','2012-01-15 13:41:49','',4004,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Marky-Rides1.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4064,137,'2012-01-15 05:47:17','2012-01-15 13:47:17','','Marky-Rides','','inherit','open','open','','marky-rides-3','','','2012-01-15 05:47:17','2012-01-15 13:47:17','',4004,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Marky-Rides2.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4065,34,'2012-01-18 08:00:39','2012-01-18 16:00:39','I sure hope hypocrites can change.\r\n\r\nEveryone knows what a hypocrite is. They are two-faced. They say one thing in public, but do the opposite in private. Or they say one thing to one group of people, and the opposite to others, just so they can be accepted by both. Jesus had numerous encounters with religious hypocrites in His day, and there is no shortage of hypocrites today either.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-4067\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite-300x172.jpg\" alt=\"Hypocrite Definition\" width=\"300\" height=\"172\" /></a>There is one hypocrite in particular who annoys me more than all others. I first encountered him on my blog about five years ago, and every so often, more recently of late, he comes back and spouts off some sort of pious nonsense, which sounds good on the electronic page, but which I know for a fact is nothing but pure hypocrisy.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nI want him to keep interacting on my blog, but if he keeps it up, I might have to ban him.\r\n\r\nHe writes about all the problems in church and all the changes that need to be done to fix the church, but I know that he never really seems to make any changes in his own life. And he himself is not really all that involved in church anyway. He is like a \"back pew driver.\" I want to quote to him that old line we learned in kindergarten: \"When you point your finger at someone else, three point back at you,\" but it sounds so juvenile.\r\n\r\nI am tired of all his talk about loving and serving others, when really, from what I know about him, he rarely loves or serves anyone except himself. His wife and kids do more service than he does, and then he writes about it as if he were doing it! Talk about hypocrisy! Sometimes I just want to ask him, \"Who do you serve? Who do you love?\" Certainly, he has some decent ideas, but if all he is doing is talking about them, it is pure hypocrisy.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nHe has his own blog, of course (who doesn\'t these days?), and sometimes I read it. I recently read a post where he criticized big mega churches for their lack of close relationships and true, genuine fellowship. I suppose I agree. It is difficult to develop close relationships in big churches. But then, close relationships are difficult to develop everywhere! And besides, I know some about this guy. He doesn\'t have a single close friend! Nobody he regularly fellowships with. It looks like he is not doing any better with relationships and fellowship than are the people in the mega churches he criticized.\r\n\r\nI have almost stopped reading his blog completely. I get too upset. I wonder how he can write such things without shame? Where is his integrity? Where is his honesty about himself and his own life? Everything he writes on the page sounds good in theory, and seems to reflect biblical principles and ideas, and he seems to love Jesus and want to show the love of Jesus to others. That\'s all good. But there is a wide gap between <em>wanting</em> to do something and <em>actually doing it</em>. And that gap is called hypocrisy. If all he ever does is writes about loving and serving others, but never actually does it, he is a hypocrite.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nI <em>really</em> hope hypocrites can change...\r\n\r\nOtherwise, there is no hope for me.\r\n\r\n<strong>For I am that hypocrite.</strong>\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Hope for Hypocrites','','publish','open','open','','hope-for-hypocrites','','','2012-01-18 08:58:35','2012-01-18 16:58:35','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4065',0,'post','',13),(4066,34,'2012-01-15 07:00:58','2012-01-15 15:00:58','','Hypocrite Face','','inherit','open','open','','hypocrite-face','','','2012-01-15 07:00:58','2012-01-15 15:00:58','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4067,34,'2012-01-15 07:01:09','2012-01-15 15:01:09','','hypocrite','','inherit','open','open','','hypocrite','','','2012-01-15 07:01:09','2012-01-15 15:01:09','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4068,34,'2012-01-15 07:02:12','2012-01-15 15:02:12','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4067\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\" alt=\"Hypocrite Definition\" width=\"634\" height=\"365\" /></a>\n\nI sure hope hypocrites can change.\n\nEveryone knows what a hypocrite is. They are two-faced. They say one thing in public, but do the opposite in private. Or they say one thing to one group of people, and the opposite to others, just so they can be accepted by both. Jesus had numerous encounters with religious hypocrites in His day, and there is no shortage of hypocrites today either.\n\nThere is one hypocrite in particular who annoys me more than all others. I first encountered him on my blog about five years ago, and every so often, more recently of late, he comes back and spouts off some sort of pious nonsense, which sounds good on the electronic page, but which I know for a fact is nothing but pure hypocrisy.\n\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\n\nI want him to keep interacting on my blog, but if he keeps it up, I might have to ban him.\n\nHe writes about all the problems in church and all the changes that need to be done to fix the church, but I know that he never really seems to make any changes in his own life. And he himself is not really all that involved in church anyway. He is like a \"back pew driver.\" I want to quote to him that old line we learned in kindergarten: \"When you point your finger at someone else, three point back at you,\" but it sounds so juvenile.\n\nI am tired of all his talk about loving and serving others, when really, from what I know about him, he rarely loves or serves anyone except himself. His wife and kids do more service than he does, and then he writes about it as if he were doing it! Talk about hypocrisy! Sometimes I just want to ask him, \"Who do you serve? Who do you love?\" Certainly, he has some decent ideas, but if all he is doing is talking about them, it is pure hypocrisy.\n\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\n\nHe has his own blog, of course (who doesn\'t these days?), and sometimes I read it. I recently read a post where he criticized big mega churches for their lack of close relationships and true, genuine fellowship. I suppose I agree. It is difficult to develop close relationships in big churches. But then, close relationships are difficult to develop everywhere! And besides, I know some about this guy. He doesn\'t have a single close friend! Nobody he regularly fellowships with. It looks like he is not doing any better with relationships and fellowship than are the people in the mega churches he criticized.\n\nI have almost stopped reading his blog completely. I get too upset. I wonder how he can write such things without shame? Where is his integrity? Where is his honesty about himself and his own life? Everything he writes on the page sounds good in theory, and seems to reflect biblical principles and ideas, and he seems to love Jesus and want to show the love of Jesus to others. That\'s all good. But there is a wide gap between <em>wanting</em> to do something and <em>actually doing it</em>. And that gap is called hypocrisy. If all he ever does is writes about loving and serving others, but never actually does it, he is a hypocrite.\n\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\n\nI <em>really</em> hope hypocrites can change...\n\nOtherwise, there is no hope for me.\n\n<strong>For I am that hypocrite.</strong>\n','Hope for Hypocrites','','inherit','open','open','','4065-revision','','','2012-01-15 07:02:12','2012-01-15 15:02:12','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4065-revision/',0,'revision','',0);
INSERT INTO `wp_posts` VALUES (4156,1,'2012-01-15 14:33:29','2012-01-15 22:33:29','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\r\n\r\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\r\n\r\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\r\n\r\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\r\n\r\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\r\n\r\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\r\n\r\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\r\n\r\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\r\n\r\nAt least, that\'s my hope.','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision-6','','','2012-01-15 14:33:29','2012-01-15 22:33:29','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4074-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4069,34,'2012-01-15 07:05:49','2012-01-15 15:05:49','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-4067\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite-300x172.jpg\" alt=\"Hypocrite Definition\" width=\"300\" height=\"172\" /></a>I sure hope hypocrites can change.\n\nEveryone knows what a hypocrite is. They are two-faced. They say one thing in public, but do the opposite in private. Or they say one thing to one group of people, and the opposite to others, just so they can be accepted by both. Jesus had numerous encounters with religious hypocrites in His day, and there is no shortage of hypocrites today either.\n\nThere is one hypocrite in particular who annoys me more than all others. I first encountered him on my blog about five years ago, and every so often, more recently of late, he comes back and spouts off some sort of pious nonsense, which sounds good on the electronic page, but which I know for a fact is nothing but pure hypocrisy.\n\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\n\nI want him to keep interacting on my blog, but if he keeps it up, I might have to ban him.\n\nHe writes about all the problems in church and all the changes that need to be done to fix the church, but I know that he never really seems to make any changes in his own life. And he himself is not really all that involved in church anyway. He is like a \"back pew driver.\" I want to quote to him that old line we learned in kindergarten: \"When you point your finger at someone else, three point back at you,\" but it sounds so juvenile.\n\nI am tired of all his talk about loving and serving others, when really, from what I know about him, he rarely loves or serves anyone except himself. His wife and kids do more service than he does, and then he writes about it as if he were doing it! Talk about hypocrisy! Sometimes I just want to ask him, \"Who do you serve? Who do you love?\" Certainly, he has some decent ideas, but if all he is doing is talking about them, it is pure hypocrisy.\n\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\n\nHe has his own blog, of course (who doesn\'t these days?), and sometimes I read it. I recently read a post where he criticized big mega churches for their lack of close relationships and true, genuine fellowship. I suppose I agree. It is difficult to develop close relationships in big churches. But then, close relationships are difficult to develop everywhere! And besides, I know some about this guy. He doesn\'t have a single close friend! Nobody he regularly fellowships with. It looks like he is not doing any better with relationships and fellowship than are the people in the mega churches he criticized.\n\nI have almost stopped reading his blog completely. I get too upset. I wonder how he can write such things without shame? Where is his integrity? Where is his honesty about himself and his own life? Everything he writes on the page sounds good in theory, and seems to reflect biblical principles and ideas, and he seems to love Jesus and want to show the love of Jesus to others. That\'s all good. But there is a wide gap between <em>wanting</em> to do something and <em>actually doing it</em>. And that gap is called hypocrisy. If all he ever does is writes about loving and serving others, but never actually does it, he is a hypocrite.\n\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\n\nI <em>really</em> hope hypocrites can change...\n\nOtherwise, there is no hope for me.\n\n<strong>For I am that hypocrite.</strong>\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-4066\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face-300x198.jpg\" alt=\"The Mask Comes Off\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" /></a>','Hope for Hypocrites','','inherit','open','open','','4065-revision-2','','','2012-01-15 07:05:49','2012-01-15 15:05:49','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4065-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4071,1,'2012-01-15 10:15:44','2012-01-15 18:15:44','','parker palmer','','inherit','open','open','','parker-palmer','','','2012-01-15 10:15:44','2012-01-15 18:15:44','',4070,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/parker-palmer.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4072,1,'2012-01-15 10:16:34','2012-01-15 18:16:34','[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d15iaGyhWhQ[/youtube]\n\nParker Palmer explores the power of the human heart to stand up to injustice.\n<blockquote>Those movements were fomented by folks who had every external form of power taken away from then.  They had no status, they had no standing, they had no leverage. What they did was to access the only source of power that no one can take away from us, and that\'s the power of the human heart...the power of the soul, the power of identity and integrity.\n\nI think of about this sometimes as the Rosa Parks decision, or the Rosa Parks moment in life, where an apparently powerless person, an ordinary citizen say, \"I hold a truth on the inside that has power.  And the truth is that I\'m a full human being with all the rights and privileges pertaining there unto.  And I\'m no longer going to collaborate with a system that treats me as less than a full human being.</blockquote>\nHow does this statement speak to you?','Parker Palmer On The Power Of The Human Heart','','inherit','open','open','','4070-revision','','','2012-01-15 10:16:34','2012-01-15 18:16:34','',4070,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4070-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4074,58,'2012-01-18 08:00:24','2012-01-18 16:00:24','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\r\n\r\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\r\n\r\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\r\n\r\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\r\n\r\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\r\n\r\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\r\n\r\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\r\n\r\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\r\n\r\nAt least, that\'s my hope.\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Now These Three Remain...','','publish','open','open','','now-these-three-remain','','','2012-01-18 09:07:17','2012-01-18 17:07:17','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4074',0,'post','',4),(4076,12,'2012-01-24 08:00:00','2012-01-24 16:00:00','I\'ve had a chance to read a lot of articles on Provoketive about people who have had awful experiences in church life. These experiences put such a bad taste in their mouth, they ended up leaving for good. Typically, these experiences with church stemmed from one major problem - bad leadership.\r\n\r\nI have to admit. Before my fall from ministry, I did some things I regret. I was very heavy-handed at times, I had a tendency towards legalism and I was very, very unforgiving. That being said, I don\'t want to sound like a tyrant. Most people, I believe, remember me as a pretty decent guy. But the one thing I regret is my lack of forgiveness. It pains me to think about any I might have sent away with a bad taste in their mouth. They ended up rejecting church because of a man and never knowing the love of Christ.\r\n\r\nMy own peak of unforgiveness came with my relationship with my father. He and I were at odds for most of my life. He was very critical of me and had trouble expressing any love for me. While I was pastoring, he left my mother for another woman and I took that opportunity to judge him, condemn him and speak harshly to him. In return, he yelled right back.\r\n\r\nI decided to shut the door on him completely. I hated him for how he had treated my mother. People would say, \"Ray, you can\'t do that. He\'s your<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright  wp-image-4081\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"252\" height=\"252\" /></a> father.\" I\'d say, \"I don\'t care. If he wants forgiveness, I guess I\'ll listen. <em>But he has to come to me first.</em> And he has to mean it.\"\r\n\r\nI was still in ministry when he died in an accident a year and a half after he left my mother. We had never reconciled. I had spent my days spewing venom at him. Toward the end, I tried to sit down with him and tried to have a civil conversation with him, but we would never have a father-son relationship.\r\n\r\nA year later, my mother died in an accident and I found myself without parents, alone. Another year later, I committed adultery and needed my mom and dad more than ever. I began to rue the days when I cursed my father for his mistakes. I began to see him as human and understand that like him, I was imperfect. Woefully imperfect. I was, in fact, my father\'s son.\r\n\r\nAnd I began to understand the wide gap between the \"forgiveness\" of man and the restoration of God and how He wants us to practice it.\r\n\r\nI began contemplating passages Like Matthew 18:12 where a shepherd has 100 sheep. One of them went astray. What did the shepherd do? Did he say, \"Oh, it\'s alright. I\'ve got 99 other ones.\" Nope. The shepherd left the ones that he knew were fine and he sought out the <em>one</em>. He didn\'t wait for it to come back, he sought it out.\r\n\r\nI started thinking about Galatians 6:1, \"<em>Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted</em>.\"\r\n\r\nPaul tells the church that if anyone sins, that we ought to go get them and restore them. We shouldn\'t wait for anyone to be thrown on the trash heap of society. We grab them, help them, shake them to their senses if we have to. But we walk with them and see that they are restored to the community of faith. We don\'t stand idly by and hope that they come waltzing back one day and ask for our forgiveness. It\'s our job to restore people.\r\n\r\nContrast that with my reaction towards my father. I was so angry, I wanted to ignore him. Forever. I wanted his heart to change. I wanted it to change the way I wanted it to change. I wanted him to act and conform to my standards. Sure, he was sinning. But I wanted nothing to do with his restoration. It was easier for me to sit and hate.\r\n\r\nBut that\'s not what the community of faith is called to do. We are called to seek people out and restore them. That\'s what Jesus does for us. He seeks us out. And as His representatives, He wants us to seek out those who need restoration. Is it easy? Nope. Does it require our time and compassion? Yes.\r\n\r\nUltimately, it is worth it. What Christ did to save us was worth it and He calls us to be sacrificial in our lives toward others as well.\r\n\r\n____________________\r\n\r\nRay Carroll is author of <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-Broken/dp/0615567096/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1325370631&amp;sr=8-1\">Fallen Pastor: Finding Restoration in a Broken World</a> which is available at Amazon.com and is also available for the <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-ebook/dp/B006TKJV0U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1326661898&amp;sr=8-2\">Amazon Kindle</a>.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','\"Waiting On Forgiveness\" vs. Restoration','','publish','open','open','','waiting-on-forgiveness-vs-restoration','','','2012-01-23 07:32:48','2012-01-23 15:32:48','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4076',0,'post','',7),(4077,58,'2012-01-15 12:03:08','2012-01-15 20:03:08','','Auto Draft','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision','','','2012-01-15 12:03:08','2012-01-15 20:03:08','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4074-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4078,58,'2012-01-15 14:10:40','2012-01-15 22:10:40','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\n\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\n\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\n\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\n\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\n\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\n\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\n\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\n\nAt least, that\'s my hope.','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision-2','','','2012-01-15 14:10:40','2012-01-15 22:10:40','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4074-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4085,58,'2012-01-15 14:30:24','2012-01-15 22:30:24','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\n\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\n\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\n\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\n\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\n\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\n\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\n\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\n\nAt least, that\'s my hope.','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision-3','','','2012-01-15 14:30:24','2012-01-15 22:30:24','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4074-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4079,58,'2012-01-15 14:24:48','2012-01-15 22:24:48','Hope Synchroblog for Sonny Lemmons','Now These Three Remain','Now These Three Remain','inherit','open','open','','4343286660_e5aa64197d','','','2012-01-15 14:24:48','2012-01-15 22:24:48','',0,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/4343286660_e5aa64197d.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4080,12,'2012-01-15 14:26:47','2012-01-15 22:26:47','','waiting','','inherit','open','open','','waiting','','','2012-01-15 14:26:47','2012-01-15 22:26:47','',4076,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/waiting.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4081,12,'2012-01-15 14:27:58','2012-01-15 22:27:58','','wait','','inherit','open','open','','wait','','','2012-01-15 14:27:58','2012-01-15 22:27:58','',4076,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4082,58,'2012-01-15 14:28:22','2012-01-15 22:28:22','','Now These Three Remain','','inherit','open','open','','4343286660_e5aa64197d-2','','','2012-01-15 14:28:22','2012-01-15 22:28:22','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/4343286660_e5aa64197d1.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4083,12,'2012-01-15 14:28:48','2012-01-15 22:28:48','I\'ve had a chance to read a lot of articles on Provoketive about people who have had awful experiences in church life. These experiences put such a bad taste in their mouth, they ended up leaving for good. Typically, these experiences with church stemmed from one major problem - bad leadership.\n\nI have to admit. Before my fall from ministry, I did some things I regret. I was very heavy-handed at times, I had a tendency towards legalism and I was very, very unforgiving. That being said, I don\'t want to sound like a tyrant. Most people, I believe, remember be as a pretty decent guy. But the one thing I regret is my lack of forgiveness. It pains me to think about any I might have sent away with a bad taste in their mouth. They ended up rejecting church because of a man and never knowing the love of Christ.\n\nMy own peak of unforgiveness came with my relationship with my father. He and I were at odds for most of my life. He was very critical of me and had trouble expressing any love for me. While I was pastoring, he left my mother for another woman and I took that opportunity to judge him, condemn him and speak harshly to him. In return, he yelled right back.\n\nI decided to shut the door on him completely. I hated him for how he had treated my mother. People would say, \"Ray, you can\'t do that. He\'s your father.\" I\'d say, \"I don\'t care. If he wants forgiveness, I guess I\'ll listen. <em>But he has to come to me first.</em> And he has to mean it.\"\n\nI was still in ministry when he died in an accident a year and a half after he left my mother. We had never reconciled. I had spent my days spewing venom at him. Toward the end, I tried to sit down with him and tried to have a civil conversation with him, but we would never have a father-son relationship.\n\nA year later, my mother died in an accident and I found myself without parents, alone. Another year later, I committed adultery and needed my mom and dad more than ever. I began to rue the days when I cursed my father for his mistakes. I began to see him as human and understand that like him, I was imperfect. Woefully imperfect. I was, in fact, my father\'s son.\n\nAnd I began to understand the wide gap between the \"forgiveness\" of man and the restoration of God and how He wants us to practice it.\n\nI began contemplating passages Like Matthew 18:12 where a shepherd has 100 sheep. One of them went astray. What did the shepherd do? Did he <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright  wp-image-4081\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"263\" height=\"263\" /></a>say, \"Oh, it\'s alright. I\'ve got 99 other ones.\" Nope. The shepherd left the ones that he knew were fine and he sought out the <em>one</em>. He didn\'t wait for it to come back, he sought it out.\n\nI started thinking about Galatians 6:1, \"<em>Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted</em>.\"\n\nPaul tells the church that if anyone sins, that we ought to go get them and restore them. We shouldn\'t wait for anyone to be thrown on the trash heap of society. We grab them, help them, shake them to their senses if we have to. But we walk with them and see that they are restored to the community of faith. We don\'t stand idly by and hope that they come waltzing back one day and ask for our forgiveness. It\'s our job to restore people.\n\nContrast that with my reaction towards my father. I was so angry, I wanted to ignore him. Forever. I wanted his heart to change. I wanted it to change the way I wanted it to change. I wanted him to act and conform to my standards. Sure, he was sinning. But I wanted nothing to do with his restoration. It was easier for me to sit and hate.\n\nBut that\'s not what the community of faith is called to do. We are called to seek people out and restore them. That\'s what Jesus does for us. He seeks us out. And as His representatives, He wants us to seek out those who need restoration. Is it easy? Nope. Does it require our time and compassion? Yes.\n\nUltimately, it is worth it. What Christ did to save us was worth it and He calls us to be sacrificial in our lives toward others as well.\n\nBrothers,<span class=\"footnote\"><a id=\"fb1-1\" class=\"fn\" title=\"&lt;note class=&quot;alternative&quot;&gt;Or &lt;i&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;catch-word&quot;&gt;Brothers&lt;/span&gt; and sisters&lt;/i&gt;; also verse 18&lt;/note&gt;\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/gal+6/#f1-1\">1</a></span> <a class=\"cf\" title=\"[Ps. 141:5; 2 Cor. 2:7; Heb. 12:13; James 5:19]\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/Ps141.5%3B2Co2.7%3BHb12.13%3BJm5.19/\">o</a>if anyone is caught in any transgression, <a class=\"cf\" title=\"[Rom. 15:1; 1 Cor. 10:15]; See 1 Cor. 2:15\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/Rm15.1%3B1Co10.15%3B1Co2.15/\">p</a>you who are spiritual should restore him in <a class=\"cf\" title=\"1 Cor. 4:21; [2 Tim. 2:25]\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/1Co4.21%3B2Tm2.25/\">q</a>a spirit of gentleness','\"Waiting On Forgiveness\" vs. Restoration','','inherit','open','open','','4076-revision','','','2012-01-15 14:28:48','2012-01-15 22:28:48','',4076,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4076-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4090,145,'2012-01-18 08:00:13','2012-01-18 16:00:13','<blockquote><em><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;</em>\r\nNot untwist—slack they may be—\r\nthese last strands of man\r\nIn me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\nCan something, hope, wish day come,\r\nnot choose not to be.\r\n(from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Perplexed, But Still Hopeful','','publish','open','open','','perplexed-but-still-hopeful','','','2012-01-18 09:14:37','2012-01-18 17:14:37','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4090',0,'post','',2),(4084,1,'2012-01-23 07:33:53','2012-01-23 15:33:53','I\'ve had a chance to read a lot of articles on Provoketive about people who have had awful experiences in church life. These experiences put such a bad taste in their mouth, they ended up leaving for good. Typically, these experiences with church stemmed from one major problem - bad leadership.\n\nI have to admit. Before my fall from ministry, I did some things I regret. I was very heavy-handed at times, I had a tendency towards legalism and I was very, very unforgiving. That being said, I don\'t want to sound like a tyrant. Most people, I believe, remember me as a pretty decent guy. But the one thing I regret is my lack of forgiveness. It pains me to think about any I might have sent away with a bad taste in their mouth. They ended up rejecting church because of a man and never knowing the love of Christ.\n\nMy own peak of unforgiveness came with my relationship with my father. He and I were at odds for most of my life. He was very critical of me and had trouble expressing any love for me. While I was pastoring, he left my mother for another woman and I took that opportunity to judge him, condemn him and speak harshly to him. In return, he yelled right back.\n\nI decided to shut the door on him completely. I hated him for how he had treated my mother. People would say, \"Ray, you can\'t do that. He\'s your<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright  wp-image-4081\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"252\" height=\"252\" /></a> father.\" I\'d say, \"I don\'t care. If he wants forgiveness, I guess I\'ll listen. <em>But he has to come to me first.</em> And he has to mean it.\"\n\nI was still in ministry when he died in an accident a year and a half after he left my mother. We had never reconciled. I had spent my days spewing venom at him. Toward the end, I tried to sit down with him and tried to have a civil conversation with him, but we would never have a father-son relationship.\n\nA year later, my mother died in an accident and I found myself without parents, alone. Another year later, I committed adultery and needed my mom and dad more than ever. I began to rue the days when I cursed my father for his mistakes. I began to see him as human and understand that like him, I was imperfect. Woefully imperfect. I was, in fact, my father\'s son.\n\nAnd I began to understand the wide gap between the \"forgiveness\" of man and the restoration of God and how He wants us to practice it.\n\nI began contemplating passages Like Matthew 18:12 where a shepherd has 100 sheep. One of them went astray. What did the shepherd do? Did he say, \"Oh, it\'s alright. I\'ve got 99 other ones.\" Nope. The shepherd left the ones that he knew were fine and he sought out the <em>one</em>. He didn\'t wait for it to come back, he sought it out.\n\nI started thinking about Galatians 6:1, \"<em>Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted</em>.\"\n\nPaul tells the church that if anyone sins, that we ought to go get them and restore them. We shouldn\'t wait for anyone to be thrown on the trash heap of society. We grab them, help them, shake them to their senses if we have to. But we walk with them and see that they are restored to the community of faith. We don\'t stand idly by and hope that they come waltzing back one day and ask for our forgiveness. It\'s our job to restore people.\n\nContrast that with my reaction towards my father. I was so angry, I wanted to ignore him. Forever. I wanted his heart to change. I wanted it to change the way I wanted it to change. I wanted him to act and conform to my standards. Sure, he was sinning. But I wanted nothing to do with his restoration. It was easier for me to sit and hate.\n\nBut that\'s not what the community of faith is called to do. We are called to seek people out and restore them. That\'s what Jesus does for us. He seeks us out. And as His representatives, He wants us to seek out those who need restoration. Is it easy? Nope. Does it require our time and compassion? Yes.\n\nUltimately, it is worth it. What Christ did to save us was worth it and He calls us to be sacrificial in our lives toward others as well.\n\n____________________\n\nRay Carroll is author of <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-Broken/dp/0615567096/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1325370631&amp;sr=8-1\">Fallen Pastor: Finding Restoration in a Broken World</a> which is available at Amazon.com and is also available for the <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-ebook/dp/B006TKJV0U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1326661898&amp;sr=8-2\">Amazon Kindle</a>.\n\n&nbsp;','\"Waiting On Forgiveness\" vs. Restoration','','inherit','open','open','','4076-autosave','','','2012-01-23 07:33:53','2012-01-23 15:33:53','',4076,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4076-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4507,0,'2012-01-23 08:36:13','2012-01-23 16:36:13','If there is historical evidence that Jesus affirmed and loved and served with women, even has them as disciples, why is the Church so stuck on this issue?  Why don\'t pastors/leaders/teachers care about learning the historical truth?  (My sources Ben Witherington, Scot McKnight)  What will it take to change?  (Asked by implication/threat of women leaving the church by Jim Henderson, in Resignation of Eve)\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Melody Harrison Hanson\nAUTHOR EMAIL: melhhanson@yahoo.com\nAUTHOR URL: \nSUBJECT: Submit A Question\nIP: 68.185.168.31\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Melody Harrison Hanson\n    [Email] =&gt; melhhanson@yahoo.com\n    [City] =&gt; Melody Harrison Hanson\n    [Your question] =&gt; If there is historical evidence that Jesus affirmed and loved and served with women, even has them as disciples, why is the Church so stuck on this issue?  Why don\'t pastors/leaders/teachers care about learning the historical truth?  (My sources Ben Witherington, Scot McKnight)  What will it take to change?  (Asked by implication/threat of women leaving the church by Jim Henderson, in Resignation of Eve)\n)\n','Melody Harrison Hanson - 2012-01-23 08:36:13','','publish','open','open','','6e1999da63220dbb1fac4c28e37e33f1','','','2012-01-23 08:36:13','2012-01-23 16:36:13','',4432,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4507',0,'feedback','',0),(4086,58,'2012-01-15 14:30:28','2012-01-15 22:30:28','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\r\n\r\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\r\n\r\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\r\n\r\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\r\n\r\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\r\n\r\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\r\n\r\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\r\n\r\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\r\n\r\nAt least, that\'s my hope.','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision-4','','','2012-01-15 14:30:28','2012-01-15 22:30:28','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4074-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4087,58,'2012-01-15 14:32:59','2012-01-15 22:32:59','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\r\n\r\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\r\n\r\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\r\n\r\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\r\n\r\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\r\n\r\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\r\n\r\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\r\n\r\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\r\n\r\nAt least, that\'s my hope.','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision-5','','','2012-01-15 14:32:59','2012-01-15 22:32:59','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4074-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4088,12,'2012-01-15 14:29:42','2012-01-15 22:29:42','I\'ve had a chance to read a lot of articles on Provoketive about people who have had awful experiences in church life. These experiences put such a bad taste in their mouth, they ended up leaving for good. Typically, these experiences with church stemmed from one major problem - bad leadership.\r\n\r\nI have to admit. Before my fall from ministry, I did some things I regret. I was very heavy-handed at times, I had a tendency towards legalism and I was very, very unforgiving. That being said, I don\'t want to sound like a tyrant. Most people, I believe, remember be as a pretty decent guy. But the one thing I regret is my lack of forgiveness. It pains me to think about any I might have sent away with a bad taste in their mouth. They ended up rejecting church because of a man and never knowing the love of Christ.\r\n\r\nMy own peak of unforgiveness came with my relationship with my father. He and I were at odds for most of my life. He was very critical of me and had trouble expressing any love for me. While I was pastoring, he left my mother for another woman and I took that opportunity to judge him, condemn him and speak harshly to him. In return, he yelled right back.\r\n\r\nI decided to shut the door on him completely. I hated him for how he had treated my mother. People would say, \"Ray, you can\'t do that. He\'s your father.\" I\'d say, \"I don\'t care. If he wants forgiveness, I guess I\'ll listen. <em>But he has to come to me first.</em> And he has to mean it.\"\r\n\r\nI was still in ministry when he died in an accident a year and a half after he left my mother. We had never reconciled. I had spent my days spewing venom at him. Toward the end, I tried to sit down with him and tried to have a civil conversation with him, but we would never have a father-son relationship.\r\n\r\nA year later, my mother died in an accident and I found myself without parents, alone. Another year later, I committed adultery and needed my mom and dad more than ever. I began to rue the days when I cursed my father for his mistakes. I began to see him as human and understand that like him, I was imperfect. Woefully imperfect. I was, in fact, my father\'s son.\r\n\r\nAnd I began to understand the wide gap between the \"forgiveness\" of man and the restoration of God and how He wants us to practice it.\r\n\r\nI began contemplating passages Like Matthew 18:12 where a shepherd has 100 sheep. One of them went astray. What did the shepherd do? Did he <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright  wp-image-4081\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"263\" height=\"263\" /></a>say, \"Oh, it\'s alright. I\'ve got 99 other ones.\" Nope. The shepherd left the ones that he knew were fine and he sought out the <em>one</em>. He didn\'t wait for it to come back, he sought it out.\r\n\r\nI started thinking about Galatians 6:1, \"<em>Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted</em>.\"\r\n\r\nPaul tells the church that if anyone sins, that we ought to go get them and restore them. We shouldn\'t wait for anyone to be thrown on the trash heap of society. We grab them, help them, shake them to their senses if we have to. But we walk with them and see that they are restored to the community of faith. We don\'t stand idly by and hope that they come waltzing back one day and ask for our forgiveness. It\'s our job to restore people.\r\n\r\nContrast that with my reaction towards my father. I was so angry, I wanted to ignore him. Forever. I wanted his heart to change. I wanted it to change the way I wanted it to change. I wanted him to act and conform to my standards. Sure, he was sinning. But I wanted nothing to do with his restoration. It was easier for me to sit and hate.\r\n\r\nBut that\'s not what the community of faith is called to do. We are called to seek people out and restore them. That\'s what Jesus does for us. He seeks us out. And as His representatives, He wants us to seek out those who need restoration. Is it easy? Nope. Does it require our time and compassion? Yes.\r\n\r\nUltimately, it is worth it. What Christ did to save us was worth it and He calls us to be sacrificial in our lives toward others as well.\r\n\r\n____________________\r\n\r\nRay Carroll is author of <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-Broken/dp/0615567096/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1325370631&amp;sr=8-1\">Fallen Pastor: Finding Restoration in a Broken World</a> which is available at Amazon.com and is also available for the <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-ebook/dp/B006TKJV0U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1326661898&amp;sr=8-2\">Amazon Kindle</a>.\r\n\r\nBrothers,<span class=\"footnote\"><a id=\"fb1-1\" class=\"fn\" title=\"&lt;note class=&quot;alternative&quot;&gt;Or &lt;i&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;catch-word&quot;&gt;Brothers&lt;/span&gt; and sisters&lt;/i&gt;; also verse 18&lt;/note&gt;\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/search/gal+6/#f1-1\">1</a></span> <a class=\"cf\" title=\"[Ps. 141:5; 2 Cor. 2:7; Heb. 12:13; James 5:19]\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/Ps141.5%3B2Co2.7%3BHb12.13%3BJm5.19/\">o</a>if anyone is caught in any transgression, <a class=\"cf\" title=\"[Rom. 15:1; 1 Cor. 10:15]; See 1 Cor. 2:15\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/Rm15.1%3B1Co10.15%3B1Co2.15/\">p</a>you who are spiritual should restore him in <a class=\"cf\" title=\"1 Cor. 4:21; [2 Tim. 2:25]\" href=\"http://www.esvbible.org/1Co4.21%3B2Tm2.25/\">q</a>a spirit of gentleness','\"Waiting On Forgiveness\" vs. Restoration','','inherit','open','open','','4076-revision-2','','','2012-01-15 14:29:42','2012-01-15 22:29:42','',4076,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4076-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4104,145,'2012-01-15 16:30:58','2012-01-16 00:30:58','<blockquote><em><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;</em>\nNot untwist—slack they may be—\nthese last strands of man\nIn me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\nCan something, hope, wish day come,\nnot choose not to be.\n(from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\n\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\n\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\n\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\n\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\n\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\n\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\n\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\n\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\n\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\n\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\n\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\n\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\n\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\n\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\n\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\n\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\n\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\n\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\n\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\n\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\n\nI pray that will be so.\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-8','','','2012-01-15 16:30:58','2012-01-16 00:30:58','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(4091,145,'2012-01-15 15:33:36','2012-01-15 23:33:36','<blockquote><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;\n</em><em>Not untwist—slack they may be—\n</em><em>    these last strands of man\n</em><em>In me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\n</em><em>Can something, hope, wish day come,\n</em><em>   not choose not to be.\n</em><em>     (from “Carrion Comfort,” Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\n\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\n\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\n\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\n\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\n\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\n\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\n\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\n\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\n\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\n\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\n\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\n\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\n\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\n\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\n\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\n\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\n\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\n\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\n\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\n\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\n\nI pray that will be so.\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see</em>\n\n<em>Ahead, but looking back the very light</em>\n\n<em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,</em>\n\n<em>Along which blessings now appear, risen</em>\n\n<em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,</em>\n\n<em>By blessings brightly lit, keep going toward</em>\n\n<em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.</em>\n\n<em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision','','','2012-01-15 15:33:36','2012-01-15 23:33:36','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4092,145,'2012-01-15 15:35:42','2012-01-15 23:35:42','<blockquote><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;\n</em><em>Not untwist—slack they may be—\n</em><em>    these last strands of man\n</em><em>In me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\n</em><em>Can something, hope, wish day come,\n</em><em>   not choose not to be.\n</em><em>     (from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\n\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\n\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\n\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\n\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\n\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\n\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\n\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\n\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\n\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\n\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\n\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\n\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\n\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\n\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\n\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\n\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\n\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\n\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\n\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\n\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\n\nI pray that will be so.\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-2','','','2012-01-15 15:35:42','2012-01-15 23:35:42','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4093,145,'2012-01-15 15:51:55','2012-01-15 23:51:55','','Praying Monk Frank Brangwyn 1919 woodcut Paris Provoketive','','inherit','open','open','','praying-monk-frank-brangwyn-1919-woodcut-paris-provoketive','','','2012-01-15 15:51:55','2012-01-15 23:51:55','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-1919-woodcut-Paris-Provoketive.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4094,145,'2012-01-15 15:53:23','2012-01-15 23:53:23','','Praying Monk Frank Brangwyn woodcut 1919','Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut 1919','inherit','open','open','','praying-monk-frank-brangwyn-woodcut-1919','','','2012-01-15 15:53:23','2012-01-15 23:53:23','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-1919.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4095,145,'2012-01-15 15:57:12','2012-01-15 23:57:12','','Praying Monk Frank Brangwyn woodcut 1919','Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut, 1919','inherit','open','open','','praying-monk-frank-brangwyn-woodcut-1919-2','','','2012-01-15 15:57:12','2012-01-15 23:57:12','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4096,145,'2012-01-15 15:59:11','2012-01-15 23:59:11','','Untitled, Ben-Zion, 1950s','','inherit','open','open','','ben-zion-us-untitled','','','2012-01-15 15:59:11','2012-01-15 23:59:11','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/ben-zion-us-untitled.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4097,145,'2012-01-15 16:01:51','2012-01-16 00:01:51','','The Man with a Burden, Rachael Robinson Elmer, 1913','','inherit','open','open','','pilgrimsprogress','','','2012-01-15 16:01:51','2012-01-16 00:01:51','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/pilgrimsprogress.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4098,145,'2012-01-15 16:00:40','2012-01-16 00:00:40','<blockquote>\n<div class=\"mceTemp\">\n\n[caption id=\"attachment_4095\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"500\" caption=\"Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut, 1919\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-4095\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"250\" /></a>[/caption]\n\n<dl><dt></dt><dd>Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut 1919</dd></dl></div>\n<em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;\n</em><em>Not untwist—slack they may be—\n</em><em>    these last strands of man\n</em><em>In me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\n</em><em>Can something, hope, wish day come,\n</em><em>   not choose not to be.\n</em><em>     (from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\n\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\n\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\n\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\n\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\n\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\n\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\n\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\n\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\n\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\n\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\n\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\n\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\n\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\n\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\n\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\n\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\n\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\n\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\n\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\n\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\n\nI pray that will be so.\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-3','','','2012-01-15 16:00:40','2012-01-16 00:00:40','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4102,145,'2012-01-15 16:16:27','2012-01-16 00:16:27','<blockquote><em><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;</em>\r\nNot untwist—slack they may be—\r\nthese last strands of man\r\nIn me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\nCan something, hope, wish day come,\r\nnot choose not to be.\r\n(from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-6','','','2012-01-15 16:16:27','2012-01-16 00:16:27','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4099,145,'2012-01-15 16:06:55','2012-01-16 00:06:55','<blockquote>\r\n<div class=\"mceTemp\">\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_4095\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"500\" caption=\"Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut, 1919\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-4095\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"250\" /></a>[/caption]\r\n\r\n<dl><dt></dt><dd>Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut 1919</dd></dl></div>\r\n<em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;\r\n</em><em>Not untwist—slack they may be—\r\n</em><em>    these last strands of man\r\n</em><em>In me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\n</em><em>Can something, hope, wish day come,\r\n</em><em>   not choose not to be.\r\n</em><em>     (from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-4','','','2012-01-15 16:06:55','2012-01-16 00:06:55','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4100,145,'2012-01-15 16:15:35','2012-01-16 00:15:35','','Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut, 1919','','inherit','open','open','','praying-monk-frank-brangwyn-woodcut-1919-3','','','2012-01-15 16:15:35','2012-01-16 00:15:35','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19192.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4101,145,'2012-01-15 16:07:13','2012-01-16 00:07:13','<blockquote>\r\n<div class=\"mceTemp\">\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_4095\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"500\" caption=\"Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut, 1919\"]<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-4095\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Praying-Monk-Frank-Brangwyn-woodcut-19191.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"250\" /></a>[/caption]\r\n\r\n<dl><dt></dt><dd>Praying Monk, Frank Brangwyn, woodcut 1919</dd></dl></div>\r\n<em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;\r\n</em><em>Not untwist—slack they may be—\r\n</em><em>    these last strands of man\r\n</em><em>In me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\n</em><em>Can something, hope, wish day come,\r\n</em><em>   not choose not to be.\r\n</em><em>     (from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-5','','','2012-01-15 16:07:13','2012-01-16 00:07:13','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4103,145,'2012-01-15 16:21:19','2012-01-16 00:21:19','<blockquote><em><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;</em>\r\nNot untwist—slack they may be—\r\nthese last strands of man\r\nIn me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\nCan something, hope, wish day come,\r\nnot choose not to be.\r\n(from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-7','','','2012-01-15 16:21:19','2012-01-16 00:21:19','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(4105,1,'2012-01-16 14:18:11','2012-01-16 22:18:11','<blockquote><em><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;</em>\r\nNot untwist—slack they may be—\r\nthese last strands of man\r\nIn me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\nCan something, hope, wish day come,\r\nnot choose not to be.\r\n(from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, But Still Hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:18:11','2012-01-16 22:18:11','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4106,43,'2012-01-18 08:00:40','2012-01-18 16:00:40','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\r\n\r\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\r\n\r\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\r\n\r\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\r\n\r\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\r\n\r\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\r\n\r\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\r\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\r\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\r\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\r\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\r\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that hope becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\r\n\r\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','A Hope that Lives','','publish','open','open','','a-hope-that-lives','','','2012-01-18 08:56:07','2012-01-18 16:56:07','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4106',0,'post','',6),(4107,43,'2012-01-16 06:42:09','2012-01-16 14:42:09','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\n\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\n\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\n\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\n\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\n\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\n\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that it becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\n\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-revision','','','2012-01-16 06:42:09','2012-01-16 14:42:09','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4108,43,'2012-01-16 06:43:14','2012-01-16 14:43:14','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\r\n\r\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\r\n\r\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\r\n\r\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\r\n\r\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\r\n\r\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\r\n\r\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\r\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\r\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\r\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\r\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\r\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that it becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\r\n\r\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-revision-2','','','2012-01-16 06:43:14','2012-01-16 14:43:14','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4109,43,'2012-01-16 06:54:56','2012-01-16 14:54:56','','Hope_by_Dreamer_Moongeisha cropped','Photo courtesy of Dreamer Moongeisha, http://www.designzzz.com','inherit','open','open','','hope_by_dreamer_moongeisha-cropped','','','2012-01-16 06:54:56','2012-01-16 14:54:56','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hope_by_Dreamer_Moongeisha-cropped.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4110,43,'2012-01-16 06:45:59','2012-01-16 14:45:59','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\n\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\n\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\n\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\n\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\n\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\n\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that hope becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\n\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 06:45:59','2012-01-16 14:45:59','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4111,43,'2012-01-16 06:56:01','2012-01-16 14:56:01','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\r\n\r\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\r\n\r\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\r\n\r\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\r\n\r\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\r\n\r\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\r\n\r\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\r\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\r\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\r\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\r\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\r\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that hope becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\r\n\r\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 06:56:01','2012-01-16 14:56:01','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4112,43,'2012-01-16 06:56:43','2012-01-16 14:56:43','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\r\n\r\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\r\n\r\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\r\n\r\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\r\n\r\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\r\n\r\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\r\n\r\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\r\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\r\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\r\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\r\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\r\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that hope becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\r\n\r\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-revision-5','','','2012-01-16 06:56:43','2012-01-16 14:56:43','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4508,1,'2012-01-30 08:00:42','2012-01-30 16:00:42','<strong><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/category/question-everything/\">Question Everything</a></strong> is a series of posts that asks the questions people are really thinking, but are often afraid to ask. You can submit your question <a title=\"Submit A Question\" href=\"../submit-a-question/\">here</a>.\r\n\r\nToday’s question comes from <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/author/thesethingsmatterbymelody/\">Melody Harrison Hanson</a>.\r\n\r\n“If there is historical evidence that Jesus affirmed and loved and served with women, even has them as disciples, why is the Church so stuck on this issue?  Why don\'t pastors/leaders/teachers care about learning the historical truth?  (My sources Ben Witherington, Scot McKnight)  What will it take to change?  (Asked by implication/threat of women leaving the church by Jim Henderson, in Resignation of Eve)”\r\n\r\nHow would you answer the question?','Question #2: Jesus and Women','','publish','open','open','','question-2-jesus-and-women','','','2012-01-23 08:52:44','2012-01-23 16:52:44','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4508',0,'post','',5),(4114,141,'2012-01-18 08:00:38','2012-01-18 16:00:38','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\r\n\r\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\r\n\r\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\r\n\r\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\r\n\r\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\r\n\r\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\r\n\r\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Generations Come and Generations Go','','publish','open','open','','generations-come-and-generations-go','','','2012-01-18 08:59:35','2012-01-18 16:59:35','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4114',0,'post','',4),(4115,144,'2012-01-18 08:00:54','2012-01-18 16:00:54','<blockquote>You can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but not even four seconds without hope. – Anonymous</blockquote>\r\n<strong>Hope Described</strong>\r\n\r\nIt is laborious and depressing to try to muddle on when you feel hopeless. In my own precarious situation, I have noticed that the slightest development can ever so easily tip my emotional scales one way or the other. Yet, I believe hope is more than a half-hearted, wistful, emotional aspiration.\r\n\r\nHope is grounded in belief. For me, those beliefs include a loving God who was outlandish, unexpected, and extravagant in the way he loved through Jesus; and that love story is not over. As a matter of fact, I get to soak up his love and transfer it on to others right now; and if things fall apart, I am reminded that it is not the last chapter and I will never be abandoned by this loving God.\r\n\r\nHope is an attitude. Like the UHF dial on a 1970’s TV, it has to be constantly adjusted and carefully tuned in. A little change in weather and the signal gets fuzzy. It takes a constant adjustment process for our attitude to reflect our beliefs and not our emotions.\r\n\r\nHope is rooted in reality. Real hope has a real chance of really happening. Pie-in-the-sky hope is like a limp handshake; less than sincere. Hope needs a real object that we are focused on and consumed by.\r\n\r\nHope is very hard work. Staying hopeful is hard work, but laboring to make the hope a reality, will probably be your life’s work. Everybody has hopes and dreams, but most people die with them being unrealized. Perhaps, even more people die having pushed them out of their minds because they perceived them to be undoable or unrealistic. Honestly, it will take more tenacity and flexibility than you can currently imagine for your hopes to be realized.\r\n\r\n<strong>Hope Applied</strong>\r\n\r\nMy hope is fueled by anger and frustration. These are very legitimate reactions and powerful motivators. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nOur nation is locked in a polarized nightmare of paralysis with unsustainable debt, out of control healthcare costs, runaway unemployment rates, and decreasing world influence. The church is suffering from sexual scandals, shrinking memberships, a perceived loss of relevance, and the ironic reality that many people are unable to make the connection between it and Christ. Our educational system, based on a medieval model, is a prohibitively expensive, long-term commitment, unreasonable for many of today’s workers, and questionable in its effectiveness in preparing people for real jobs. Customer service has become a sadly inadequate, excessively automated, cost-saving, half-hearted, insincere attempt, which all too often, is totally frustrating. Social service in our nation is difficult to navigate, poorly coordinated, increasing hard to sustain, and locked into a client/provider paradigm that assaults the dignity of those who use it. We can and must do better. There is a global awakening that many of our societal institutions are simply no longer serving us well.\r\n\r\nMy hope to address our urgent need for boldness and creativity lies not with those in positions of power, but with those who can find no place or no longer desire a place in the power structures of our culture. I stand in solidarity with my brother and sister outsiders. I have an unshakable belief that many of these people who have been shut or who have opted of the power structures and conventions of our society are visionaries who will become entrepreneurs who will help the rest of us find our way. It was probably the trauma of finding themselves on the outside that forced them into their new desire to forget what they left behind and to dream about and fight for what could and should be.\r\n\r\nMy role is to encourage and equip them however I can. What keeps me going is seeing the need, knowing that this vision flows out of my true identity, and more than anything else, knowing that others believe in me and in this vision. These things reinforce my hope.\r\n\r\nI invite you to join me in becoming actively hopeful.\r\n<div>[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]</div>','Demystifying Hope','','publish','open','open','','demystifying-hope','','','2012-01-18 08:52:36','2012-01-18 16:52:36','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4115',0,'post','',12),(4116,141,'2012-01-16 09:04:17','2012-01-16 17:04:17','','provoketive_farm','','inherit','open','open','','provoketive_farm','','','2012-01-16 09:04:17','2012-01-16 17:04:17','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/provoketive_farm.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4117,141,'2012-01-16 09:01:53','2012-01-16 17:01:53','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\n\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\n\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\n\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\n\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\n\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\n\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\n\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\n\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\n\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Of Stability and Despair','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision','','','2012-01-16 09:01:53','2012-01-16 17:01:53','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4119,141,'2012-01-16 09:12:58','2012-01-16 17:12:58','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\n\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\n\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\n\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\n\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\n\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\n\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\n\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\n\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\n\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Of Stability and Despair','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 09:12:58','2012-01-16 17:12:58','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4118,141,'2012-01-16 09:07:36','2012-01-16 17:07:36','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\r\n\r\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\r\n\r\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\r\n\r\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\r\n\r\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\r\n\r\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\r\n\r\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Of Stability and Despair','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision-2','','','2012-01-16 09:07:36','2012-01-16 17:07:36','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4120,141,'2012-01-16 09:13:02','2012-01-16 17:13:02','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\r\n\r\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\r\n\r\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\r\n\r\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\r\n\r\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\r\n\r\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\r\n\r\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Of Stability and Despair','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 09:13:02','2012-01-16 17:13:02','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4121,141,'2012-01-16 09:14:48','2012-01-16 17:14:48','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\r\n\r\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\r\n\r\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\r\n\r\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\r\n\r\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\r\n\r\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\r\n\r\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Of Stability and Despair','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision-5','','','2012-01-16 09:14:48','2012-01-16 17:14:48','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4122,144,'2012-01-16 09:19:47','2012-01-16 17:19:47','','hope-1','','inherit','open','open','','hope-1','','','2012-01-16 09:19:47','2012-01-16 17:19:47','',4115,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4123,141,'2012-01-16 09:16:40','2012-01-16 17:16:40','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\r\n\r\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\r\n\r\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\r\n\r\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\r\n\r\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\r\n\r\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\r\n\r\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Generations Come and Generations Go','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision-6','','','2012-01-16 09:16:40','2012-01-16 17:16:40','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4124,144,'2012-01-16 09:04:40','2012-01-16 17:04:40','“You can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but not even four seconds without hope.” – Anonymous\n\n<strong>Hope Described</strong>\n\nIt is laborious and depressing to try to muddle on when you feel hopeless. In my own precarious situation, I have noticed that the slightest development can ever so easily tip my emotional scales one way or the other. Yet, I believe hope is more than a half-hearted, wistful, emotional aspiration.\n\nHope is grounded in belief. For me, those beliefs include a loving God who was outlandish, unexpected, and extravagant in the way he loved through Jesus; and that love story is not over. As a matter of fact, I get to soak up his love and transfer it on to others right now; and if things fall apart, I am reminded that it is not the last chapter and I will never be abandoned by this loving God.\n\nHope is an attitude. Like the UHF dial on a 1970’s TV, it has to be constantly adjusted and carefully tuned in. A little change in weather and the signal gets fuzzy. It takes a constant adjustment process for our attitude to reflect our beliefs and not our emotions.\n\nHope is rooted in reality. Real hope has a real chance of really happening. Pie-in-the-sky hope is like a limp handshake; less than sincere. Hope needs a real object that we are focused on and consumed by.\n\nHope is very hard work. Staying hopeful is hard work, but laboring to make the hope a reality, will probably be your life’s work. Everybody has hopes and dreams, but most people die with them being unrealized. Perhaps, even more people die having pushed them out of their minds because they perceived them to be undoable or unrealistic. Honestly, it will take more tenacity and flexibility than you can currently imagine for your hopes to be realized.\n\n<strong>Hope Applied</strong>\n\nMy hope is fueled by anger and frustration. These are very legitimate reactions and powerful motivators. Let me explain.\n\nOur nation is locked in a polarized nightmare of paralysis with unsustainable debt, out of control healthcare costs, runaway unemployment rates, and decreasing world influence. The church is suffering from sexual scandals, shrinking memberships, a perceived loss of relevance, and the ironic reality that many people are unable to make the connection between it and Christ. Our educational system, based on a medieval model, is a prohibitively expensive, long-term commitment, unreasonable for many of today’s workers, and questionable in its effectiveness in preparing people for real jobs. Customer service has become a sadly inadequate, excessively automated, cost-saving, half-hearted, insincere attempt, which all too often, is totally frustrating. Social service in our nation is difficult to navigate, poorly coordinated, increasing hard to sustain, and locked into a client/provider paradigm that assaults the dignity of those who use it. We can and must do better. There is a global awakening that many of our societal institutions are simply no longer serving us well.\n\nMy hope to address our urgent need for boldness and creativity lies not with those in positions of power, but with those who can find no place or no longer desire a place in the power structures of our culture. I stand in solidarity with my brother and sister outsiders. I have an unshakable belief that many of these people who have been shut or who have opted of the power structures and conventions of our society are visionaries who will become entrepreneurs who will help the rest of us find our way. It was probably the trauma of finding themselves on the outside that forced them into their new desire to forget what they left behind and to dream about and fight for what could and should be.\n\nMy role is to encourage and equip them however I can. What keeps me going is seeing the need, knowing that this vision flows out of my true identity, and more than anything else, knowing that others believe in me and in this vision. These things reinforce my hope.\n\nI invite you to join me in becoming actively hopeful.\n<div>\n<div></div>\n</div>','Demystifying Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4115-revision','','','2012-01-16 09:04:40','2012-01-16 17:04:40','',4115,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4115-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4168,1,'2012-01-16 14:26:17','2012-01-16 22:26:17','<blockquote>You can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but not even four seconds without hope. – Anonymous</blockquote>\r\n<strong>Hope Described</strong>\r\n\r\nIt is laborious and depressing to try to muddle on when you feel hopeless. In my own precarious situation, I have noticed that the slightest development can ever so easily tip my emotional scales one way or the other. Yet, I believe hope is more than a half-hearted, wistful, emotional aspiration.\r\n\r\nHope is grounded in belief. For me, those beliefs include a loving God who was outlandish, unexpected, and extravagant in the way he loved through Jesus; and that love story is not over. As a matter of fact, I get to soak up his love and transfer it on to others right now; and if things fall apart, I am reminded that it is not the last chapter and I will never be abandoned by this loving God.\r\n\r\nHope is an attitude. Like the UHF dial on a 1970’s TV, it has to be constantly adjusted and carefully tuned in. A little change in weather and the signal gets fuzzy. It takes a constant adjustment process for our attitude to reflect our beliefs and not our emotions.\r\n\r\nHope is rooted in reality. Real hope has a real chance of really happening. Pie-in-the-sky hope is like a limp handshake; less than sincere. Hope needs a real object that we are focused on and consumed by.\r\n\r\nHope is very hard work. Staying hopeful is hard work, but laboring to make the hope a reality, will probably be your life’s work. Everybody has hopes and dreams, but most people die with them being unrealized. Perhaps, even more people die having pushed them out of their minds because they perceived them to be undoable or unrealistic. Honestly, it will take more tenacity and flexibility than you can currently imagine for your hopes to be realized.\r\n\r\n<strong>Hope Applied</strong>\r\n\r\nMy hope is fueled by anger and frustration. These are very legitimate reactions and powerful motivators. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nOur nation is locked in a polarized nightmare of paralysis with unsustainable debt, out of control healthcare costs, runaway unemployment rates, and decreasing world influence. The church is suffering from sexual scandals, shrinking memberships, a perceived loss of relevance, and the ironic reality that many people are unable to make the connection between it and Christ. Our educational system, based on a medieval model, is a prohibitively expensive, long-term commitment, unreasonable for many of today’s workers, and questionable in its effectiveness in preparing people for real jobs. Customer service has become a sadly inadequate, excessively automated, cost-saving, half-hearted, insincere attempt, which all too often, is totally frustrating. Social service in our nation is difficult to navigate, poorly coordinated, increasing hard to sustain, and locked into a client/provider paradigm that assaults the dignity of those who use it. We can and must do better. There is a global awakening that many of our societal institutions are simply no longer serving us well.\r\n\r\nMy hope to address our urgent need for boldness and creativity lies not with those in positions of power, but with those who can find no place or no longer desire a place in the power structures of our culture. I stand in solidarity with my brother and sister outsiders. I have an unshakable belief that many of these people who have been shut or who have opted of the power structures and conventions of our society are visionaries who will become entrepreneurs who will help the rest of us find our way. It was probably the trauma of finding themselves on the outside that forced them into their new desire to forget what they left behind and to dream about and fight for what could and should be.\r\n\r\nMy role is to encourage and equip them however I can. What keeps me going is seeing the need, knowing that this vision flows out of my true identity, and more than anything else, knowing that others believe in me and in this vision. These things reinforce my hope.\r\n\r\nI invite you to join me in becoming actively hopeful.\r\n<div></div>','Demystifying Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4115-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:26:17','2012-01-16 22:26:17','',4115,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4115-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4125,144,'2012-01-16 09:21:02','2012-01-16 17:21:02','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4122\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"250\" /></a>\n<blockquote>You can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but not even four seconds without hope. – Anonymous</blockquote>\n<strong>Hope Described</strong>\n\nIt is laborious and depressing to try to muddle on when you feel hopeless. In my own precarious situation, I have noticed that the slightest development can ever so easily tip my emotional scales one way or the other. Yet, I believe hope is more than a half-hearted, wistful, emotional aspiration.\n\nHope is grounded in belief. For me, those beliefs include a loving God who was outlandish, unexpected, and extravagant in the way he loved through Jesus; and that love story is not over. As a matter of fact, I get to soak up his love and transfer it on to others right now; and if things fall apart, I am reminded that it is not the last chapter and I will never be abandoned by this loving God.\n\nHope is an attitude. Like the UHF dial on a 1970’s TV, it has to be constantly adjusted and carefully tuned in. A little change in weather and the signal gets fuzzy. It takes a constant adjustment process for our attitude to reflect our beliefs and not our emotions.\n\nHope is rooted in reality. Real hope has a real chance of really happening. Pie-in-the-sky hope is like a limp handshake; less than sincere. Hope needs a real object that we are focused on and consumed by.\n\nHope is very hard work. Staying hopeful is hard work, but laboring to make the hope a reality, will probably be your life’s work. Everybody has hopes and dreams, but most people die with them being unrealized. Perhaps, even more people die having pushed them out of their minds because they perceived them to be undoable or unrealistic. Honestly, it will take more tenacity and flexibility than you can currently imagine for your hopes to be realized.\n\n<strong>Hope Applied</strong>\n\nMy hope is fueled by anger and frustration. These are very legitimate reactions and powerful motivators. Let me explain.\n\nOur nation is locked in a polarized nightmare of paralysis with unsustainable debt, out of control healthcare costs, runaway unemployment rates, and decreasing world influence. The church is suffering from sexual scandals, shrinking memberships, a perceived loss of relevance, and the ironic reality that many people are unable to make the connection between it and Christ. Our educational system, based on a medieval model, is a prohibitively expensive, long-term commitment, unreasonable for many of today’s workers, and questionable in its effectiveness in preparing people for real jobs. Customer service has become a sadly inadequate, excessively automated, cost-saving, half-hearted, insincere attempt, which all too often, is totally frustrating. Social service in our nation is difficult to navigate, poorly coordinated, increasing hard to sustain, and locked into a client/provider paradigm that assaults the dignity of those who use it. We can and must do better. There is a global awakening that many of our societal institutions are simply no longer serving us well.\n\nMy hope to address our urgent need for boldness and creativity lies not with those in positions of power, but with those who can find no place or no longer desire a place in the power structures of our culture. I stand in solidarity with my brother and sister outsiders. I have an unshakable belief that many of these people who have been shut or who have opted of the power structures and conventions of our society are visionaries who will become entrepreneurs who will help the rest of us find our way. It was probably the trauma of finding themselves on the outside that forced them into their new desire to forget what they left behind and to dream about and fight for what could and should be.\n\nMy role is to encourage and equip them however I can. What keeps me going is seeing the need, knowing that this vision flows out of my true identity, and more than anything else, knowing that others believe in me and in this vision. These things reinforce my hope.\n\nI invite you to join me in becoming actively hopeful.\n<div>\n<div></div>\n</div>','Demystifying Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4115-revision-2','','','2012-01-16 09:21:02','2012-01-16 17:21:02','',4115,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4115-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4126,144,'2012-01-16 09:22:57','2012-01-16 17:22:57','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4122\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"250\" /></a>\r\n<blockquote>You can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but not even four seconds without hope. – Anonymous</blockquote>\r\n<strong>Hope Described</strong>\r\n\r\nIt is laborious and depressing to try to muddle on when you feel hopeless. In my own precarious situation, I have noticed that the slightest development can ever so easily tip my emotional scales one way or the other. Yet, I believe hope is more than a half-hearted, wistful, emotional aspiration.\r\n\r\nHope is grounded in belief. For me, those beliefs include a loving God who was outlandish, unexpected, and extravagant in the way he loved through Jesus; and that love story is not over. As a matter of fact, I get to soak up his love and transfer it on to others right now; and if things fall apart, I am reminded that it is not the last chapter and I will never be abandoned by this loving God.\r\n\r\nHope is an attitude. Like the UHF dial on a 1970’s TV, it has to be constantly adjusted and carefully tuned in. A little change in weather and the signal gets fuzzy. It takes a constant adjustment process for our attitude to reflect our beliefs and not our emotions.\r\n\r\nHope is rooted in reality. Real hope has a real chance of really happening. Pie-in-the-sky hope is like a limp handshake; less than sincere. Hope needs a real object that we are focused on and consumed by.\r\n\r\nHope is very hard work. Staying hopeful is hard work, but laboring to make the hope a reality, will probably be your life’s work. Everybody has hopes and dreams, but most people die with them being unrealized. Perhaps, even more people die having pushed them out of their minds because they perceived them to be undoable or unrealistic. Honestly, it will take more tenacity and flexibility than you can currently imagine for your hopes to be realized.\r\n\r\n<strong>Hope Applied</strong>\r\n\r\nMy hope is fueled by anger and frustration. These are very legitimate reactions and powerful motivators. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nOur nation is locked in a polarized nightmare of paralysis with unsustainable debt, out of control healthcare costs, runaway unemployment rates, and decreasing world influence. The church is suffering from sexual scandals, shrinking memberships, a perceived loss of relevance, and the ironic reality that many people are unable to make the connection between it and Christ. Our educational system, based on a medieval model, is a prohibitively expensive, long-term commitment, unreasonable for many of today’s workers, and questionable in its effectiveness in preparing people for real jobs. Customer service has become a sadly inadequate, excessively automated, cost-saving, half-hearted, insincere attempt, which all too often, is totally frustrating. Social service in our nation is difficult to navigate, poorly coordinated, increasing hard to sustain, and locked into a client/provider paradigm that assaults the dignity of those who use it. We can and must do better. There is a global awakening that many of our societal institutions are simply no longer serving us well.\r\n\r\nMy hope to address our urgent need for boldness and creativity lies not with those in positions of power, but with those who can find no place or no longer desire a place in the power structures of our culture. I stand in solidarity with my brother and sister outsiders. I have an unshakable belief that many of these people who have been shut or who have opted of the power structures and conventions of our society are visionaries who will become entrepreneurs who will help the rest of us find our way. It was probably the trauma of finding themselves on the outside that forced them into their new desire to forget what they left behind and to dream about and fight for what could and should be.\r\n\r\nMy role is to encourage and equip them however I can. What keeps me going is seeing the need, knowing that this vision flows out of my true identity, and more than anything else, knowing that others believe in me and in this vision. These things reinforce my hope.\r\n\r\nI invite you to join me in becoming actively hopeful.\r\n<div>\r\n<div></div>\r\n</div>','Demystifying Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4115-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 09:22:57','2012-01-16 17:22:57','',4115,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4115-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4127,0,'2012-01-16 10:28:16','2012-01-16 18:28:16','books/culture, social justice, mental health\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Laura Droege\nAUTHOR EMAIL: laura_droege@bellsouth.net\nAUTHOR URL: http://lauradroege.wordpress.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 98.81.1.171\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Laura Droege\n    [Email] =&gt; laura_droege@bellsouth.net\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; lauradroege.wordpress.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; books/culture, social justice, mental health\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; lauradroege\n)\n','Laura Droege - 2012-01-16 10:28:16','','publish','open','open','','10ecb47e4e41dca97942f505950a9410','','','2012-01-16 10:28:16','2012-01-16 18:28:16','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4127',0,'feedback','',0),(4679,0,'2012-01-26 08:36:10','2012-01-26 16:36:10','Christine, I feel compelled to contact you after our conversation yesterday in Provoketive.  You and I both desire to help people find a spiritual connection with God and community that will transform their lives.  My passion is helping people learn to have honest conversations with God, unhindered by fear that God can be offended by the truth.  I\'ve written a book called Uncensored Prayer: The Spiritual Practice of Wrestling With God.  I see that Kathy Escobar is in your Blogroll.  She and I have become friends because we share the same editor and have similar hearts for ministry.\r\n\r\nMay I send you a copy of my book?  I believe it would be a blessing to you.\r\n\r\nJoy Wilson\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Joy Wilson\nAUTHOR EMAIL: joyleewilson@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://joyleewilson.org\nSUBJECT: [Provoketive Magazine] Are We Afraid to Hope? \nIP: 65.13.98.197\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Joy Wilson\n    [Email] =&gt; joyleewilson@gmail.com\n    [Website] =&gt; http://joyleewilson.org\n    [Message] =&gt; Christine, I feel compelled to contact you after our conversation yesterday in Provoketive.  You and I both desire to help people find a spiritual connection with God and community that will transform their lives.  My passion is helping people learn to have honest conversations with God, unhindered by fear that God can be offended by the truth.  I\'ve written a book called Uncensored Prayer: The Spiritual Practice of Wrestling With God.  I see that Kathy Escobar is in your Blogroll.  She and I have become friends because we share the same editor and have similar hearts for ministry.\r\n\r\nMay I send you a copy of my book?  I believe it would be a blessing to you.\r\n\r\nJoy Wilson\n)\n','Joy Wilson - 2012-01-26 08:36:10','','publish','open','open','','66a56477bb0b12b877a7cd1de76da7fb','','','2012-01-26 08:36:10','2012-01-26 16:36:10','',4196,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4679',0,'feedback','',0),(4680,1,'2012-01-28 10:02:36','2012-01-28 18:02:36','“At what point do you say, ‘Wow, I really want to dangle upside down from silk scarves and play the violin for a living\'?” This question was posed by myself and couple friends of mine as we reconnected over a cup of coffee. We were discussing life paths and career choices-- still trying to figure out what we wanted to do “when we grew up”, despite having  graduated from college and started various jobs, families, and all recently having reached the milestone 30th birthday. It was in this context that one of my friends mentioned the aerial violinist, Janice Martin. We collectively wondered: what is the secret to thinking so decidedly out of the box as this performer does?\n\nTo be sure, thinking outside of the box is a rather cliché concept now, the subject of countless self-help books, business seminars, and the like. Regardless, it truly is something people seem to have a hard time executing. We learn early on as children to draw inside the lines, follow all the rules, and act orderly and contained. Creativity, while not completely disregarded, is often more of an afterthought. Most follow the same pattern into our adult life: go to school, build a career, get married, have kids, and those who dare to do those in a different order or on a different timeframe are often questioned or ridiculed.\n\nTo add to this, our brains seem hard-wired to place everything into neat little boxes.  Psychological theory calls these boxes “schemata”:  mental structures to organize information. Every time your brain receives new information, it tries to fit it inside already pre-conceived schemata. It is an efficient and quick way to store, retrieve, and process information, helping us to respond quickly and appropriately to many situations. However, when we encounter new experiences or information that does not fit into an existing schema, a common reaction is to ignore or quickly forget the offending information. Occasionally, new information that differs so completely from a schema but cannot be ignored will cause the existing schema to be altered or to create a separate schema for these “exceptions from the rule”. The question is: do these schemas we have created for ourselves and our roles sometimes needlessly box us in?\n\nLet’s go back to the aerial violinist. According to her <a href=\"http://www.janicemartin.com/\">website</a>, Janice Martin is a classically trained violinist, pianist and vocalist who works with the Cirque du Symphonie, combining her talents with aerial acrobats to be the \"world\'s only aerial violinist,\"¹ and also returned to headline the show <em>Encore!</em> aboard the <a href=\"http://www.showboatbransonbelle.com/\">Showboat Branson Belle</a> in Branson, MO for the second season.² Watching the videos of her performances, I am struck by not only her musical prowess (and I am a classically trained violist, so I can tell that the pieces she plays are difficult enough while performing them on solid ground, let alone while dangling by scarves), but she also displays an amazing grace, power, and strength in her aerial performance. Her vocal and piano performances are equally impressive, even if not performed while hanging from the ceiling. Truly, she is a formidable artist, putting the often touted \"triple threats\" to shame.\n\nMs. Martin is a unique artist to say the least, so it should be no surprise that her path there is equally unique. Musically trained at the Indiana University and the Juilliard School of Music, she found her first job in perhaps an unlikely place: the US Army, where she played in the US Army Band in Washington, D.C., as a solo violinist, including performances at the White House, the Capitol, and the State Department for President Bill Clinton and other world leaders.³\n\nAfter her enlistment with the army, Martin was awarded honorary use of the 1708 Burstein/Bagshawe Stradivarius Violin by The Stradivari Society.¹ She then toured domestically and internationally, soloing with the Milwaukee Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Houston Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Edmonton Symphony, Portland Symphony, European Union Chamber Orchestra and the New York Symphonic Ensemble, to name just a few.¹ Her career and accomplishments as a musician alone are truly impressive.\n\nHow then did Janice Martin go from an internationally recognized musician to an aerial violinist? Where do the aerobatics come in to this story, exactly? After the death of her friend and sponsor, Joseph Burstein, Martin returned to New York in hope of creating a show of her own that encompassed more than just the realm of classical music.³ The necessary creative inspiration came one evening while Martin was in the audience of a Cirque du Soleil show; the performance that night moved her so much that she determined to become an aerialist and, combined with her violin virtuosity, have a one-woman show like no other.³ No doubt this is where her training in the Army came in handy once again, what with the vigorous physical training, including rope climbing. Janice Martin debuted at Carnegie Hall and then spent over a decade traveling and performing her self-choreographed shows.³ From there, it is all history, as they say.\n\nSo, what can we learn from this fascinating woman? Wearing skin-tight outfits and dangling upside down from scarves and rings from great heights while playing the electric violin is not exactly my dream job, but I certainly enjoy watching Janice Martin live out her dream.  And that\'s what I want to do-- live out my dream; the trouble is, I don\'t just have one, and I haven\'t quite figured out how to combine them all so snugly like Ms. Martin has. Do I-- or you-- have gifts, talents and interests that seem incongruous, but somehow together create one exceptionally unique career, much like this daring aerial violinist? How can Ms. Martin\'s unique path help to inform our own search for a fulfilling and interesting career or life?\n\nFirst of all, Ms. Martin pursued her passions diligently and put in the hard work. Take it from this former music major (who admittedly dropped it only three semesters in to pursue a psychology degree instead), getting into Juilliard doesn\'t happen by doing the bare minimum in your practice sessions. Opportunities to grow, use, and express your talents won\'t open up for you if you aren\'t seeking excellence in whatever it is you do. So, the things you love to do? Learn to do them well. Practice. Practice. And then practice some more.\n\nMs. Martin also did something a lot of us could do more of: get out there and live life. She didn\'t just sit at home, absorbed in her own brainstorming sessions or creating a mission/purpose/vision statement. No, she was out enjoying life, and it was there, while taking time to attend a Cirque du Soleil show that she found the final inspiration. New experiences, new relationships and new adventures will bring fresh ideas and inspiration. You know what the same old thing brings? More of the same old thing.\n\nI don\'t have all the answers on how to think outside of the box, as I\'ve gotten myself into some ruts that lasted for years. But at this point in my life, I\'ve realized that life is too short to try to squeeze myself into a box, be it someone else’s or one of my own creation.  And to you, Ms. Martin, I say, \"Bravo.\" You are truly an inspiration.\n\n<em>Photo courtesy of Silver Dollar City Publicity</em>\n<div>\n\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" />\n\n<div>\n\n¹<a href=\"http://www.janicemartin.com/\">www.janicemartin.com</a>\n\n</div>\n<div>\n\n²Silver Dollar City Publicity (2012). Encore! Returns after Stellar First Season [Press Release].\n\n</div>\n<div>\n\n³Silver Dollar City Publicity (2012). From Humble Beginnings to Carnegie Hall [Press Release].\n\n</div>\n</div>\n&nbsp;','Not Your Ordinary Day Job','','inherit','open','open','','4550-autosave','','','2012-01-28 10:02:36','2012-01-28 18:02:36','',4550,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/26/4550-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4137,1,'2012-01-11 02:59:29','2012-01-11 10:59:29','I had a strained relationship with hope before my wife was diagnosed with cancer.  To me, hope was a high waiting for a low, a fix with a nasty flipside.  Far from the precious entity exalted by legions of poets and philosophers, hope was just another coordinate on the pain/pleasure cycle existing in infinite balance with its opposite.  In the same way that happiness alternates with sadness, or desire with loss, hope alternates with fear.  One requires that the other exist.  Hope was for suckers, and I was no sucker.\r\n\r\nOr so I reasoned.  The times I didn’t need hope, that is.  But when life would clobber me over the head with misfortune, there I was, clinging to hope like a dear, misunderstood friend.\r\n\r\nSince my wife’s diagnosis, however, my relationship with hope is no longer strained.  It’s been severed completely.  I’ve abandoned hope, and in the process have met a new friend: peace.\r\n\r\nTo abandon hope is to trample the plotline of feel-good movies, to renounce the rhetoric of sweating preachers, and to earn puzzled looks from hopers everywhere.  Hope soothes and inspires.  It builds churches and sells books.  Hope is widely thought to be the last coin in our pocket, the one thing we can never afford to lose.  \r\n\r\nBut what is hope, exactly?  What does it look like away from the flickering glow of votive candles?\r\n\r\nIsn’t hope just wishful thinking?  Isn’t it just slapping a happy ending on an unhappy beginning?  \r\n\r\nWe want to be happy all the time, and why not?  It beats sad, lonely, and a host of other unpleasant but inevitable human conditions.  When we’re not happy, we hope.  We paint a bright future with our thoughts and wait for it to materialize.  However rickety, this logic makes just enough sense to ease a frightened mind.  \r\n\r\nImplicit in hopeful thinking is the mistaken notion that we are separate entities existing outside the flow of an exquisitely connected universe, that we are as in control of our destinies as we are our individual retirement accounts.  Hope is our silent prayer that misfortune is meant for one of the other six and a half billion people in the world, but not us. \r\n\r\nIn small doses, hope is not toxic.  It only nips or stings.  When our home team loses, when no one asks us to dance, when we tear up lottery tickets, our hopes are dashed and we’re left to survey the space between our expectations and reality.  That space grows into an abyss for those attempting to stall reality with hopeful thoughts during times of peril.  Thoughts eventually dissolve, while reality stands pat.  We blink, and it’s still there.  Rays of hope meant to banish our darkest fears in the end only illuminate them, and we crumple into a state of surrender.  Anyway, I did.\r\n\r\nSurrender was where I stumbled into peace.  I didn’t give up on life, I just stopped trying to outwit it.  Surrender meant discarding the idea that life is always supposed to be wonderful; it’s just supposed to be life.  \r\n\r\nTime spent hoping for happier days is time spent turning away from life in its infinite poses of glory: the elegant curve of my wife’s newly hairless head, the game smile poking through her fatigued expression, the mountain of get well cards rising above a sea of orange pill bottles.  Beauty borne from tragedy acquires a sacred dimension that can only be witnessed by a surrendered mind, a mind that isn’t chasing after the next happy face moment.  \r\n\r\nTo picture my wife with hair again, to imagine her digging in the garden or strutting back off to work, is to add time where none is needed, to ignore the beauty right under my nose, and to allow futile hope to intrude on an otherwise peaceful day.  \r\n','The Trouble with Hope','','inherit','open','open','','3587-revision-2','','','2012-01-11 02:59:29','2012-01-11 10:59:29','',3587,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/11/3587-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4138,1,'2012-01-16 13:52:18','2012-01-16 21:52:18','I had a strained relationship with hope before my wife was diagnosed with cancer. To me, hope was a high waiting for a low, a fix with a nasty flipside. Far from the precious entity exalted by legions of poets and philosophers, hope was just another coordinate on the pain/pleasure cycle existing in infinite balance with its opposite. In the same way that happiness alternates with sadness, or desire with loss, hope alternates with fear. One requires that the other exist. Hope was for suckers, and I was no sucker.\r\n\r\nOr so I reasoned. The times I didn’t need hope, that is. But when life would clobber me over the head with misfortune, there I was, clinging to hope like a dear, misunderstood friend.\r\n\r\nSince my wife’s diagnosis, however, my relationship with hope is no longer strained. It’s been severed completely. I’ve abandoned hope, and in the process have met a new friend: peace.\r\n\r\nTo abandon hope is to trample the plotline of feel-good movies, to renounce the rhetoric of sweating preachers, and to earn puzzled looks from hopers everywhere. Hope soothes and inspires. It builds churches and sells books. Hope is widely thought to be the last coin in our pocket, the one thing we can never afford to lose.\r\n\r\nBut what is hope, exactly? What does it look like away from the flickering glow of votive candles?\r\n\r\nIsn’t hope just wishful thinking? Isn’t it just slapping a happy ending on an unhappy beginning?\r\n\r\nWe want to be happy all the time, and why not? It beats sad, lonely, and a host of other unpleasant but inevitable human conditions. When we’re not happy, we hope. We paint a bright future with our thoughts and wait for it to materialize. However rickety, this logic makes just enough sense to ease a frightened mind.\r\n\r\nImplicit in hopeful thinking is the mistaken notion that we are separate entities existing outside the flow of an exquisitely connected universe, that we are as in control of our destinies as we are our individual retirement accounts. Hope is our silent prayer that misfortune is meant for one of the other six and a half billion people in the world, but not us.\r\n\r\nIn small doses, hope is not toxic. It only nips or stings. When our home team loses, when no one asks us to dance, when we tear up lottery tickets, our hopes are dashed and we’re left to survey the space between our expectations and reality. That space grows into an abyss for those attempting to stall reality with hopeful thoughts during times of peril. Thoughts eventually dissolve, while reality stands pat. We blink, and it’s still there. Rays of hope meant to banish our darkest fears in the end only illuminate them, and we crumple into a state of surrender. Anyway, I did.\r\n\r\nSurrender was where I stumbled into peace. I didn’t give up on life, I just stopped trying to outwit it. Surrender meant discarding the idea that life is always supposed to be wonderful; it’s just supposed to be life.\r\n\r\nTime spent hoping for happier days is time spent turning away from life in its infinite poses of glory: the elegant curve of my wife’s newly hairless head, the game smile poking through her fatigued expression, the mountain of get well cards rising above a sea of orange pill bottles. Beauty borne from tragedy acquires a sacred dimension that can only be witnessed by a surrendered mind, a mind that isn’t chasing after the next happy face moment.\r\n\r\nTo picture my wife with hair again, to imagine her digging in the garden or strutting back off to work, is to add time where none is needed, to ignore the beauty right under my nose, and to allow futile hope to intrude on an otherwise peaceful day.','The Trouble with Hope','','inherit','open','open','','3587-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 13:52:18','2012-01-16 21:52:18','',3587,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/3587-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4139,1,'2012-01-17 21:07:35','2012-01-18 05:07:35','<p>I had a strained relationship with hope before my wife was diagnosed with cancer. To me, hope was a high waiting for a low, a fix with a nasty flipside. Far from the precious entity exalted by legions of poets and philosophers, hope was just another coordinate on the pain/pleasure cycle existing in infinite balance with its opposite. In the same way that happiness alternates with sadness, or desire with loss, hope alternates with fear. One requires that the other exist. Hope was for suckers, and I was no sucker.</p>\r\n<p>Or so I reasoned. The times I didn’t need hope, that is. But when life would clobber me over the head with misfortune, there I was, clinging to hope like a dear, misunderstood friend.</p>\r\n<p>Since my wife’s diagnosis, however, my relationship with hope is no longer strained. It’s been severed completely. I’ve abandoned hope, and in the process have met a new friend: peace.</p>\r\n<p>To abandon hope is to trample the plotline of feel-good movies, to renounce the rhetoric of sweating preachers, and to earn puzzled looks from hopers everywhere. Hope soothes and inspires. It builds churches and sells books. Hope is widely thought to be the last coin in our pocket, the one thing we can never afford to lose.</p>\r\n<p>But what is hope, exactly? What does it look like away from the flickering glow of votive candles?</p>\r\n<p>Isn’t hope just wishful thinking? Isn’t it just slapping a happy ending on an unhappy beginning?</p>\r\n<p>We want to be happy all the time, and why not? It beats sad, lonely, and a host of other unpleasant but inevitable human conditions. When we’re not happy, we hope. We paint a bright future with our thoughts and wait for it to materialize. However rickety, this logic makes just enough sense to ease a frightened mind.</p>\r\n<p>Implicit in hopeful thinking is the mistaken notion that we are separate entities existing outside the flow of an exquisitely connected universe, that we are as in control of our destinies as we are our individual retirement accounts. Hope is our silent prayer that misfortune is meant for one of the other six and a half billion people in the world, but not us.</p>\r\n<p>In small doses, hope is not toxic. It only nips or stings. When our home team loses, when no one asks us to dance, when we tear up lottery tickets, our hopes are dashed and we’re left to survey the space between our expectations and reality. That space grows into an abyss for those attempting to stall reality with hopeful thoughts during times of peril. Thoughts eventually dissolve, while reality stands pat. We blink, and it’s still there. Rays of hope meant to banish our darkest fears in the end only illuminate them, and we crumple into a state of surrender. Anyway, I did.</p>\r\n<p>Surrender was where I stumbled into peace. I didn’t give up on life, I just stopped trying to outwit it. Surrender meant discarding the idea that life is always supposed to be wonderful; it’s just supposed to be life.</p>\r\n<p>Time spent hoping for happier days is time spent turning away from life in its infinite poses of glory: the elegant curve of my wife’s newly hairless head, the game smile poking through her fatigued expression, the mountain of get well cards rising above a sea of orange pill bottles. Beauty borne from tragedy acquires a sacred dimension that can only be witnessed by a surrendered mind, a mind that isn’t chasing after the next happy face moment.</p>\r\n<p>To picture my wife with hair again, to imagine her digging in the garden or strutting back off to work, is to add time where none is needed, to ignore the beauty right under my nose, and to allow futile hope to intrude on an otherwise peaceful day.</p>\r\n','The Trouble with Hope','','inherit','open','open','','3587-autosave','','','2012-01-17 21:07:35','2012-01-18 05:07:35','',3587,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/3587-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4140,1,'2012-01-11 17:32:46','2012-01-12 01:32:46','The way we (Christians in particular) talk about relationships with our young people may be sending them mixed messages with unintended consequences.  It isn\'t wrong to encourage morality and purity in our relationships.  On the contrary, that\'s desirable.  I don\'t doubt that this is the goal.  But it may be getting lost in translation.\r\n\r\nSadly, though it may be phrased more politely than the title of this article, far too many women echo the sentiment about our own gender.  We are prepared to blame ourselves for our men folk\'s lack of sexual self-control.  One young man recently told me, \"What girls don\'t get is that if they dress a certain way, guys are going to <em>treat</em> them a certain way.\"  This was something he had heard not from his father or a male leader at church, but from a woman.\r\n\r\nWhat boys and girls are hearing is vastly different from what we think we\'re saying.  They\'re hearing that for girls, their purity is the most precious and important thing about themselves.  They\'re hearing that they are responsible for male behavior.  They are also learning that boys are jerks and not to be trusted.  At the same time, boys are hearing that they should keep their hands to themselves, but that we understand if they are tempted because girls are secretly kind of trashy.\r\n\r\nIs this really the message we want to send?  A friend posted this picture on his Facebook page:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Men-Can-Stop-Rape.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3568\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Men-Can-Stop-Rape-206x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"206\" height=\"300\" /></a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nI loved it.  I loved the way it made it clear that men and boys are responsible for their own behavior.  It made me wonder what a Christian equivalent might look like.\r\n\r\nWould it be teaching our children to own their actions?  Would it be teaching both boys and girls that modesty is more about how they treat others than what they wear?  Would it be about helping them to understand that their actions should honor God and their fellow humans?\r\n\r\nFor the sake of our young people, we need a better campaign to teach modesty, purity, love, and respect.  I believe we can do this.\r\n\r\n<address>*Note: The title of this article is a quote from the film <a href=\"http://www.tuckermax.com/movie\"><em>I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell</em></a>, a crude movie about the escapades of Tucker Max.  I should note here that I haven\'t seen the film; I found the quote on a blog about rape culture (which, in case there was any question, is not dead—even this many years later).  I stumbled upon this in my search to understand why some conservative churches continue to push the message that women are responsible for the sexual harassment and violence committed against them.</address>','“Your gender is hardwired for whoredom.”','','inherit','open','open','','3562-revision-15','','','2012-01-11 17:32:46','2012-01-12 01:32:46','',3562,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/11/3562-revision-15/',0,'revision','',0),(4141,1,'2012-01-16 13:57:56','2012-01-16 21:57:56','January is always a time of reflection for me as we cross the threshold into a new year.  Last year I was all set to project some goals for 2011, goals which were, in essence, no more than an extrapolation of the things I had done in 2010.  Yet last January, God spoke to me clearly about this.  He showed me that to base my future direction on my direction so far was unwise.  Worse than that, actually.  It was stupid.  Because when you do what you\'ve always done, you get what you\'ve always got.\n\nTo orient myself for 2011 based on my successes in 2010, based on the gifts which had already come to the surface in my life?  Such a process of orientation was deeply flawed.  It could only take me where I had been.\n\nAnd I should have known better.\n\nPerhaps I did.  From what I posted then, it would seem that I knew that my doing - my one-track, single-focus drive for success - only served to hide the reality that I did not know where I was going.\n\nIt was, as I put it in a sermon earlier this month, a case of climbing even more rungs on the ladder.\n\nA ladder which might one day turn out to be against the wrong wall.\n\nSo 2011 was a year of learning to be, a year of dwelling in the simplicity of the Son\'s doing as he told it in John 5:19, a year of seeking to understand what that meant for me.  Though I read vast portions of the Scriptures in the year (being at Bible college does mean that you get around the Bible a bit in the course of a week!), I came back again and again to this thought.\n\nThe Son could do nothing of his own accord but only what he saw the Father doing.  And to see what the Father was doing meant spending time in his presence.  Just being.  Knowing his identity as the Father\'s Son.  Living in that and letting his doing flow from that relational connection.\n\nThis year-long reflection, this dwelling in just one verse, was not intentional in 2011.  It just happened.  But, in just happening, it added richness to my walk with God.  I learned perhaps one of the more important lessons of my faith-life so far.\n\nThat he is the stability of my times.\n\nThat in returning and rest, in quietness and trust, are my strength.\n\nThat the <em>doing</em> which is going to make sense of God\'s call on my life has to flow from first <em>being.</em>  Being in his presence.  Listening to what he is inviting me to become and to do.\n\nSo, this month, when I preached our first service of the year, I spoke about this very lesson.\n\nI\'d meant it really as an explanation of why the leadership team was not producing a massive plan of goals for our church to achieve this year.  I\'d meant it as an explanation of why our only vision statement as a church is a sentence about who we believe God is inviting us to become - \'an outward-reaching community of disciples\'.  I\'d meant to invite our people into an understanding about why we feel that our most significant strategy in our becoming is going to be prayer which takes us to the heart of God, rather than an endless list of goals like every other church I know.\n\nAnd maybe they heard it like that.  I don\'t know.  I hope so because otherwise I\'ve got problems later on this year!  Problems when they realise that we\'re not necessarily doing all the worthy things which other churches are doing.  Problems when they realise that instead we\'re wasting time at the feet of Jesus in as profligate a way as we know how.  So I hope these precious people caught that vision for the church or I\'m going to be paying for it later!\n\nBut, at the very least, I know that many heard God speaking to them personally.  I know because they told me so, and when you\'ve preached in one place for as many years as I have, people give up commenting on your preach unless it was truly terrible or incredibly impactful.  At least it seems to have been the latter this time!\n\nPeople heard the invitation from John 5:19 and - my latest Scriptural hang-out! - Luke 10:41-42.  They heard a call to the \'one thing\', a phrase from Luke 10 which I think will haunt me all year.  So many of us there that Sunday had been seeking the \'one thing\' in 2011.  \"What is the \'one thing\'\", we would ask, \"the one thing which God wants me to do for him and with him?\"\n\nIt was my question too.  My life always seems to have multiple strands.  To be one step away from total chaos.  All year, I had longed to rationalise things, commitments, strands of doing.  I had longed to know what was the \'one thing\'.\n\nThen, on the very first day of 2012, I fell upon Luke 10:41-42 as if I had never read it before.  As if a direct message from the heart of God came the words, \'one thing\'.  Slap bang in the middle of a passage which I must have read tens of times.\n\nAnd what was the one thing?  To sit at the feet of Jesus.\n\nNothing else.\n\nOnly in that place will I learn who he is inviting me to become.  And only from there, that place of being, that place where who I am depends on the One who invited me into relationship with him...from that place alone can my doing flow.\n\nThat\'s true for the church too.  Goodness knows, I am the queen of lists and goal-setting.  I could come up with a formidable list of things for the church to achieve for God in 2012!  But to do so would, I suspect, be a repeat of the same mistake I was about to make with my own life last January.  Because until we, as a church, know whom God is inviting us to become, until we invest in the one thing of sitting at his feet, we will not know what it is which is on his heart uniquely for us to do in our little corner of London.\n\nAnd when we know who we are?  When we wait on the Lord?  Well, then it will be that what he is asking us to do becomes obvious, a natural overflow of our becoming.\n\nWhat about you?  Is your doing, your church\'s doing, an overflow of a knowledge of who you are when you sit at the Lord\'s feet?  And how could 2012 be a year more dedicated to the \'one thing\'?\n\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/vshioshvili/\">Photo credit</a>','In Returning and Rest','','inherit','open','open','','3975-autosave','','','2012-01-16 13:57:56','2012-01-16 21:57:56','',3975,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/3975-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4142,1,'2012-01-12 04:42:14','2012-01-12 12:42:14','Image from <a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/vshioshvili/\">http://www.flickr.com/photos/vshioshvili/</a>\r\n\r\nJanuary is always a time of reflection for me as we cross the threshold into a new year.  Last year I was all set to project some goals for 2011, goals which were, in essence, no more than an extrapolation of the things I had done in 2010.  Yet last January, God spoke to me clearly about this.  He showed me that to base my future direction on my direction so far was unwise.  Worse than that, actually.  It was stupid.  Because when you do what you\'ve always done, you get what you\'ve always got.\r\n\r\nTo orient myself for 2011 based on my successes in 2010, based on the gifts which had already come to the surface in my life?  Such a process of orientation was deeply flawed.  It could only take me where I had been.\r\n\r\nAnd I should have known better.\r\n\r\nPerhaps I did.  From what I posted then, it would seem that I knew that my doing - my one-track, single-focus drive for success - only served to hide the reality that I did not know where I was going.\r\n\r\nIt was, as I put it in a sermon earlier this month, a case of climbing even more rungs on the ladder.\r\n\r\nA ladder which might one day turn out to be against the wrong wall.\r\n\r\nSo 2011 was a year of learning to be, a year of dwelling in the simplicity of the Son\'s doing as he told it in John 5:19, a year of seeking to understand what that meant for me.  Though I read vast portions of the Scriptures in the year (being at Bible college does mean that you get around the Bible a bit in the course of a week!), I came back again and again to this thought.\r\n\r\nThe Son could do nothing of his own accord but only what he saw the Father doing.  And to see what the Father was doing meant spending time in his presence.  Just being.  Knowing his identity as the Father\'s Son.  Living in that and letting his doing flow from that relational connection.\r\n\r\nThis year-long reflection, this dwelling in just one verse, was not intentional in 2011.  It just happened.  But, in just happening, it added richness to my walk with God.  I learned perhaps one of the more important lessons of my faith-life so far.\r\n\r\nThat he is the stability of my times.\r\n\r\nThat in returning and rest, in quietness and trust, are my strength.\r\n\r\nThat the <em>doing</em> which is going to make sense of God\'s call on my life has to flow from first <em>being.</em>  Being in his presence.  Listening to what he is inviting me to become and to do.\r\n\r\nSo, this month, when I preached our first service of the year, I spoke about this very lesson.\r\n\r\nI\'d meant it really as an explanation of why the leadership team was not producing a massive plan of goals for our church to achieve this year.  I\'d meant it as an explanation of why our only vision statement as a church is a sentence about who we believe God is inviting us to become - \'an outward-reaching community of disciples\'.  I\'d meant to invite our people into an understanding about why we feel that our most significant strategy in our becoming is going to be prayer which takes us to the heart of God, rather than an endless list of goals like every other church I know.\r\n\r\nAnd maybe they heard it like that.  I don\'t know.  I hope so because otherwise I\'ve got problems later on this year!  Problems when they realise that we\'re not necessarily doing all the worthy things which other churches are doing.  Problems when they realise that instead we\'re wasting time at the feet of Jesus in as profligate a way as we know how.  So I hope these precious people caught that vision for the church or I\'m going to be paying for it later!\r\n\r\nBut, at the very least, I know that many heard God speaking to them personally.  I know because they told me so, and when you\'ve preached in one place for as many years as I have, people give up commenting on your preach unless it was truly terrible or incredibly impactful.  At least it seems to have been the latter this time!\r\n\r\nPeople heard the invitation from John 5:19 and - my latest Scriptural hang-out! - Luke 10:41-42.  They heard a call to the \'one thing\', a phrase from Luke 10 which I think will haunt me all year.  So many of us there that Sunday had been seeking the \'one thing\' in 2011.  \"What is the \'one thing\'\", we would ask, \"the one thing which God wants me to do for him and with him?\"\r\n\r\nIt was my question too.  My life always seems to have multiple strands.  To be one step away from total chaos.  All year, I had longed to rationalise things, commitments, strands of doing.  I had longed to know what was the \'one thing\'.\r\n\r\nThen, on the very first day of 2012, I fell upon Luke 10:41-42 as if I had never read it before.  As if a direct message from the heart of God came the words, \'one thing\'.  Slap bang in the middle of a passage which I must have read tens of times.\r\n\r\nAnd what was the one thing?  To sit at the feet of Jesus.\r\n\r\nNothing else.\r\n\r\nOnly in that place will I learn who he is inviting me to become.  And only from there, that place of being, that place where who I am depends on the One who invited me into relationship with him...from that place alone can my doing flow.\r\n\r\nThat\'s true for the church too.  Goodness knows, I am the queen of lists and goal-setting.  I could come up with a formidable list of things for the church to achieve for God in 2012!  But to do so would, I suspect, be a repeat of the same mistake I was about to make with my own life last January.  Because until we, as a church, know whom God is inviting us to become, until we invest in the one thing of sitting at his feet, we will not know what it is which is on his heart uniquely for us to do in our little corner of London.\r\n\r\nAnd when we know who we are?  When we wait on the Lord?  Well, then it will be that what he is asking us to do becomes obvious, a natural overflow of our becoming.\r\n\r\nWhat about you?  Is your doing, your church\'s doing, an overflow of a knowledge of who you are when you sit at the Lord\'s feet?  And how could 2012 be a year more dedicated to the \'one thing\'?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','In returning and rest','','inherit','open','open','','3975-revision-11','','','2012-01-12 04:42:14','2012-01-12 12:42:14','',3975,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/12/3975-revision-11/',0,'revision','',0),(4143,1,'2012-01-12 08:01:13','2012-01-12 16:01:13','A few years ago a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeardley_Love\">young white girl</a> at a prestigious college was beaten to death by her lacrosse captain boyfriend.  I remember reading the story about it because it captured the world\'s attention and made it on every major news channel, even the cover of People magazine.   She was beautiful, talented, and had a bright future.  It was all cut short by domestic violence.   The world was outraged.\r\n\r\nLast year we watched the riveting story of a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casey_Anthony\">white suburban party mom</a> who was accused of killing her little girl.  The grandparents were involved and it was a big hot mess, ending with her acquittal in the end.  That little girl was innocent, precious, and had a bright future.  It was all cut short by violence.  The world was outraged.\r\n\r\nA few months ago we heard the news that a prestigious university had a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penn_State_sex_abuse_scandal\">football coach</a> who was sexually molesting young, vulnerable boys.  The boys he was violating weren\'t from strong families with education and money.  They were from a program for troubled kids, the kinds on the margins, the often forgotten and neglected ones.  When this story broke loose, riots ensued, not riots about the injustice that had happened, but riots about ruining a football program. The world was not as outraged that boys were being ruined but that a football program could be threatened.\r\n\r\nWe live in a culture where power, money, and class matter.\r\n\r\nEvery day women are beaten to death by their partners.  Right now, while we\'re reading blogs, women of every color, shape, and size are being horribly violated.  But because the majority of them aren\'t white, powerful, or \"important,\" we don\'t hear their stories on the front page of the news.\r\n\r\nEvery day children are taken, used, abused, and killed.   Heinous crimes committed against them, these children\'s stories are rarely told because the majority of them don\'t make for sensational news that sells newspapers and advertising time and all of the things that keep the media machine going.\r\n\r\nI am not saying the lives of white suburban women or kids aren\'t important.  They are precious, valuable, and worth fighting for.  But so are the lives of other colors and classes of people--the ones we rarely hear about.  The forgotten ones.  The neglected ones.  The marginalized ones.  The not-as-pretty ones.\r\n\r\nBut most systems are built upon power (I am not talking about the good kind).  Profits matter.  Donors matter.  Production matters.  Look at the top of almost any organization, church, or company and those at the top--on the whole--will not be the forgotten, neglected, or marginalized.   It\'s just not how the world works.  And power always perpetuates power.\r\n\r\nAnd those with power look through a different lens than ones without it.\r\n\r\nYears ago when I was on a big church staff I can\'t tell you the number of conversations that were centered on keeping the powerful happy so that the wheels could keep spinning.  And often, the powerful did not like hearing story upon story of the hurting, the marginalized, the sick.  They wanted cleaner stories, ones with neater and tidier bows, ones from \"their people.\"\r\n\r\nYeah, people with no voice, margin, or resource do not give big money. Or run organizations.\r\n\r\nThe next big thing we will hear about in the media related to Penn State won\'t be about the boys.  It will be about the coaches and the football program and what\'s next for their football program.  Meanwhile, scores of boys will be wrestling with the damages of being sexually abused for the rest of their lives.  They will slip into the crevices and have to find their way on their own.\r\n\r\nThe stories will be about the powerful.\r\n\r\n<strong>Because those are the stories that sell.</strong>\r\n\r\nThose are the stories that capture our attention.\r\n\r\nThose are the stories that perpetuate a false reality.\r\n\r\nThose are the stories that shape what we believe.\r\n\r\nThat\'s why we must become advocates, voices for those who can\'t use their own.\r\n\r\nThat\'s why we must carefully consider what we hear on the mainstream media through the proper lens of power, influence, and money.\r\n\r\n<strong>That\'s why we must tell the stories of the weak, the vulnerable, the neglected, and the forgotten in any way we can. </strong>\r\n\r\n<em>Because their stories matter, too. </em>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Stories That Matter ','','inherit','open','open','','3993-revision-2','','','2012-01-12 08:01:13','2012-01-12 16:01:13','',3993,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/12/3993-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4145,102,'2012-01-18 08:00:54','2012-01-18 16:00:54','<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\r\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\r\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\r\n\r\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\r\n\r\nHe says it’s time.\r\n\r\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\r\n\r\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\r\n\r\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\r\n\r\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\r\n\r\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\r\n\r\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\r\n\r\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\r\n\r\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\r\n\r\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\r\n\r\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\r\n\r\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\r\n\r\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\r\n\r\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\r\n\r\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\r\n\r\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','God in the Dark: On Hope','','publish','open','open','','god-in-the-dark-on-hope','','','2012-01-18 08:52:04','2012-01-18 16:52:04','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4145',0,'post','',8),(4147,1,'2012-01-14 09:31:59','2012-01-14 17:31:59','January is often a space to create new dreams and so we’re leaving the topic open and to your imagination. We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people. A Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\r\n\r\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-revision-2','','','2012-01-14 09:31:59','2012-01-14 17:31:59','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4042-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4146,1,'2012-01-12 18:01:09','2012-01-13 02:01:09','For those of us who are parents, the question of hope takes us directly to our children. Our hopes are for our children and the life that we launch them into. Then at some point, usually later in life, we discover our hopes are in them, as we look to them to achieve what we were never quite able to pull off. Things like a cleaner, safer, more peaceful planet, whose driving force is love, rather than violence, destructive consumption and greed. Wowser, that’s idealistic. Yes it is, but isn’t idealism the structural helix of a healthy imagination? And isn’t imagination the magnifier of possibility?\r\n\r\nWe (together with my wife) have three beautiful children. Our experience of hope is expressed and experienced in their lives. Each is a separate facet of our hope, but I want to focus on my youngest, and only son, and from my perspective, rather than ours. Mark was born late in the game, ten years late. Everything went smoothly, and he was a beautiful boy, who from his first moments was very obviously my son. Even today, seventeen years later, people look at him, and then at my worn out gray and fuzzy face and they say, he looks just like you. I’m not sure what they see, but when compared with my boyhood pictures, the resemblance is uncanny. I was a very proud father, who immediately began to imagine the possibilities. This boy, with the benefit of his mothers genetic superiority, would be able to achieve all the athletic goals that I fell short of. I would be the next Walter Gretzky, teaching my boy to skate and handle the puck. Or maybe I’d make the rink and send Mom out to teach the skills. I hoped he’d be a better me.\r\n\r\nWithin the very first month of Mark’s life, I had to let go of that dream. Although there was no exact diagnosis, it was very clear that, genetically speaking, Mark was a few genes short of a full helix. I remember going for a walk, late on a cold winter evening, letting go of those dreams, and weeping from the deepest part of me. And yet there was hope.\r\n\r\nI got up the next day, freed from expectation, freed to imagination. I simply had to change the equation from, hope = (genetic potential x opportunity + encouragement + discipline – laziness) x expectation, to hope = possibility x imagination.\r\n\r\nIn the first few years I watch Mark learn how to crawl. I remember the moment so well when he manage to climb the one single step out of the family room, into the foyer. We were watching the Oakland A’s and keeping one eye on Marky. Once he figured out how to get past that step, possibility would be magnified. Mark had been working on get up over that step for weeks. He was able to get one knee up, but then seemed unable to get any further. This day though, his determination was palpable. After consistently failing for a more than an hour, he suddenly found that perfect tipping point, and up he went. There it was, hope. Mark, all on his own, demonstrated everything I hoped for him. He multiplied all the limited possibilities that life had dealt him, by his own unlimited imagination. Mark was 3 years old.\r\n\r\nWhen Mark was 4 years old we moved downtown. Both Linda and I had been volunteering with a homeless shelter and we wanted to get closer to the action. We were commissioned by a suburban church to be missionaries to the homeless in the inner-city. Our job was to nurture hope in a very marginalized group of people living on or near the street. I set up a woodworking shop and invited a few to come discover possibility. At the time we had no idea what a vital role Mark would play in that work. I thought he would be received as that retarded kid in the wheelchair. I thought we’d get the usual polite yet awkward stares that had become such a regular part of our suburban existence. Not so. The street folks took to Marky like he was one of their own. They seemed to understand the unlimited possibilities inside the little kid with so many outward limitations. They talked to him, directly. Marky was instantly accepted, and deeply loved, and I don’t think I had ever considered that possibility. In collaboration with his new friends, Mark was defining the possibilities.\r\n\r\nThis little man is now 17 years old, and still, despite having no language, and having lost the mobility he once had, he’s constantly redefining possibility, and bringing hope that changes the world. His condition, although not diagnosed, is clearly a neurodegenerative disorder. Today the physical possibilities for Mark are very limited, he’s very weak, just hangin\' on, but if you catch him during one of his six or seven waking hours, he’ll flash you a grin that tells you he believes otherwise.\r\n\r\nMy hope is that for the rest of my life I will always see the possibilities through the magnifying lens of God’s imagination. That’s what Marky discovered in his short life, that’s the gift he’s given us. There is hope.','Hope = Possibility x Imagination','','inherit','open','open','','4004-revision-6','','','2012-01-12 18:01:09','2012-01-13 02:01:09','',4004,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/12/4004-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4148,1,'2012-01-14 23:38:52','2012-01-15 07:38:52','<span style=\"text-decoration: underline\"><em>This post is part of the January Synchroblog centered on Hope.</em></span>\r\n\r\nThis is an image that I shot just after the new year of the time just following sunset over Lake Pend Oreille in the Idaho Panhandle.  To explain why I chose this time, I will tell you that while I am a huge fan of the golden hour and have been known to take a sunset shot or two occasionally,  my real love is that time after the sun has set over the horizon. That’s when the magic really happens. As I look upon this particular sunset, I am reminded that another year has come to pass and now the sun has set on yet another chapter in history. 2011 was a great year; one full of events both forgettable and memorable. .\r\n\r\nOn the downside, 2011 almost saw me throw away a career that I love over nothing more than simple perception. 2011 saw me make the move completely away from organized religion and come to a point where I no longer wish to participate at all. 2011 almost saw me walk away from a loving relationship because of selfish pride. 2011 claimed the lives of four very good friends; three of those in December.\r\n\r\nLast year was not all about negatives though. God had other ideas for me. He was on top of things and I’m certain that the entire time, he was sitting there with my life map unfolded in front of him; drinking a cup of coffee and grinning from ear to ear while trying not to laugh because his kid had done something completely ridiculous again. I am quite certain that he has passed coffee through his nose on more than one occasion while watching me navigate through this life. In my darkest moments though, He gave me some valuable gifts. For the first time, I was able to put away my selfish pride and instead of projecting out, I found that I could now look inside myself to find, more often than not, the cause of my angst.   Last year, I got a front seat view of what a lot of people never get to see; why it is that I do what I do for a career.  The most important gift was epiphany.   I began to see what is truly important in this life, what is not and how I have been misplacing my priorities.   Last year, I received the greatest gift of all; God’s presence when it was the last thing I expected and more so the last thing I wanted. In a word, I received hope.\r\n\r\nSome time ago, a very good friend of mine wrote a piece on Caleb and how he remained determined for 45 years to collect on the promises that God had made him. Caleb was one of twelve spies sent into the land of Canaan to “scope it out”. He was also one of only two people who believed that Canaan could actually be taken. Caleb trusted in God and never looked any other direction. Me? I have a tendency to be one of the other ten. I have a knack for dwelling more on how big the obstacles are and less on the end game behind the obstacles. I am the king of disheveled focus.\r\n\r\nThere have been two locations that I have found in this world where I felt more at peace than any other place on earth. One is Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park. The other is right outside my front door after a new fallen snow. On late nights after a new snow fall, a walk around the city takes on a quality that is seldom seen on a regular basis. There are few or no people out. It is indescribably quiet. If you listen, you can hear the tree squirrels scampering around the branches as they make their infrequent visits to the outside world. You can hear a slight breeze blowing through the city, the sound of a roaring fire from behind the protection of someone’s four walls or even a kiss on the lips of two lovers bundled up in front of that fire. It is peaceful like nothing else.  It is this type of peace that allows me to stay focused and keep my eye on what’s important. This steadfastness is so important because sitting on the other side of the horizon, outside of view is the dark clouds of a storm; lurking around waiting for our focus to be lost. When it is, they will move in faster than any super cell you\'ve ever seen and will create more havoc than the largest tornado you’ve ever heard of. Without focus, grey will be the color of your skies and the shape of your outlook. With your focus intact, you can keep the storm at bay; not only from yourself but from others as well.\r\n\r\nEver wonder why the New Year falls in the winter?   It is because laying there dormant underneath all of the ice and snow of winter, the grass, plants and flowers wait for the spring time when they will erupt into a flurry of color, growth, beauty and renewal. Is it any surprise that Easter is in the spring?   <em>\"I Make All Things New\".</em>\r\n\r\nWe don\'t have to wait though. At the turn of the clock at midnight on the 31st of December (<em>or for that matter, every other day</em>), we get a \"do over\".   We get to start all over again with a fresh slate and bright eyes that look toward the future - a future worth living for and a future worth living in.','Little Reminders','','inherit','open','open','','4055-revision-6','','','2012-01-14 23:38:52','2012-01-15 07:38:52','',4055,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/14/4055-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4150,102,'2012-01-16 14:06:31','2012-01-16 22:06:31','<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\n\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\n\nHe says it’s time.\n\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\n\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\n\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\n\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\n\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\n\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\n\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\n\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\n\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\n\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\n\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\n\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\n\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\n\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\n\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\n\n&nbsp;','God in the Dark: on hope','','inherit','open','open','','4145-revision','','','2012-01-16 14:06:31','2012-01-16 22:06:31','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4145-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4151,102,'2012-01-16 14:07:56','2012-01-16 22:07:56','<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\r\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\r\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\r\n\r\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\r\n\r\nHe says it’s time.\r\n\r\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\r\n\r\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\r\n\r\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\r\n\r\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\r\n\r\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\r\n\r\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\r\n\r\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\r\n\r\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\r\n\r\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\r\n\r\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\r\n\r\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\r\n\r\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\r\n\r\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\r\n\r\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\r\n\r\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','God in the Dark: on hope','','inherit','open','open','','4145-revision-2','','','2012-01-16 14:07:56','2012-01-16 22:07:56','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4145-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(4152,1,'2012-01-15 07:06:45','2012-01-15 15:06:45','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-4067\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite-300x172.jpg\" alt=\"Hypocrite Definition\" width=\"300\" height=\"172\" /></a>I sure hope hypocrites can change.\r\n\r\nEveryone knows what a hypocrite is. They are two-faced. They say one thing in public, but do the opposite in private. Or they say one thing to one group of people, and the opposite to others, just so they can be accepted by both. Jesus had numerous encounters with religious hypocrites in His day, and there is no shortage of hypocrites today either.\r\n\r\nThere is one hypocrite in particular who annoys me more than all others. I first encountered him on my blog about five years ago, and every so often, more recently of late, he comes back and spouts off some sort of pious nonsense, which sounds good on the electronic page, but which I know for a fact is nothing but pure hypocrisy.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nI want him to keep interacting on my blog, but if he keeps it up, I might have to ban him.\r\n\r\nHe writes about all the problems in church and all the changes that need to be done to fix the church, but I know that he never really seems to make any changes in his own life. And he himself is not really all that involved in church anyway. He is like a \"back pew driver.\" I want to quote to him that old line we learned in kindergarten: \"When you point your finger at someone else, three point back at you,\" but it sounds so juvenile.\r\n\r\nI am tired of all his talk about loving and serving others, when really, from what I know about him, he rarely loves or serves anyone except himself. His wife and kids do more service than he does, and then he writes about it as if he were doing it! Talk about hypocrisy! Sometimes I just want to ask him, \"Who do you serve? Who do you love?\" Certainly, he has some decent ideas, but if all he is doing is talking about them, it is pure hypocrisy.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nHe has his own blog, of course (who doesn\'t these days?), and sometimes I read it. I recently read a post where he criticized big mega churches for their lack of close relationships and true, genuine fellowship. I suppose I agree. It is difficult to develop close relationships in big churches. But then, close relationships are difficult to develop everywhere! And besides, I know some about this guy. He doesn\'t have a single close friend! Nobody he regularly fellowships with. It looks like he is not doing any better with relationships and fellowship than are the people in the mega churches he criticized.\r\n\r\nI have almost stopped reading his blog completely. I get too upset. I wonder how he can write such things without shame? Where is his integrity? Where is his honesty about himself and his own life? Everything he writes on the page sounds good in theory, and seems to reflect biblical principles and ideas, and he seems to love Jesus and want to show the love of Jesus to others. That\'s all good. But there is a wide gap between <em>wanting</em> to do something and <em>actually doing it</em>. And that gap is called hypocrisy. If all he ever does is writes about loving and serving others, but never actually does it, he is a hypocrite.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nI <em>really</em> hope hypocrites can change...\r\n\r\nOtherwise, there is no hope for me.\r\n\r\n<strong>For I am that hypocrite.</strong>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-4066\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face-300x198.jpg\" alt=\"The Mask Comes Off\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" /></a>','Hope for Hypocrites','','inherit','open','open','','4065-revision-3','','','2012-01-15 07:06:45','2012-01-15 15:06:45','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4065-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4153,1,'2012-01-16 14:08:53','2012-01-16 22:08:53','<p>I sure hope hypocrites can change.</p>\r\n<p>Everyone knows what a hypocrite is. They are two-faced. They say one thing in public, but do the opposite in private. Or they say one thing to one group of people, and the opposite to others, just so they can be accepted by both. Jesus had numerous encounters with religious hypocrites in His day, and there is no shortage of hypocrites today either.</p>\r\n<p><a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-4067\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite-300x172.jpg\" alt=\"Hypocrite Definition\" width=\"300\" height=\"172\" /></a>There is one hypocrite in particular who annoys me more than all others. I first encountered him on my blog about five years ago, and every so often, more recently of late, he comes back and spouts off some sort of pious nonsense, which sounds good on the electronic page, but which I know for a fact is nothing but pure hypocrisy.</p>\r\n<p>So I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.</p>\r\n<p>I want him to keep interacting on my blog, but if he keeps it up, I might have to ban him.</p>\r\n<p>He writes about all the problems in church and all the changes that need to be done to fix the church, but I know that he never really seems to make any changes in his own life. And he himself is not really all that involved in church anyway. He is like a \"back pew driver.\" I want to quote to him that old line we learned in kindergarten: \"When you point your finger at someone else, three point back at you,\" but it sounds so juvenile.</p>\r\n<p>I am tired of all his talk about loving and serving others, when really, from what I know about him, he rarely loves or serves anyone except himself. His wife and kids do more service than he does, and then he writes about it as if he were doing it! Talk about hypocrisy! Sometimes I just want to ask him, \"Who do you serve? Who do you love?\" Certainly, he has some decent ideas, but if all he is doing is talking about them, it is pure hypocrisy.</p>\r\n<p>So I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.</p>\r\n<p>He has his own blog, of course (who doesn\'t these days?), and sometimes I read it. I recently read a post where he criticized big mega churches for their lack of close relationships and true, genuine fellowship. I suppose I agree. It is difficult to develop close relationships in big churches. But then, close relationships are difficult to develop everywhere! And besides, I know some about this guy. He doesn\'t have a single close friend! Nobody he regularly fellowships with. It looks like he is not doing any better with relationships and fellowship than are the people in the mega churches he criticized.</p>\r\n<p>I have almost stopped reading his blog completely. I get too upset. I wonder how he can write such things without shame? Where is his integrity? Where is his honesty about himself and his own life? Everything he writes on the page sounds good in theory, and seems to reflect biblical principles and ideas, and he seems to love Jesus and want to show the love of Jesus to others. That\'s all good. But there is a wide gap between <em>wanting</em> to do something and <em>actually doing it</em>. And that gap is called hypocrisy. If all he ever does is writes about loving and serving others, but never actually does it, he is a hypocrite.</p>\r\n<p>So I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.</p>\r\n<p>I <em>really</em> hope hypocrites can change...</p>\r\n<p>Otherwise, there is no hope for me.</p>\r\n<p><strong>For I am that hypocrite.</strong><br />\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-4066\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face-300x198.jpg\" alt=\"The Mask Comes Off\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" /></a></p>\r\n','Hope for Hypocrites','','inherit','open','open','','4065-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:08:53','2012-01-16 22:08:53','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4065-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4154,102,'2012-01-16 14:08:23','2012-01-16 22:08:23','<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\r\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\r\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\r\n\r\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\r\n\r\nHe says it’s time.\r\n\r\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\r\n\r\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\r\n\r\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\r\n\r\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\r\n\r\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\r\n\r\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\r\n\r\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\r\n\r\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\r\n\r\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\r\n\r\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\r\n\r\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\r\n\r\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\r\n\r\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\r\n\r\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\r\n\r\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','God in the Dark: on hope','','inherit','open','open','','4145-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 14:08:23','2012-01-16 22:08:23','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4145-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4155,1,'2012-01-16 14:08:45','2012-01-16 22:08:45','I sure hope hypocrites can change.\r\n\r\nEveryone knows what a hypocrite is. They are two-faced. They say one thing in public, but do the opposite in private. Or they say one thing to one group of people, and the opposite to others, just so they can be accepted by both. Jesus had numerous encounters with religious hypocrites in His day, and there is no shortage of hypocrites today either.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite.jpg\"><img class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-4067\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hypocrite-300x172.jpg\" alt=\"Hypocrite Definition\" width=\"300\" height=\"172\" /></a>There is one hypocrite in particular who annoys me more than all others. I first encountered him on my blog about five years ago, and every so often, more recently of late, he comes back and spouts off some sort of pious nonsense, which sounds good on the electronic page, but which I know for a fact is nothing but pure hypocrisy.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nI want him to keep interacting on my blog, but if he keeps it up, I might have to ban him.\r\n\r\nHe writes about all the problems in church and all the changes that need to be done to fix the church, but I know that he never really seems to make any changes in his own life. And he himself is not really all that involved in church anyway. He is like a \"back pew driver.\" I want to quote to him that old line we learned in kindergarten: \"When you point your finger at someone else, three point back at you,\" but it sounds so juvenile.\r\n\r\nI am tired of all his talk about loving and serving others, when really, from what I know about him, he rarely loves or serves anyone except himself. His wife and kids do more service than he does, and then he writes about it as if he were doing it! Talk about hypocrisy! Sometimes I just want to ask him, \"Who do you serve? Who do you love?\" Certainly, he has some decent ideas, but if all he is doing is talking about them, it is pure hypocrisy.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nHe has his own blog, of course (who doesn\'t these days?), and sometimes I read it. I recently read a post where he criticized big mega churches for their lack of close relationships and true, genuine fellowship. I suppose I agree. It is difficult to develop close relationships in big churches. But then, close relationships are difficult to develop everywhere! And besides, I know some about this guy. He doesn\'t have a single close friend! Nobody he regularly fellowships with. It looks like he is not doing any better with relationships and fellowship than are the people in the mega churches he criticized.\r\n\r\nI have almost stopped reading his blog completely. I get too upset. I wonder how he can write such things without shame? Where is his integrity? Where is his honesty about himself and his own life? Everything he writes on the page sounds good in theory, and seems to reflect biblical principles and ideas, and he seems to love Jesus and want to show the love of Jesus to others. That\'s all good. But there is a wide gap between <em>wanting</em> to do something and <em>actually doing it</em>. And that gap is called hypocrisy. If all he ever does is writes about loving and serving others, but never actually does it, he is a hypocrite.\r\n\r\nSo I sure hope hypocrites like this can change.\r\n\r\nI <em>really</em> hope hypocrites can change...\r\n\r\nOtherwise, there is no hope for me.\r\n\r\n<strong>For I am that hypocrite.</strong>\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-4066\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Hypocrite-Face-300x198.jpg\" alt=\"The Mask Comes Off\" width=\"300\" height=\"198\" /></a>','Hope for Hypocrites','','inherit','open','open','','4065-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 14:08:45','2012-01-16 22:08:45','',4065,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4065-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4157,1,'2012-01-16 14:12:10','2012-01-16 22:12:10','<em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.\r\n\r\nThe irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.\r\n\r\nFor such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.\r\n\r\nPerhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.\r\n\r\nHope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.\r\n\r\nYou can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.\r\n\r\nConversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.\r\n\r\nMaybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.\r\n\r\nAt least, that\'s my hope.','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-revision-7','','','2012-01-16 14:12:10','2012-01-16 22:12:10','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4074-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(4158,1,'2012-01-16 14:12:51','2012-01-16 22:12:51','<p><em>Oh, January</em>. The turning of a page, the start of a chapter, and the beginning of a journey into undiscovered country. A time of pledging to not repeat the same mistakes or failings that the preceding twelve months brought time and again. Looking at the world with fresh, clear eyes and the chance for a new start. A hope in the unseen.</p>\r\n<p>The irony that \"hope\" is a four-letter word is not lost on me. And like other four-letter words, this one can cut with its sharpness.</p>\r\n<p>For such a simple word, \"hope\" carries a world of power behind it. It instills something inside of us. We can use it to project a sensation into others. As a verb, it is full of action, but never unfocused intensity. \"Hope\" always directly correlates to someone or something. Is it any surprise that \"Hope\" is a relatively popular name to give baby girls? Like the individual who would bear the name, \"hope\" implies strength, inspiration, and a sense of wonder.</p>\r\n<p>Perhaps the passage we are most familiar with in the Bible where \"hope\" occurs is found in the oft-quoted verse <em>\"Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love\"</em> (I Corinthians 13:13, NIV). It\'s interesting that \"hope\" falls between \"faith\" and \"love,\" because there is something to be said about how important \"hope\" can and should be when linking these three idea together. ...and yes: I know that \"the greatest of these [three] is love,\" but hope is the bridge we must cross in order to transition between the three.</p>\r\n<p>Hope (pardon the pun) is most often found in our lives on a metaphorical rope, dangling before us. The idea and definition of hope is perhaps more difficult to spell out than its companion terms from I Corinthians 13, because the idea behind where and when we find hope is at times as elusive to grasp as is the concept itself. But when we can grab ahold of it, we hang on for dear life.</p>\r\n<p>You can <strong>lose</strong> faith in a person or idea, but there remains an implication that it could be found again. You can <strong>fall out</strong> of love with a person, but there remains the possibility that you can fall in love again. To <strong>give up</strong> hope not only feels like a personal loss, but it also seems darker, like a curtain is drawn to a close around something. Think about it this way: when you hear on the news that a search and rescue team has \"given up hope\" of finding a missing individual or of finding them alive, we almost automatically begin to assume the worst, even with no evidence to corroborate that this is the end. When we give up hope, we have a sense of something being taken from us. When we say or hear someone say that they have given up hope, it carries a sense of profound finality with it.</p>\r\n<p>Conversely, \"hope\" can simultaneously seem a more fluid idea than \"faith\" or \"love.\" To say \"I have faith that this will happen\" carries a conviction of assurance that your belief can make it real. To state \"I would love for this to happen\" makes it personal, and to not take action to see that whatever the idea or plan comes to fruition would almost feel like an attack on the individual making the wish. But when we hope, we more than make expression of trust for something to occur; we imply a sense of child-like belief.</p>\r\n<p>Maybe that\'s why January seems such a perfect time for hope to come into play in our lives. Other than the literal start of a new year, it feels symbolically appropriate as a time for a new beginning: we are coming off a season of mystery and beauty, of looking and giving beyond ourselves. We will have just celebrated the birth of the One who brought hope into the world, even going so far as to sing that His birth was a \"thrill of hope.\" And as we carry this attitude beyond the turning of the page of the calendar, to paraphrase Scrooge, we honor Christ in our hearts, as best we can.</p>\r\n<p>At least, that\'s my hope.</p>\r\n','Now These Three Remain...','','inherit','open','open','','4074-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:12:51','2012-01-16 22:12:51','',4074,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4074-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4159,1,'2012-01-16 14:06:26','2012-01-16 22:06:26','January is often a space to create new dreams and so we’re leaving the topic open and to your imagination. We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people. A Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\r\n\r\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/the-trouble-with-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble With Hope</a>: John Ptacek\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-possibility-x-imagination/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope = Possibility x Imagination</a>: Wayne Rumsby\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/little-reminders/\" target=\"_blank\">Little Reminders</a>: <a href=\"http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mike Victorino</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 14:06:26','2012-01-16 22:06:26','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4042-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4160,1,'2012-01-15 14:35:57','2012-01-15 22:35:57','I\'ve had a chance to read a lot of articles on Provoketive about people who have had awful experiences in church life. These experiences put such a bad taste in their mouth, they ended up leaving for good. Typically, these experiences with church stemmed from one major problem - bad leadership.\r\n\r\nI have to admit. Before my fall from ministry, I did some things I regret. I was very heavy-handed at times, I had a tendency towards legalism and I was very, very unforgiving. That being said, I don\'t want to sound like a tyrant. Most people, I believe, remember me as a pretty decent guy. But the one thing I regret is my lack of forgiveness. It pains me to think about any I might have sent away with a bad taste in their mouth. They ended up rejecting church because of a man and never knowing the love of Christ.\r\n\r\nMy own peak of unforgiveness came with my relationship with my father. He and I were at odds for most of my life. He was very critical of me and had trouble expressing any love for me. While I was pastoring, he left my mother for another woman and I took that opportunity to judge him, condemn him and speak harshly to him. In return, he yelled right back.\r\n\r\nI decided to shut the door on him completely. I hated him for how he had treated my mother. People would say, \"Ray, you can\'t do that. He\'s your<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright  wp-image-4081\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wait.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"252\" height=\"252\" /></a> father.\" I\'d say, \"I don\'t care. If he wants forgiveness, I guess I\'ll listen. <em>But he has to come to me first.</em> And he has to mean it.\"\r\n\r\nI was still in ministry when he died in an accident a year and a half after he left my mother. We had never reconciled. I had spent my days spewing venom at him. Toward the end, I tried to sit down with him and tried to have a civil conversation with him, but we would never have a father-son relationship.\r\n\r\nA year later, my mother died in an accident and I found myself without parents, alone. Another year later, I committed adultery and needed my mom and dad more than ever. I began to rue the days when I cursed my father for his mistakes. I began to see him as human and understand that like him, I was imperfect. Woefully imperfect. I was, in fact, my father\'s son.\r\n\r\nAnd I began to understand the wide gap between the \"forgiveness\" of man and the restoration of God and how He wants us to practice it.\r\n\r\nI began contemplating passages Like Matthew 18:12 where a shepherd has 100 sheep. One of them went astray. What did the shepherd do? Did he say, \"Oh, it\'s alright. I\'ve got 99 other ones.\" Nope. The shepherd left the ones that he knew were fine and he sought out the <em>one</em>. He didn\'t wait for it to come back, he sought it out.\r\n\r\nI started thinking about Galatians 6:1, \"<em>Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted</em>.\"\r\n\r\nPaul tells the church that if anyone sins, that we ought to go get them and restore them. We shouldn\'t wait for anyone to be thrown on the trash heap of society. We grab them, help them, shake them to their senses if we have to. But we walk with them and see that they are restored to the community of faith. We don\'t stand idly by and hope that they come waltzing back one day and ask for our forgiveness. It\'s our job to restore people.\r\n\r\nContrast that with my reaction towards my father. I was so angry, I wanted to ignore him. Forever. I wanted his heart to change. I wanted it to change the way I wanted it to change. I wanted him to act and conform to my standards. Sure, he was sinning. But I wanted nothing to do with his restoration. It was easier for me to sit and hate.\r\n\r\nBut that\'s not what the community of faith is called to do. We are called to seek people out and restore them. That\'s what Jesus does for us. He seeks us out. And as His representatives, He wants us to seek out those who need restoration. Is it easy? Nope. Does it require our time and compassion? Yes.\r\n\r\nUltimately, it is worth it. What Christ did to save us was worth it and He calls us to be sacrificial in our lives toward others as well.\r\n\r\n____________________\r\n\r\nRay Carroll is author of <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-Broken/dp/0615567096/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1325370631&amp;sr=8-1\">Fallen Pastor: Finding Restoration in a Broken World</a> which is available at Amazon.com and is also available for the <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-Pastor-Finding-Restoration-ebook/dp/B006TKJV0U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1326661898&amp;sr=8-2\">Amazon Kindle</a>.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','\"Waiting On Forgiveness\" vs. Restoration','','inherit','open','open','','4076-revision-3','','','2012-01-15 14:35:57','2012-01-15 22:35:57','',4076,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4076-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4161,1,'2012-01-15 16:31:32','2012-01-16 00:31:32','<blockquote><em><em>Not, I’ll not, carrion comfort, Despair, not feast on thee;</em>\r\nNot untwist—slack they may be—\r\nthese last strands of man\r\nIn me or, most weary, cry I can no more. I can;\r\nCan something, hope, wish day come,\r\nnot choose not to be.\r\n(from Carrion Comfort, Gerard Manley Hopkins, 1887)</em></blockquote>\r\nWe see through a glass darkly – but there are times that seem darker than others. Winter nights close in; the accumulating sorrows of friends and family pile like snowdrifts against our windows. We find ourselves wishing for summer, or surfing vacation rental websites, longing for escape. We wrestle with hope: Is healing possible? Is wholeness an illusion? Does it make sense to invest, again, and again, in systems that seem irrevocably broken, in people who seem determined to fail?\r\n\r\nReading Hopkins’ “Carrion Comfort”, I find myself wondering what struggles sapped his strength, stole his joy, led him toward the dark place of doubting God’s goodness. His poem points back toward Jacob, running from home, wrestling in the dark with God.\r\n\r\nAnd it calls to mind Paul, in his second letter to the Corinthians, confessing his own  temptation to despair.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, we pretend that conversion to Christ is a guarantee of a smooth and easy ride. Trust God and all will go well. Believe and your problems are solved. Let go and let God.\r\n\r\nBut there’s Hopkins, a Jesuit priest in his prime, bruised by his dark night of the soul. And Paul, acknowledging that he and his fellow workers were “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1).\r\n\r\nI could list countless friends, faithful people living lives of deep obedience, who struggle with unexplained tragedies and wrestle with doubt, with a sense of abandonment that rivals David’s when he cried out:\r\n\r\nIf suffering is part of the human condition, God\'s people are not exempt.\r\n\r\nThere’s a word play in 2 Corinthians 4 that we miss in English translation. Paul says “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”\r\n\r\nAporeo (perplexed) means to be without resources, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn: stuck. I’m beginning to feel that’s my natural state. Daily, I find myself perplexed. I don’t have what’s needed. I can’t do what I promised. The challenges I face are more than I bargained for. My resources are few, my wisdom is slight, and the situation is beyond me. I laugh as I write this: I thought that state of perplexity would end when I stepped away from full-time ministry with youth. Instead, it’s more pronounced, as God leads me into more and more perplexing missions, with fewer resources at hand.\r\n\r\nPaul says: aporea, but not exaporeo. Perplexed, but not to the point of despair. Without resources, but not without hope of help. In doubt, but not in such confusion I can no longer pray, or trust, or wait. Stuck, but not - literally - \"out of a way through.\"\r\n\r\nWhen I look back on the past year, and the years before that, I see that some of the moments when I was most perplexed, God was most at work. Those places where I found myself standing still – uncertain, doubtful, at the end of my resources, ingenuity, understanding - God’s grace intervened, sometimes in ways that were immediate and dramatic, much more often in ways that could only be seen looking back across time.\r\n\r\nYet there are situations where I still wrestle, still stand in perplexity, still see no sign of resolution, no clear way through. What then?\r\n\r\nIn Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4 I find clear advice for my own cases of “aporea”:\r\n\r\nOne: Don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. He says it at the beginning and end of the chapter: We do not lose heart.\r\n\r\nEasy to say. Not so easy to do.\r\n\r\nTwo: Admit, acknowledge, even embrace weakness. We aren’t the ones who need to be strong. I love that. We are jars of clay. Frail, flawed, struggling creatures.\r\n\r\nI’ve certainly had the temptation, at different points along the way, to “look strong for the kids,” to try to hold it together. That never works. Much better to say “I’m struggling here. But don’t worry: God will help us.”\r\n\r\nThird, Paul says: Keep your eyes on what’s ahead. Don’t let this present moment drag you down. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”\r\n\r\nI have lots of areas of weakness, but one in particular has sometimes been a problem. I hate long, high bridges. I start focusing on the side: the flimsy rail, the too-close edge, the long drop to deep water below. And then I focus on myself: my sweaty hands, the fact that I can’t breath. If I can keep my eyes and attention out ahead, I’m okay. If I start thinking “what if . . .” I’m in trouble.\r\n\r\nThe bridges are hard. But the other side is worth it.\r\n\r\nAnd these struggles we face are hard, but they’re not the end of the story, just as those miserable bridges are never the end of the road. As Paul says, “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.”\r\n\r\nI pray that will be so.\r\n<blockquote><em>We travelers, walking towards the sun, can’t see\r\n</em><em>Ahead, but looking back the very light\r\n</em><em>That blinded us shows us the way we came,\r\n</em><em>Along which blessings now appear, risen\r\n</em><em>As if from sightlessness to sight, and we,\r\nB</em><em>y blessings brightly lit, keep going toward\r\n</em><em>That blessed light that yet to us is dark.\r\n</em><em>                  (Sabbaths 1999, IV, Wendell Berry) </em></blockquote>','Perplexed, but still hopeful','','inherit','open','open','','4090-revision-9','','','2012-01-15 16:31:32','2012-01-16 00:31:32','',4090,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/15/4090-revision-9/',0,'revision','',0),(4162,1,'2012-01-16 06:56:54','2012-01-16 14:56:54','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\r\n\r\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\r\n\r\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\r\n\r\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\r\n\r\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\r\n\r\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\r\n\r\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\r\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\r\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\r\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\r\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\r\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that hope becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\r\n\r\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-revision-6','','','2012-01-16 06:56:54','2012-01-16 14:56:54','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4163,1,'2012-01-16 14:20:53','2012-01-16 22:20:53','We use the word <em>hope</em> so often that it can go by unnoticed.  We use it to talk about our sports teams: “I hope New England is headed for the Super Bowl” (Go, Pats!).  We use it to speak of the mundane: “I hope Mom’s making meat loaf for dinner.”  Sometimes, we even use it flippantly: “Well, I hope you’re happy now!”\r\n\r\n<em>Hope</em> is tossed out about our everyday challenges.  We hope for a job promotion, better health, good weather.  We hope that we succeed on exams, make that big sale, and hit the high notes.  In some sense, the concept permeates our day-to-day lives.\r\n\r\nWe hope in the abstract when we envision the bigger picture.  We have dreams we want to see fulfilled in some way.  We might hope for a better future or a meaningful existence or world peace or a cure for cancer.  We hope for desperate circumstances to turn around in our favor; that a loved one might come through surgery or that we would be healed of an illness.  We hope the missionary team we sent to Africa would return safely and that our children would be protected from harm.\r\n\r\nIn fact, the word leaves our lips so many times in a day or a week that it loses its potency.  The real question is, in what (or in whom) do we place our hope?\r\n\r\nIs our hope that the Universe at large will hear and respond?  Is it a throw-away, a generic thought that it would be nice if something went our way, a sort of wish?  Or is that hope grounded in the reality of Someone outside ourselves?\r\n\r\nHope is the desire for an outcome, the fruition of an internal longing.  But if our hope is misplaced, it won’t sustain us.  Nebulous hope, directed at no one, is transient.\r\n\r\nAs for me, I want my hope to reflect this:\r\n<blockquote>The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love. (Psalm 147:11, NIV).</blockquote>\r\nNot hope in what God may do: That God would help me succeed, solve a problem, or change a circumstance.  No, I want to put my hope in God’s <em>love</em>.  As I pondered what that means and how I could reflect it, I was reminded of Jesus’ own words:\r\n<blockquote>May your kingdom come.\r\nMay what you want to happen be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matthew 6:10, NIrV)</blockquote>\r\nThis hope in God’s love is the form of having God’s plans fulfilled right here on Earth.  We who call ourselves followers of Christ have a responsibility to<em> live</em> that hope, to act on our faith in such a way that hope becomes reality.  John Ortberg, author of <em>God Is Closer than You Think</em>, calls this “bringing Up There, down here.”  In the 2003 film <em>Bruce Almighty</em>, Bruce says to \"be the miracle.\"<em>  We</em> are the reflection of God’s love and the hope that accompanies it.\r\n\r\nMay 2012 be a year in which we <em>bring Up There, down here</em> and give hope to a troubled world.','A Hope that Lives','','inherit','open','open','','4106-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:20:53','2012-01-16 22:20:53','',4106,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4106-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4164,1,'2012-01-16 09:20:09','2012-01-16 17:20:09','“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nGrowing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.\r\n\r\nNot only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.\r\n\r\nOutwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.\r\n\r\nThen, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.\r\n\r\n<em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.\r\n\r\nEmpowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.\r\n\r\nIt hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.\r\n\r\n“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong>','Generations Come and Generations Go','','inherit','open','open','','4114-revision-7','','','2012-01-16 09:20:09','2012-01-16 17:20:09','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(4165,1,'2012-01-16 14:23:34','2012-01-16 22:23:34','<p>“<em>What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – </em><strong>Ecclesiastes 1:3-9 NIV</strong></p>\r\n<p>Growing up on a small family farm in Missouri, I had a pretty good childhood. It was calm, secure and I had plenty of fresh air and sunshine. I would have liked to have been able to see my friends more, especially in the summer, but such was life. It was predictable. Ultimately, that predictability was the biggest problem for me.</p>\r\n<p>Not only did I grow up on a farm, I was part of the fifth generation (along the paternal line) to do so. The sun rose, the sun set, life went on and on. Though the faces changed with births and deaths, and there were cosmetic changes to the land, there was fundamentally \"nothing new.\" Somewhere in my 11th or 12th year of life I realized that truth, independent of the Bible, and fell into a profound and sustained despair.</p>\r\n<p>Outwardly I don\'t know how many signs of melancholy were apparent, and from this distance in time it\'s impossible to say. The main symptom of my underlying problem was in my schoolwork. Rather, it was in my lack of academic progress. Where I\'d been an average student before, suddenly I was getting Ds and Fs. No drugs or alcohol were involved and nothing else was going on. I just didn\'t have a reason to live, because I suspected that nothing would ever change.</p>\r\n<p>Then, a year before I was to graduate high school, I found purpose and hope. I\'d been studying different religions and philosophies, anxious to discover any motivation that would pull me out of my funk. It had been going on for years at this point. Through the Bible, after long reflection and prayer, I identified with the reality of a God who can bring about true change.</p>\r\n<p><em>\"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham\'s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: \'I have made you a father of many nations.\' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.\"</em> - <strong>Romans 4:16-17 NIV</strong></p>\r\n<p>This is truly the God of hope…the God who raises the dead and creates <em>ex nihilo</em>. This is the God of the impossible, the God who brings change and hope.</p>\r\n<p>Empowered and energized by this newfound hope, I broke with five generations of life on the farm and six generations (on my mother\'s side) in the same church parish. Newness came into my life. I left the farm and found my way first to Brazil, and now work in New York. God has given me a beautiful wife, two great kids, a vibrant home church and a career in digital project management I never imagined. I have a theological degree and speak Portuguese. I\'ve begun volunteering through the<a href=\"http://www.facebook.com/pages/HOPE-worldwide-Central-Jersey-Chapter/193105680705182\"> Central Jersey Chapter of HOPE <em>worldwide</em></a> and look forward to eventually engaging in youth-focused, asset-based community development work.</p>\r\n<p>It hasn\'t all been fun or easy. There were dark days and a long “wilderness” period, but God has been faithful. His truth has broken me free of bondage to sin and to an unchanging cycle of history. Knowing this God of hope, revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Christ as the fulfillment of the promises given to Israel and the fulfiller of Israel’s vocation as light to the nations, gives me hope.</p>\r\n<p>“<em>Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” </em>- <strong>Hebrews 10:23 NIV</strong></p>\r\n','Generations Come and Generations Go','','inherit','open','open','','4114-autosave','','','2012-01-16 14:23:34','2012-01-16 22:23:34','',4114,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4114-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4166,1,'2012-01-16 14:13:58','2012-01-16 22:13:58','January is often a space to create new dreams and so we’re leaving the topic open and to your imagination. We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people. A Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\r\n\r\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/the-trouble-with-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble With Hope</a>: John Ptacek\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-possibility-x-imagination/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope = Possibility x Imagination</a>: Wayne Rumsby\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/little-reminders/\" target=\"_blank\">Little Reminders</a>: <a href=\"http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mike Victorino</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-for-hypocrites/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope for Hypocrites</a>: <a href=\"http://www.tillhecomes.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Jeremy Myers</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/now-these-three-remain/\" target=\"_blank\">Now These Three Remain</a>: <a href=\"http://www.lookthrough.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Sonny Lemmons</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-revision-5','','','2012-01-16 14:13:58','2012-01-16 22:13:58','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4042-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4167,1,'2012-01-16 09:23:33','2012-01-16 17:23:33','<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4122\" src=\"http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/hope-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"250\" /></a>\r\n<blockquote>You can live forty days without food, four days without water, four minutes without air, but not even four seconds without hope. – Anonymous</blockquote>\r\n<strong>Hope Described</strong>\r\n\r\nIt is laborious and depressing to try to muddle on when you feel hopeless. In my own precarious situation, I have noticed that the slightest development can ever so easily tip my emotional scales one way or the other. Yet, I believe hope is more than a half-hearted, wistful, emotional aspiration.\r\n\r\nHope is grounded in belief. For me, those beliefs include a loving God who was outlandish, unexpected, and extravagant in the way he loved through Jesus; and that love story is not over. As a matter of fact, I get to soak up his love and transfer it on to others right now; and if things fall apart, I am reminded that it is not the last chapter and I will never be abandoned by this loving God.\r\n\r\nHope is an attitude. Like the UHF dial on a 1970’s TV, it has to be constantly adjusted and carefully tuned in. A little change in weather and the signal gets fuzzy. It takes a constant adjustment process for our attitude to reflect our beliefs and not our emotions.\r\n\r\nHope is rooted in reality. Real hope has a real chance of really happening. Pie-in-the-sky hope is like a limp handshake; less than sincere. Hope needs a real object that we are focused on and consumed by.\r\n\r\nHope is very hard work. Staying hopeful is hard work, but laboring to make the hope a reality, will probably be your life’s work. Everybody has hopes and dreams, but most people die with them being unrealized. Perhaps, even more people die having pushed them out of their minds because they perceived them to be undoable or unrealistic. Honestly, it will take more tenacity and flexibility than you can currently imagine for your hopes to be realized.\r\n\r\n<strong>Hope Applied</strong>\r\n\r\nMy hope is fueled by anger and frustration. These are very legitimate reactions and powerful motivators. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nOur nation is locked in a polarized nightmare of paralysis with unsustainable debt, out of control healthcare costs, runaway unemployment rates, and decreasing world influence. The church is suffering from sexual scandals, shrinking memberships, a perceived loss of relevance, and the ironic reality that many people are unable to make the connection between it and Christ. Our educational system, based on a medieval model, is a prohibitively expensive, long-term commitment, unreasonable for many of today’s workers, and questionable in its effectiveness in preparing people for real jobs. Customer service has become a sadly inadequate, excessively automated, cost-saving, half-hearted, insincere attempt, which all too often, is totally frustrating. Social service in our nation is difficult to navigate, poorly coordinated, increasing hard to sustain, and locked into a client/provider paradigm that assaults the dignity of those who use it. We can and must do better. There is a global awakening that many of our societal institutions are simply no longer serving us well.\r\n\r\nMy hope to address our urgent need for boldness and creativity lies not with those in positions of power, but with those who can find no place or no longer desire a place in the power structures of our culture. I stand in solidarity with my brother and sister outsiders. I have an unshakable belief that many of these people who have been shut or who have opted of the power structures and conventions of our society are visionaries who will become entrepreneurs who will help the rest of us find our way. It was probably the trauma of finding themselves on the outside that forced them into their new desire to forget what they left behind and to dream about and fight for what could and should be.\r\n\r\nMy role is to encourage and equip them however I can. What keeps me going is seeing the need, knowing that this vision flows out of my true identity, and more than anything else, knowing that others believe in me and in this vision. These things reinforce my hope.\r\n\r\nI invite you to join me in becoming actively hopeful.\r\n<div></div>','Demystifying Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4115-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 09:23:33','2012-01-16 17:23:33','',4115,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4115-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4169,1,'2012-01-18 08:51:52','2012-01-18 16:51:52','<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\n\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\n\nHe says it’s time.\n\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\n\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\n\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\n\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\n\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\n\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\n\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\n\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\n\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\n\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\n\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\n\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\n\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\n\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\n\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\n\n[This post is part of the Synchroblog on Hope.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','God in the Dark: On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4145-autosave','','','2012-01-18 08:51:52','2012-01-18 16:51:52','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4145-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4170,1,'2012-01-16 14:37:53','2012-01-16 22:37:53','','red couch','','inherit','open','open','','red-couch','','','2012-01-16 14:37:53','2012-01-16 22:37:53','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/red-couch.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4172,1,'2012-01-16 14:09:19','2012-01-16 22:09:19','<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\r\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\r\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\r\n\r\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\r\n\r\nHe says it’s time.\r\n\r\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\r\n\r\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\r\n\r\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\r\n\r\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\r\n\r\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\r\n\r\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\r\n\r\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\r\n\r\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\r\n\r\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\r\n\r\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\r\n\r\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\r\n\r\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\r\n\r\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\r\n\r\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\r\n\r\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','God in the Dark: on hope','','inherit','open','open','','4145-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 14:09:19','2012-01-16 22:09:19','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4145-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4173,1,'2012-01-16 14:39:49','2012-01-16 22:39:49','<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”</em></p>\r\n<p align=\"center\"><em>-Proverbs 13:12</em></p>\r\nSometimes at night, after my husband is heavy with sleep, and the girls in their cribs are turned just so—Ariel on her side; Eva on her belly—I sit alone on the couch, in the dark, and wait for the waking presence of my God.\r\n\r\nHe is the revelatory God, the One who speaks to me holy secrets, who ushers me forward into territory I’ve dreamed about but have never entered.\r\n\r\nHe says it’s time.\r\n\r\nSometimes in the dark, while I’m on the couch, I tell Him the power is too much; His presence is overwhelming.\r\n\r\nHe reminds me of where I had been—mangled, lonely, beaten down, cast aside. He tells me I am no longer in the hands of men, but engraved upon the palm of the God who breathed forth the universe with a sigh of relief.\r\n\r\nIn Him all things move and breathe and have their being.\r\n\r\nStill I tremble. I tell Him if I let it all go to Him—everything I’ve lost; all that I’ve found—I may not be prepared for the hurt.\r\n\r\nWhile in a circle of women who lay hands on me and pray, who prophesy words from my God in the dark, they remind me that when I gave everything over to Him in 2010, the week before I learned my marriage may be over, it was God’s fullness in me that remained. Without it, I would have experienced the same circumstances, empty.\r\n\r\nGod asks us to give Him everything so when we have nothing left, we are still full.\r\n\r\nNow, in the dark, on nights when everyone but me is heavy with sleep, God appears and asks me to come with Him.\r\n\r\nI tell Him I’m afraid of my dreams coming true. I run through the dark into my bedroom and wrap my arms around my husband, the one whom God restored and returned. My husband opens his eyes and smiles. He kisses me as he journeys back into sleep, and I am left in the dark again, waiting with my God.\r\n\r\nMy circle of women reassure with bold gestures and wide smiles that God is waiting to fulfill something in me; He is not here to hurt me.\r\n\r\nMy wounds would have happened anyway, they say, but with God, they were overcome.\r\n\r\nMy fists no longer force closed before the throne of the living God.\r\n\r\nLate last night, with morning close on the horizon, I lay awake next to my husband who was heavy with sleep. I sat up with arms extended to a Heaven that no longer shrinks me.\r\n\r\n<em>Here I am, Lord. Send me.</em>\r\n\r\nInstead of the earthquake, the tearing of a veil that has already been removed, the peace of God rested upon me. It was heavy with meaning, with purpose that will come as I keep my hands lifted, as I walk beside my husband, as I carry my daughters, as I prophesy over circles of women.\r\n\r\nThere in the dark, in the quiet heavy of night, hope slumbered no more.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','God in the Dark: On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4145-revision-5','','','2012-01-16 14:39:49','2012-01-16 22:39:49','',4145,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4145-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4174,1,'2012-01-16 14:24:39','2012-01-16 22:24:39','January is often a space to create new dreams and so we’re leaving the topic open and to your imagination. We believe the power of voice has tremendous capacity to inspire and give hope to people. A Synchroblog is a collective response to a particular topic.  Everyone writes about the same issue and then links to each other’s post.\r\n\r\nBelow is a list of participant\'s and their posts:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/the-trouble-with-hope/\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble With Hope</a>: John Ptacek\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-possibility-x-imagination/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope = Possibility x Imagination</a>: Wayne Rumsby\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/little-reminders/\" target=\"_blank\">Little Reminders</a>: <a href=\"http://stillanightowl.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mike Victorino</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/hope-for-hypocrites/\" target=\"_blank\">Hope for Hypocrites</a>: <a href=\"http://www.tillhecomes.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Jeremy Myers</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/now-these-three-remain/\" target=\"_blank\">Now These Three Remain</a>: <a href=\"http://www.lookthrough.net/\" target=\"_blank\">Sonny Lemmons</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/perplexed-but-still-hopeful/\" target=\"_blank\">Perplexed, But Still Hopeful</a>: <a href=\"http://wordshalfheard.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Carol Kuniholm</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/a-hope-that-lives/\" target=\"_blank\">A Hope that Lives</a>: <a href=\"http://unchainedfaith.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Amy Mitchell</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/generations-come-and-generations-go/\" target=\"_blank\">Generations Come and Generations Go</a>: <a href=\"http://www.missionaljourneyman.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Adam Gonnerman</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Synchroblog On Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4042-revision-6','','','2012-01-16 14:24:39','2012-01-16 22:24:39','',4042,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4042-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(4537,0,'2012-01-23 15:42:13','2012-01-23 23:42:13','I primarily write about topics related to body theology (sexuality, community, media literacy, and service), but I also write about spirituality, mysticism, and prayer practices.\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Laura Cavanaugh\nAUTHOR EMAIL: lauraknowlescavanaugh@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://bodytheologyblog.wordpress.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 68.6.89.186\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Laura  Cavanaugh\n    [Email] =&gt; lauraknowlescavanaugh@gmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://bodytheologyblog.wordpress.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; I primarily write about topics related to body theology (sexuality, community, media literacy, and service), but I also write about spirituality, mysticism, and prayer practices.\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; lauraknowles\n)\n','Laura Cavanaugh - 2012-01-23 15:42:13','','publish','open','open','','5b877a90691c46852125927b720838e9','','','2012-01-23 15:42:13','2012-01-23 23:42:13','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4537',0,'feedback','',0),(4179,140,'2012-01-18 08:00:29','2012-01-18 16:00:29','Sometimes, ok, perhaps it’s <em>often</em>, I weary of the discipline it takes to stay faithful to the routines of tending life. I begin to skimp on the practices that nurture body, mind, soul and community. Fortunately, every now and then something wonderful comes along to enliven my efforts.\r\n\r\nMy husband and I met with friends for dinner a couple of nights ago. They are the type of friends with whom you always wish you could spend much more time. We enjoyed delicious food, wine, conversation, and heaping platefuls of hope. Interestingly, we had decided beforehand that we would discuss the end of the world. We were only half-joking. This idea was instigated by the distress of another mutual friend, a very wealthy man, over his fear of an impending world-wide economic collapse. He was ready to liquidate all his assets, pack up and move to South America. (I am not sure why South America would be better if the whole world was in trouble but there you have it.) One of our dinner mates is also in the financial world and well acquainted with the inner workings of the struggling economy. We looked forward to hearing what she might have to say.\r\n\r\nWe agreed that the mutual-friend-turned-conversation-starter is very bright and very rational man. This reaction seemed very out of character for him. But this sort of thinking is entrenched in our collective psyches and probably has been since the beginning of time. We are all afraid of what we cannot control. We are all afraid of loss. This fear is amplified through the lens of round the clock disaster movies and documentaries, and the Mayan, Nostradamus and Left Behind theories that all seek to interpret many world events in catastrophic terms. In response, there are survivalist websites selling packaged food and gear. Self-protective instincts run deep.\r\n\r\nOur conversation moved to <em>what if</em>? Specifically, if major calamity does strike, how do people of faith respond? How do we create safe space for ourselves and how do we care for our neighbors? How do we share meager supplies with those who have run out? How do we offer the hospitality of God?\r\n\r\nAnd, what would it be like? Would desperation finally push us to the faith that we have not grown into yet? You know, the kind of faith that feeds 5,000 from a few loaves and fishes, the faith that heals sickness and that finds the coins we need in the mouths of fish? We had no answers. These probably weren’t our real questions anyway. We have not been asked to live this way, not yet.\r\n\r\nIt was in this context that one friend brought up the idea of spiritual eldering. Spiritual elders are the folks who have been around a while. They have seen suffering and they have seen great beauty. They have seen heart-breaking betrayals, and they have seen love and sacrifice like that of Christ himself. They have seen faith fail and they have seen grace overflow. These are the ones who have “set their faces towards Jerusalem”, that is, they have set out <em>finally</em> on the journey that is Christ’s. They have seen Kingdom and can do nothing else but live in a way that brings it forth. They have let go of what brings only fleeting hope here on earth. They have learned what is truly important.\r\n\r\nAnd there we were, the four of us, each moving into our sixth decade on earth. We recognized that we are entering the elder stage. And of course, none of us felt ready or adequate. My friend then asked, “So, when will we be old enough to give it all away?” It became apparent that while we are not old enough yet, our shared conviction was to move in that direction together as community. This is never a journey that we need walk alone. In that realization, we felt the growing potential, desire, and <em>joy</em> of the possibilities held between us.\r\n\r\nTherein lies the hope. We were sitting in communion with friends who hope for Kingdom. Their hearts were for the left behind, the people in need. They were not thinking about preparing for disasters as much as much as learning to be good shepherds. They were concerned about growing into the people we would each need to become in order to bring forth the equities and the sweet, inclusive s<em>halom</em> of Kingdom life, no matter what happens. We all felt caught up in a quiet thrill at the thought of this communal dream. And just for once, the cost didn’t seem to obscure the prize.\r\n\r\nNone of this stuff would be surprising to my dear mentor nun, Sr. Marilyn. She is a spiritual elder in the truest sense of those words and she is helping to grow us up. She once told me a story of a priest whose South American monastery faced apocalypse when it was invaded by gunmen. The humble priest greeted them with open arms. They shot him. “It was the practices,” said Sister, “that prepared his heart to meet them that way.” Indeed, it was the practices that prepared him for anything.\r\n\r\nRichard Rohr notes that in our younger days, we typically use the type of prayer posture that we feel will help to build our careers, fill our coffers, and create a life. As we move towards eldering, we need the kind of prayer practices that help us to let it all go. We need what will bring us to the place where being emptied enough to truly open ourselves to the reality and need of the other, becomes as compelling a desire as any other we have known here. Then, instead of grasping and protecting what is ours, we can begin to walk this earth with arms held open wide.\r\n\r\nHow do we get there? “Do the practices,” says Sr. Marilyn. “The practices will get you ready.” And the hope birthed by good friends does, too.\r\n\r\n[The practices she refers to include regular engagement with faith community, Centering Prayer, Lectio Divina, the daily Examen and others.]\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Hope Is Held Between Us','','publish','open','open','','hope-is-held-between-us','','','2012-01-18 09:03:58','2012-01-18 17:03:58','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4179',0,'post','',1),(4180,140,'2012-01-16 15:11:52','2012-01-16 23:11:52','','Hope is Held Between Us','','inherit','open','open','','4179-revision','','','2012-01-16 15:11:52','2012-01-16 23:11:52','',4179,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4179-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(4185,140,'2012-01-16 16:07:12','2012-01-17 00:07:12','Sometimes, ok, perhaps it’s <em>often</em>, I weary of the discipline it takes to stay faithful to the routines of tending life. I begin to skimp on the practices that nurture body, mind, soul and community. Fortunately, sometimes something wonderful breaks into it all to enliven my steps.\n\nMy husband and I met with friends for dinner a couple of nights ago. Our dinner companions are the type of friends with whom you always wish you could spend much more time. Along with the delicious food and wine and conversation, we were each served heaping platefuls of hope. Before getting together we decided that we would discuss the end of the world. We were only half joking. This idea was instigated by the distress of another mutual friend, a very wealthy man, over his fear of an impending world wide economic collapse. He was ready to liquidate all his assets, pack up and move to South America. (I am not sure why South America would be better if the whole world was in trouble but there you have it.) One of our dinner mates is also in the financial world and well acquainted with the inner workings of the struggling economy. We looked forward to hearing what she might have to say.\n\nWe agreed that the mutual-friend-turned-conversation-starter is very bright and very rational man. This reaction seemed very out of character for him. But this sort of thinking is entrenched in our collective psyches and probably has been since the beginning of time. We are all afraid of what we cannot control. We are all afraid of loss. This fear is amplified through the lens of round the clock disaster movies and documentaries, and the Mayan, Nostradamus and Left Behind theories that all seek to interpret the circumstances around us in catastrophic terms. In response, there are survivalist websites selling packaged food and gear. Self-protective instincts run deep.\n\nOur conversation moved to <em>what if</em>? Specifically, if major calamity does strike, how does the church respond? How do we create safe space for ourselves and how do we care for our neighbors? How do we share meager supplies with those who have run out? How do we offer the hospitality of God?\n\nAnd, what would it be like? Would desperation finally push us to the faith that we have not grown into yet? You know, the kind of faith that feeds 5,000 from a few loaves and fishes, the faith that heals sickness and that finds the coins we need in the mouths of fish? We had no answers. These probably weren’t our real questions. We have not been asked to live this way, not yet.\n\nIt was in this context that one friend brought up the idea of spiritual eldering. Spiritual elders are the folks who have been around a while. They have seen suffering and they have seen great beauty. They have seen heart-breaking betrayals, and they have seen love and sacrifice not unlike that of Christ himself. They have seen faith fail and they have seen grace overflow. These are the ones who have “set their faces towards Jerusalem”, that is, they have set out <em>finally</em> on the journey that is Christ’s. They have seen Kingdom and can do nothing else but live in a way that brings it forth. They have let go of what brings only fleeting hope here on earth. They have learned what is truly important.\n\nAnd there we were, the four of us, each moving into our sixth decade on earth. We recognized that we are entering the elder stage. And of course, none of us are ready or adequate. My friend then asked, “When will we be old enough to give it all away?” We recognized that while we are not old enough yet, our shared conviction was to move in that direction together as community. This is never a journey that we need walk alone. In that realization, we felt the growing potential, desire, and <em>joy</em> of the possibilities held between us.\n\nTherein lies the hope. We were sitting in communion with friends who think Kingdom. Their hearts are for the left behind, the people in need. They are not thinking about preparing for disasters as much as much as learning to be good shepherds. They are concerned about growing into the people we would each need to become in order to bring forth the equities and the sweet, inclusive s<em>halom</em> of Kingdom life, no matter what happens. We all felt a quiet thrill at the thought of this communal dream. And just for once, the cost didn’t seem to obscure the prize.\n\nNone of this stuff would be surprising to my dear mentor nun, Sr. Marilyn. She is a spiritual elder in the truest sense of those words and she is helping to grow us up. She once told me a story of a priest whose South American monastery faced apocalypse when it was invaded by gunmen. The humble priest greeted them with open arms. They shot him. “It was the practices,” said Sister, “that prepared his heart to meet them that way.” Indeed, it was the practices that prepared him for anything.\n\nRichard Rohr notes that in our younger days, we typically use the type of prayer posture that we feel will help to build our careers, fill our coffers, and create a life. As we move towards eldering, we need the kind of prayer practices that help us to let it all go. We need what will bring us to the place where being emptied enough to truly open ourselves to the need of the other starts to become as compelling a desire as any other we have known here. Then, instead of grasping and protecting what is ours, we begin to walk this earth with arms held open wide.\n\nHow do we get there? “Do the practices,” says Sr. Marilyn. “The practices will get you ready.” And so I do.\n\n[The practices she refers to include regular engagement with faith community, Centering Prayer, Lectio Divinia, the daily Examen and others.]','Hope is Held Between Us','','inherit','open','open','','4179-revision-3','','','2012-01-16 16:07:12','2012-01-17 00:07:12','',4179,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4179-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(4181,0,'2012-01-16 15:34:22','2012-01-16 23:34:22','Faith and Justice, missional church, community development, theology\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Wendy McCaig\nAUTHOR EMAIL: wendy@embracerichmond.org\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.wendymccaig.com\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 96.228.44.131\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Wendy McCaig\n    [Email] =&gt; wendy@embracerichmond.org\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; www.wendymccaig.com\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; Faith and Justice, missional church, community development, theology\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; wmccaig\n)\n','Wendy McCaig - 2012-01-16 15:34:22','','publish','open','open','','a97b3ff5c4ce8fabecac40d8ef20b5f4','','','2012-01-16 15:34:22','2012-01-16 23:34:22','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4181',0,'feedback','',0),(4182,0,'2012-01-16 15:57:51','2012-01-16 23:57:51','hope\n<!--more-->\nAUTHOR: Maurice Broaddus\nAUTHOR EMAIL: mauricebroaddus@gmail.com\nAUTHOR URL: http://www.mauricebroaddus.com/\nSUBJECT: Provoketive Magazine Writing For Provoketive\nIP: 99.177.116.45\nArray\n(\n    [Name] =&gt; Maurice Broaddus\n    [Email] =&gt; mauricebroaddus@gmail.com\n    [Existing Blog or Website] =&gt; http://www.mauricebroaddus.com/\n    [List the topic you are interested writing about] =&gt; hope\n    [Current or New WordPress Login Name (We\'ll send you a password.)] =&gt; Maurice Broaddus\n)\n','Maurice Broaddus - 2012-01-16 15:57:51','','publish','open','open','','fe8373704b3915ea7195db5b943ba6ef','','','2012-01-16 15:57:51','2012-01-16 23:57:51','',358,'http://provoketive.com/?post_type=feedback&p=4182',0,'feedback','',0),(4186,140,'2012-01-16 16:26:51','2012-01-17 00:26:51','Sometimes, ok, perhaps it’s <em>often</em>, I weary of the discipline it takes to stay faithful to the routines of tending life. I begin to skimp on the practices that nurture body, mind, soul and community. Fortunately, sometimes something wonderful breaks into it all to enliven my efforts.\n\nMy husband and I met with friends for dinner a couple of nights ago. Our dinner companions are the type of friends with whom you always wish you could spend much more time. Along with the delicious food and wine and conversation, we were each served heaping platefuls of hope. Before getting together we decided that we would discuss the end of the world. We were only half-joking. This idea was instigated by the distress of another mutual friend, a very wealthy man, over his fear of an impending world-wide economic collapse. He was ready to liquidate all his assets, pack up and move to South America. (I am not sure why South America would be better if the whole world was in trouble but there you have it.) One of our dinner mates is also in the financial world and well acquainted with the inner workings of the struggling economy. We looked forward to hearing what she might have to say.\n\nWe agreed that the mutual-friend-turned-conversation-starter is very bright and very rational man. This reaction seemed very out of character for him. But this sort of thinking is entrenched in our collective psyches and probably has been since the beginning of time. We are all afraid of what we cannot control. We are all afraid of loss. This fear is amplified through the lens of round the clock disaster movies and documentaries, and the Mayan, Nostradamus and Left Behind theories that all seek to interpret the circumstances around us in catastrophic terms. In response, there are survivalist websites selling packaged food and gear. Self-protective instincts run deep.\n\nOur conversation moved to <em>what if</em>? Specifically, if major calamity does strike, how does the church respond? How do we create safe space for ourselves and how do we care for our neighbors? How do we share meager supplies with those who have run out? How do we offer the hospitality of God?\n\nAnd, what would it be like? Would desperation finally push us to the faith that we have not grown into yet? You know, the kind of faith that feeds 5,000 from a few loaves and fishes, the faith that heals sickness and that finds the coins we need in the mouths of fish? We had no answers. These probably weren’t our real questions. We have not been asked to live this way, not yet.\n\nIt was in this context that one friend brought up the idea of spiritual eldering. Spiritual elders are the folks who have been around a while. They have seen suffering and they have seen great beauty. They have seen heart-breaking betrayals, and they have seen love and sacrifice like that of Christ himself. They have seen faith fail and they have seen grace overflow. These are the ones who have “set their faces towards Jerusalem”, that is, they have set out <em>finally</em> on the journey that is Christ’s. They have seen Kingdom and can do nothing else but live in a way that brings it forth. They have let go of what brings only fleeting hope here on earth. They have learned what is truly important.\n\nAnd there we were, the four of us, each moving into our sixth decade on earth. We recognized that we are entering the elder stage. And of course, none of us are ready or adequate. My friend then asked, “When will we be old enough to give it all away?” We recognized that while we are not old enough yet, our shared conviction was to move in that direction together as community. This is never a journey that we need walk alone. In that realization, we felt the growing potential, desire, and <em>joy</em> of the possibilities held between us.\n\nTherein lies the hope. We were sitting in communion with friends who think Kingdom. Their hearts are for the left behind, the people in need. They are not thinking about preparing for disasters as much as much as learning to be good shepherds. They are concerned about growing into the people we would each need to become in order to bring forth the equities and the sweet, inclusive s<em>halom</em> of Kingdom life, no matter what happens. We all felt a quiet thrill at the thought of this communal dream. And just for once, the cost didn’t seem to obscure the prize.\n\nNone of this stuff would be surprising to my dear mentor nun, Sr. Marilyn. She is a spiritual elder in the truest sense of those words and she is helping to grow us up. She once told me a story of a priest whose South American monastery faced apocalypse when it was invaded by gunmen. The humble priest greeted them with open arms. They shot him. “It was the practices,” said Sister, “that prepared his heart to meet them that way.” Indeed, it was the practices that prepared him for anything.\n\nRichard Rohr notes that in our younger days, we typically use the type of prayer posture that we feel will help to build our careers, fill our coffers, and create a life. As we move towards eldering, we need the kind of prayer practices that help us to let it all go. We need what will bring us to the place where being emptied enough to truly open ourselves to the reality and need of the other becomes as compelling a desire as any other we have known here. Then, instead of grasping and protecting what is ours, we begin to walk this earth with arms held open wide.\n\nHow do we get there? “Do the practices,” says Sr. Marilyn. “The practices will get you ready.” And so I do.\n\n[The practices she refers to include regular engagement with faith community, Centering Prayer, Lectio Divinia, the daily Examen and others.]','Hope is Held Between Us','','inherit','open','open','','4179-revision-4','','','2012-01-16 16:26:51','2012-01-17 00:26:51','',4179,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4179-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(4187,148,'2012-01-18 08:00:13','2012-01-18 16:00:13','<blockquote><em><a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Maurice-HOPE.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3573\" src=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Maurice-HOPE-197x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"197\" height=\"300\" align=\"right\" /></a>Maurice woke up from yet another night of nightmares, his pillow once again soaked with sweat as he waited for the images to fade into dim memory.  Checking the time, it was only 7:40 a.m. and once again, there were no messages for him.  So once again, he laid in bed and let the feeling of helplessness and rejection wash over him.  He liked to give it full reign for about a half hour before he pulled together the will to once again face another day.</em>\r\n\r\n<em>With something approximating optimism, he got dressed.  He couldn’t muster the energy to go through the complete ritual of shaving and showering, because in his heart when he believed no one wanted him, he didn’t bother.  But he had his plan and he planned on working it.  Searching for a job meant treating the act itself like a job.  So he otherwise prepared himself, went through the rest of his getting-ready-for-work ritual and prepared to face his day.</em>\r\n\r\n<em>Most days it was hard enough pulling himself out of bed rather than giving into the depression which always threatened to suck him into its waiting embrace.  The family’s anxiety level rose, conflating with his own.  The thing about anxiety was the toxic cloud it created, leaking into the fabric of everyday life like a creeping entropy.   So each morning begins by answering the questions “what’s the point?” and “where is the hope?”</em></blockquote>\r\nI lost my job in December of 2009.  I’ve done odd jobs here and there from <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=2626\">freelance writing</a> to <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=3089\">substitute teaching</a>, but I haven’t had anything steady in over two years.   Prolonged unemployment can do strange things to your sense of self-worth.  You start listening to all of the voices that run around in the back of your head about how no one wants you or you’re not good for anything.  After a while you have to come up with good reasons to even get up because you begin to lose hope.   Hope is one of those ephemeral things, intertwined with faith and just as fragile.  Some days it flares like the sun and others I have to turn off all the lights so that I can catch a glimpse of the embers.  So each day I get to remind myself  of all of the reasons I have to keep getting up:\r\n\r\n-A beautiful wife who even after eleven years loves me better than I do myself.\r\n\r\n-Two knucklehead boys who seem to have their own R&amp;D department committed to finding new ways to get into mischief, who also depend on me.\r\n\r\n-Some of the best friends a man could ask for.\r\n\r\n-Good health.\r\n\r\n-And a continued sense of hope.\r\n\r\nSometimes the dark circumstances are the exact times that God uses to transform us.  We feel that God is not at work, that He has abandoned us, and it is the belief that all of our cries are going unanswered that causes us the greatest pain. We need encouragement to endure this time.  Look, true faith is not without hardships, nor is it all that pragmatic. So when problems arise, there are no pat answers. There are no steps. It sucks. We have to hold on and endure it. These times of crisis will either break us and cause us to abandon God or break us down and draw us nearer to Him.\r\n\r\nA lot of times we place our love and faith in the wrong things (or good things that aren’t the best things), confusing our spiritual ideas with some distorted ideas of God. Sometimes it takes a loss of control to remind us, to re-shape us. Hopefully we will figure out what’s really important about our faith and walk, and be led to deeper faith.\r\n\r\nThe key is to be vulnerable, but still believe in my darkest moments of unbelief.  I need to remember to go before God without pretending. Be broken, empty, terrified. Be honest with my pain, rather than put it behind me. Relief comes through honest dialogue. The more doubt expresses itself, the more it is allowed to be exposed, the easier it can be dealt with. Rather than keeping it inside, eating away at me like cancer.  God is sitting shiv’ah with us during our dark nights of the soul. Grieving with us. Restoring us. In that we need to have, and can find, hope.\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 12.75pt; background: white;\">My hope is that <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=954\">God is not through with me yet</a> and that I still have not only gifts but also a job to do.  Even without full-time employment, I still have worth and can join in God’s missing to reconcile people to one another and to Him.  To continue to make this world a better place.  The story we find ourselves in shouldn\'t be reduced to we sin and God forgives, but that we’re children of God’s, co-heirs with Jesus, called to a life of joy. We are to make His life our own, transforming us, sometimes through the refining fire of pain, to look like Him, as children come to resemble their parents.  My hope is in that story.  My hope is in the story of redemption available for each and every one of us.  And that in recognizing our mutual need for redemption, we view one another with mercy and a measure of grace.</p>\r\nThe story of my faith is a hope that life, with it pains and joys, laughter and tears, matters.  Hope that relationships are eternal and reconciliation is possible.  Hope that we are significant and matter.  Hope that we are known, all of our good, all of our bad, through what we’ve done and for what we could be.  Hope that we are loved, as we are for who we are.  And all of that give me hope to get up in the morning, face another day, and dream anew of what could be.\r\n\r\n[This post is part of the <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">Synchroblog on Hope</a>.  For a full list of participants and posts, <a href=\"http://provoketive.com/2012/01/18/synchroblog-on-hope/\">go here</a>.]','Keeping Hope Alive','','publish','open','open','','keeping-hope-alive','','\nhttp://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=2626','2012-01-18 09:12:33','2012-01-18 17:12:33','',0,'http://provoketive.com/?p=4187',0,'post','',1),(4239,1,'2012-01-17 08:13:43','2012-01-17 16:13:43','<p>A few weeks ago I posted this prayer on <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/pages/Light-for-the-Journey/143510882359774\">Facebook:</a></p>\r\n<blockquote><p>‎”Jesus may we see in you the ways of life,<br />\r\nMay we love justice, show mercy, practice generosity,<br />\r\nAnd love our neighbours as we do ourselves.”</p></blockquote>\r\n<p>Someone called these lofty but admirable goals.  On a similar post several months ago someone else called it admirable idealism and another commented – impossible.  What kind of hope fills our lives How sad when God\'s hope for a world made new are viewed in this way.</p>\r\n<p>Love of neighbour, generosity, mercy and justice are at the heart of the gospel and the backbone of the commands that Jesus invites us to live by.  They are the fabric that is meant to shape our lives. At least that is what we tell people or pretend to believe, but underneath do we really think that they are unattainable idealism? Have we lost hope in what God plans to accomplish?</p>\r\n<p>How we live is driven by who we are and what we believe.  Asking people to love their neighbours and forgive their enemies is pointless unless we first enable them to confront their inner disbelief in the attainability of these goals.  Sure we will never love our neighbours as well as we should and forgiving enemies can be very, very hard but if don’t believe it is possible we will never move an inch towards this seemingly unattainable goal.</p>\r\n<p>One of my great role models in this struggle is the apostle John His story is one of the greatest stories of hope in the Bible. We first meet in Mark 3:17 as one of the Sons of Thunder.  I suspect he must have had a pretty fiery temper to be given that name. By the end of the New Testament he known as the Apostle of love.</p>\r\n<p>What an incredible transformation of heart, spirit and life that must have taken place.  And I don’t think that it is surprising that we also hear him called “the disciple that Jesus loved” (John 21: 20).  The closer we walk with Jesus, the more intimately we enter into the love of his presence, the more possibility we have of being transformed and the more possibility we have of loving justice, showing mercy, practicing generosity and loving our neighbours as we do ourselves.</p>\r\n<p>So what do you think?  Is the hope we have in Jesus message attainable idealism or is it a powerful vision of hope and promise for a world transformed and a people reborn?</p>\r\n','Are We Afraid to Hope? ','','inherit','open','open','','4196-autosave','','','2012-01-17 08:13:43','2012-01-17 16:13:43','',4196,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/17/4196-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(4191,1,'2012-01-16 16:40:19','2012-01-17 00:40:19','','prison hope','','inherit','open','open','','prison-hope','','','2012-01-16 16:40:19','2012-01-17 00:40:19','',4046,'http://provoketive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/prison-hope.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(4192,1,'2012-01-16 16:37:13','2012-01-17 00:37:13','A friend of mine recently asked me, \"Why are you so confident in your conclusions?\" The question caught my attention and caused me to ask some very deep questions about where is my hope.  I don\'t spend a lot of time trying to prove anything anymore, and yet he was still seeing me as firm in my convictions.\n\nOver the last fifteen years, I\'ve spent a great deal of time listening deeply to my own faith and the process that goes into it. I wrote a <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-God-Imagination-Reconstructing-Christianity/dp/1453650741\" target=\"_blank\">book</a> about my conclusions and then spent the last several years allowing my own conclusions to be put to the blender.  Would it blend?  I taken on my own historical understanding of the Christian faith and found it wanting.  But instead of abandoning it, I sought to redeem it.  And after publishing it, I felt like I had...at least for me.  And that was enough.  I had discovered the relentless nature of love and grace, and just when I though I had found the end, God blew up my box.\n\nBut when my friend asked me the question, I had to step back once again and ask, \"Where is my hope?\"  Was it in my own conclusions?  Had I constructed a new box in which to live in, one that would imprison me in an unreasonable certainty and potential blindness?  Had I rebuilt the very same thing I had attempted to tear down.  Gone were the deep caffeine laden conversations that lasted four hours long.\n\nAt the core of my faith was the idea that there was nothing we had done or could ever do to lose the love of God.  But we could lose site of the love of God.  The problem of original sin was that as human beings, we could lose site of God\'s original judgment of humanity (<a href=\"http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=gen%201:31&amp;version=NIV\" target=\"_blank\">Gen 1:31</a>). We could construct a <em>false</em> conclusion that we could do something that could change God, and thus God\'s judgment.  And in losing site of that judgment, we\'re getting it wrong (sinning). The problem was then not in God, but in us.  The cross was God saying, \"This is how far I will go to show you that you are loved.\"\n\nI spent several days pondering the question, asking myself, \"What if I\'m wrong?  What if my understanding of the Christian faith was wrong?\"  I had offered conclusions that were counter to my own historical, evangelical perspective of faith.  If I stood before Jesus, what would I say?\n\nAnd then it hit me once again, that my hope was not in my constructed understanding of the Gospel, one that I felt was both logical, restorative and consistent with Scripture. My faith was then not in my faith.  It was in Jesus to be my faith for me.  My hope was in the love of God to judge for me.','Where Is My Hope','','inherit','open','open','','4046-revision-5','','','2012-01-16 16:37:13','2012-01-17 00:37:13','',4046,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4046-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(4188,148,'2012-01-16 16:28:50','2012-01-17 00:28:50','<blockquote><em><a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Maurice-HOPE.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3573\" src=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Maurice-HOPE-197x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"197\" height=\"300\" align=\"right\" /></a>Maurice woke up from yet another night of nightmares, his pillow once again soaked with sweat as he waited for the images to fade into dim memory.  Checking the time, it was only 7:40 a.m. and once again, there were no messages for him.  So once again, he laid in bed and let the feeling of helplessness and rejection wash over him.  He liked to give it full reign for about a half hour before he pulled together the will to once again face another day.</em>\n\n<em>With something approximating optimism, he got dressed.  He couldn’t muster the energy to go through the complete ritual of shaving and showering, because in his heart when he believed no one wanted him, he didn’t bother.  But he had his plan and he planned on working it.  Searching for a job meant treating the act itself like a job.  So he otherwise prepared himself, went through the rest of his getting-ready-for-work ritual and prepared to face his day.</em>\n\n<em>Most days it was hard enough pulling himself out of bed rather than giving into the depression which always threatened to suck him into its waiting embrace.  The family’s anxiety level rose, conflating with his own.  The thing about anxiety was the toxic cloud it created, leaking into the fabric of everyday life like a creeping entropy.   So each morning begins by answering the questions “what’s the point?” and “where is the hope?”</em></blockquote>\nI lost my job in December of 2009.  I’ve done odd jobs here and there from <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=2626\">freelance writing</a> to <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=3089\">substitute teaching</a>, but I haven’t had anything steady in over two years.   Prolonged unemployment can do strange things to your sense of self-worth.  You start listening to all of the voices that run around in the back of your head about how no one wants you or you’re not good for anything.  After a while you have to come up with good reasons to even get up because you begin to lose hope.   Hope is one of those ephemeral things, intertwined with faith and just as fragile.  Some days it flares like the sun and others I have to turn off all the lights so that I can catch a glimpse of the embers.  So each day I get to remind myself  of all of the reasons I have to keep getting up:\n\n-A beautiful wife who even after eleven years loves me better than I do myself.\n\n-Two knucklehead boys who seem to have their own R&amp;D department committed to finding new ways to get into mischief, who also depend on me.\n\n-Some of the best friends a man could ask for.\n\n-Good health.\n\n-And a continued sense of hope.\n<div>Sometimes the dark circumstances are the exact times that God uses to transform us.  We feel that God is not at work, that He has abandoned us, and it is the belief that all of our cries are going unanswered that causes us the greatest pain. We need encouragement to endure this time.  Look, true faith is not without hardships, nor is it all that pragmatic. So when problems arise, there are no pat answers. There are no steps. It sucks. We have to hold on and endure it. These times of crisis will either break us and cause us to abandon God or break us down and draw us nearer to Him.</div>\n<div>A lot of times we place our love and faith in the wrong things (or good things that aren’t the best things), confusing our spiritual ideas with some distorted ideas of God. Sometimes it takes a loss of control to remind us, to re-shape us. Hopefully we will figure out what’s really important about our faith and walk, and be led to deeper faith.</div>\n<div>The key is to be vulnerable, but still believe in my darkest moments of unbelief.  I need to remember to go before God without pretending. Be broken, empty, terrified. Be honest with my pain, rather than put it behind me. Relief comes through honest dialogue. The more doubt expresses itself, the more it is allowed to be exposed, the easier it can be dealt with. Rather than keeping it inside, eating away at me like cancer.</div>\n<div>God is sitting shiv’ah with us during our dark nights of the soul. Grieving with us. Restoring us. In that we need to have, and can find, hope.</div>\nSometimes the dark circumstances are the exact times that God uses to transform us.  We feel that God is not at work, that He has abandoned us, and it is the belief that all of our cries are going unanswered that causes us the greatest pain. We need encouragement to endure this time.  Look, true faith is not without hardships, nor is it all that pragmatic. So when problems arise, there are no pat answers. There are no steps. It sucks. We have to hold on and endure it. These times of crisis will either break us and cause us to abandon God or break us down and draw us nearer to Him. A lot of times we place our love and faith in the wrong things (or good things that aren’t the best things), confusing our spiritual ideas with some distorted ideas of God. Sometimes it takes a loss of control to remind us, to re-shape us. Hopefully we will figure out what’s really important about our faith and walk, and be led to deeper faith.The key is to be vulnerable, but still believe in my darkest moments of unbelief.  I need to remember to go before God without pretending. Be broken, empty, terrified. Be honest with my pain, rather than put it behind me. Relief comes through honest dialogue. The more doubt expresses itself, the more it is allowed to be exposed, the easier it can be dealt with. Rather than keeping it inside, eating away at me like cancer. God is sitting shiv’ah with us during our dark nights of the soul. Grieving with us. Restoring us. In that we need to have, and can find, hope.\n\nMy hope is that <a href=\"http://mauricebroaddus.com/?p=954\">God is not through with me yet</a> and that I still have not only gifts but also a job to do.  Even without full-time employment, I still have worth and can join in God’s missing to reconcile people to one another and to Him.  To continue to make this world a better place.  The story we find ourselves in shouldn\'t be reduced to we sin and God forgives, but that we’re children of God’s, co-heirs with Jesus, called to a life of joy. We are to make His life our own, transforming us, sometimes through the refining fire of pain, to look like Him, as children come to resemble their parents.  My hope is in that story.  My hope is in the story of redemption available for each and every one of us.  And that in recognizing our mutual need for redemption, we view one another with mercy and a measure of grace.\n\nThe story of my faith is a hope that life, with it pains and joys, laughter and tears, matters.  Hope that relationships are eternal and reconciliation is possible.  Hope that we are significant and matter.  Hope that we are known, all of our good, all of our bad, through what we’ve done and for what we could be.  Hope that we are loved, as we are for who we are.  And all of that give me hope to get up in the morning, face another day, and dream anew of what could be.','Keeping Hope Alive','','inherit','open','open','','4187-revision','','','2012-01-16 16:28:50','2012-01-17 00:28:50','',4187,'http://provoketive.com/2012/01/16/4187-revision/',0,'revision','',0),