Christian Challenge Pueblo

Jesus and the Dark Knight

2009-01-19T08:43:00.003-07:00

Though completely and appropriately dark, The Dark Knight is one of the best examples of the message of Christianity. For those who have not seen it be warned that there are some spoilers in here.

The story picks up one year after Batman Begins concludes. The cops are still unable to do much but with Batman's assistance the criminals are generally too scared to do much of anything. The mobs have, out of desperation, taken a new criminal named the Joker up on his offer to kill Batman, played by Christian Bail. The Joker, played brilliantly by Heath Ledger, is not just a criminal but evil without limit. The limitless boundaries are displayed throughout the movie and are exaggerated one by the restraint and limitations that Batman holds to. While interrogating the Joker, Batman states that he only has one rule which the Joker tells him will have to be broken in order to find the truth. Apart from Batman, the Joker has been able to turn everyone that he talks with - including the new DA Harvey Dent.

Harvey Dent, played by Aaron Eckhart, has taken a public stand for what Batman has done in the shadows. Though this makes the two of them allies they never seem to become friends. This lacking friendship is seen when Dent's fiancee, Rachel, is killed by the Joker and used as a means to bring Dent over to the side of chaos. Dents lust for revenge, which he calls justice and chance, turns him into a killer and criminal same as the Joker. As Dent tries to kill Gordon's son Batman and him fall to an apparent death for Dent (I say apparent because you should not kill off Two-Face after only forty minutes of screen time - look for him to come back in a future movie).

To see where the message of Jesus fits in this story we have to see how the movie concludes. Gordon explains that what Dent has done cannot be ignored and that his reputation with the public is lost and any good he may have done will be undone. Batman tells Gordon that he will take the blame for the bad so that Dent will be remembered for the good that he accomplished and will not have a damaged reputation. Then the police start to chase Batman because he has taken the blame and not deserves the punishment. As the city's guardian to be what it needs, he has become the Dark Knight.

This is where the explanation of Christianity comes in. Mankind, through the prompting of Satan, started to seek equality only to find that he took his life out of God's hands. In doing so he became the same as Satan, equal in punishment and guilt. Jesus came to the earth not to judge the world but that we might be saved through it (John 3:17). Though we deserve to be seen guilty before God, Jesus took our wrong when He was innocent and died on the cross for our sins. Now, for those who believe in Christ as their savior, God will look at us through the lens of Jesus to only see the good rather than our faults. The funeral at the end of the movie showed Dent for all his good and never mentions the things which Batman took upon himself.

Invite your friends over and watch this movie. Afterwards,if they do not know Christ, then ask them what they think about someone who would be willing to take the punishment for someone else's mistakes. As crazy and Hollywood as that sounds, that is exactly what Jesus did for you and for me. Through that act of selflessness we can stand before God, but only if we believe and accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away – look, what is new has come! And all these things are from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:17-18, NET Bible)

Keeping Old Notes

2008-10-24T15:07:00.002-06:00

My wife, Terra, and I go a few rounds about once a year about what stuff do we keep and what do we give (or throw) away. This is always hard for me since I was raised by parents who were pack rats - though of different varieties. My mom keeps everything regardless of importance or size, I'm sure she has every birthday card ever sent her! I still love her but the smaller her house the more noticeable it is. My dad, on the other hand, is a pack rat but of things that have potential monetary value to someone in the future. He keeps old advertising, furniture, and whatever catches his eye. The difference is that he owns and lives in a three-story warehouse so you never notice how much he has until you start to actually wonder what will happen when he thinks about downsizing to a normal house, say something under 5,000 sq/ft.

All these thoughts came over me today as I was doing some research on spiritual gifts. When I was in college the at the time new pastor, Al Areheart, at my church, 12th Avenue Baptist Church, gave a several week sermon series on spiritual gifts with a test at the end to determine where your gifts may lie. The small group I teach at my current church is interested in spiritual gifts so as I was preparing for this new assignment I found that we had a folder labeled, "Spiritual Gifts" in our file cabinet. Inside was one thing, my test and some notes from February 1995! This brought back many memories of what I learned, the questions I had since I had been a Christian for less than 2 years, and how much I enjoyed the direction that this gave me in how to be a better part of the church.

Taking notes at church, conferences, and even Bible studies can really make a difference. We may not be tested like we are in college over the material that is covered but reminding yourself of why you took a position, what your thoughts or questions you had at that time, and then reviewing to see where you have grown since this can be a great encouragement. These and many other notes have meant more to me than so many things that I could have kept through college, a couple of moves, grad school, marriage, selling a house, and finally moving to Colorado.

Not every bulliten needs to be kept but the notes that really struck home should be. Which notes will those be? Take notes all the time and eventually you'll know and throw the rest out.

Discipline without direction is drudgery

2008-08-13T09:21:00.003-06:00

This is the opening sentence in Don Whitney's Spiritual Disciplines For The Christian Life. This phrase has got to be one of my most favorite because is it so applicable. So many times we give up a discipline because we lack direction or we give up a direction because we lack discipline. Rarely do we see the two stride together.

Watching the Olympics puts me in awe of what the human body and mind can do when it works together. The mind knows what it wants and the body is conditioned to achieve no matter the cost. The men's swimming relay the other night was won with the final American in the home stretch behind the French who thought to himself that this may be his last Olympic so it's either now or never - the Americans won. These athletes from all countries did not start with boarding the plane, they started over 10 years ago preparing. When the time came it came regardless of injury, finances, training schedule, or personal life.

Life comes at the same pace and with the same apparent ignorance of our schedule or preparation. God knows this and has a way for us to be prepared if only we would set our direction on Him. That is where the necessity of the spiritual disciplines come from. That is why they are crucial to instill daily into our lives.

Many times our mind wants to know, worship, follow God. Many times we are held back because our body wants to stay up late, enjoy more sleep, be with friends, make money, and countless other little distractions. Conversely there are times that we make the physical sacrifice and go to church, Challenge, Bible study, or other activities but our mind is elsewhere. Our mind wants more sleep, be with friends, make money, and many other little distractions. The goal should be to merge the two where the mind and body have a similar fixed point that it desires to achieve.

A challenge from one of the New Testament authors, Paul, puts it this way, "I do all these things because of the gospel, so that I can be a participant in it. Do you not know that all runners in a stadium compete, but only one receives the prize? So run to win. Each competitor must exercise self-control in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run uncertainly or box like one who hits only air. Instead I subdue my body and make it my slave, so that after preaching to others I myself will not be disqualified." (1 Corinthians 9:23-27 NET Bible)

Cavities and Gingivitis

2008-08-08T07:17:00.004-06:00

Like many people, going to the dentist is neither here nor there. It is not that I do not like the dentist but the question is why should I go every six months to hear the same thing over and over. "Your teeth look good.", "How often do you floss?", "How much coffee do you drink?", or the dreaded "You should look into braces."

After we moved to Pueblo, though Terra had dental insurance, I was without. I brush regularly, floss after a meal that requires it, drink coffee (hot coffee kills bacteria between teeth), and use mouth wash if I want a kiss from my wife. All this to say that nothing has changed for years except the additional use of mouth wash.

Last month Terra made me an appointment for the dentist since I finally got dental insurance and it has been over three years since my last appointment. When I got in the chair it was the same questions: floss, brush too hard, coffee, etc. Then things started to go a little different from previous times. The lady said that I have gingivitis and three cavities. How can you do the same thing everyday and have stuff like this happen?

The more that one avoids the dentist the more problems one will have in their mouth. The dentist can see things that we cannot. They know what to look for, how to reverse the problem, and how to educate you to keep your teeth for life.

The same principles can apply spiritually. When was the last time you went to church? I am part of that crowd that questions the church from time to time. You probably have heard all the stories from the Bible already and can fill out the pastor's outline before he can. Podcast allows you to hear from your favorites (Mars Hill's Mark Driscoll is one of my favorites- www.marshillchurch.org). You can put in a worship CD, listen to Driscoll, and check off your box for the week. This is not the reason for church any more than going to the dentist is just to hear the same old story.

Church is where a community of people who care about you personally should be allowed close enough access to look into parts of your life that you cannot see. They give encouragement, advice, and direction if necessary. It is not a weird fascination to mess with other people that draw most of us to the ministry but we know that sin ignored is worse than a cavity ignored. What once was a sensitive spot can become a breeding ground for disease which will affect beyond your teeth.

The next time you think you can skip church remember what happens when you skip a dentist appointment. You may be okay a time or two but the more distance between trips the greater the problems will be. Between appointments do not forget the daily upkeep of brushing and flossing spiritually with reading the Bible and prayer. Do this and you will get more than a free toothbrush.

You Are What You Read (or Watch)

2008-06-19T16:10:00.003-06:00

Recently Terra and I were watching The Jane Austen Book Club. It is a chick-flick but had some interesting notes about relationships and male-female communication - more pointedly about our mis-communication.

Of the women in this movie, each one connects with one or another of the Austen heroines. This is to be expected but it was fascinating to see how their life situations dictated how they read the book and how reading the book dictated some of their life situations.

The one women who stuck me the most was the high school French teacher who is contemplating an adulterous relationship with one of her students. Her husband is absolutely nothing like her and it seems that part of the marriage was based on young adult passion and an idea that he will grow-up once they are in the real world. When the passion leaves and the husband does not show signs of growing up she finds budding passion in this student.

As the teacher plans to rendezvous with the student at a local hotel she waits for him across the street. When he shows up and she starts to cross the street sign, instead of saying walk/don't walk, says "What Would Jane Do". Knowing that Jane always defaulted to sensibilities over sensuality the idea of what she was about to do became real and she instead runs home to have a heart to heart with her husband. What she was reading impacted her rational for some of the larger decisions in her life.

What are you reading? If it is sensual do you find yourself always heading in that direction - at least mentally? Is it intellectual, comical, spiritual, informational? You can see how these books have a real impact. My challenge is to add the Bible to part of your reading diet. See how it impacts the way you think of world affairs or how you make some of the smaller decisions in life.

Economics & Ministry

2008-05-23T14:09:00.002-06:00

No, this is not about money; this is about the economic law of supply and demand in its application to ministry. People teach and run their ministries on this principle. Find out the needs of their people group and then seek to fulfill those needs. Jesus, the good Samaritan, Peter, Paul, and other New Testament leaders used this form of ministry outreach at some point in their ministry.

This has been true for our ministry and has been successful to draw students. At the end of fall semester we had 25 students show up for a pre-finals week chili feed. This semester we have averaged 15-20 for monthly dinners we host at our house. The photo is from our National Tartan Day dinner in April which featured everything from haggis and scones to ribs and smashed potatoes for 20 students. We have sought to be of value to the campus through handing out hot chocolate, participating in campus preview days, and some students in Challenge are also in student government.

One problem of this type of involvement is that we can loose focus on why we are involved. We so are busy being all things to all people that we forget why we are different. Sharing our faith and the purpose for being on campus can be lost in these simple acts of kindness.

As part of our Kansas City spring break trip we stopped off to see what Christian Challenge looks like at Washburn University. It was a pleasure to re-connect with Craig Freerksen and this maturing ministry. The most important thing I took from our time with Craig was the necessity for intentionality. Regardless of what we do, say, where we live, or how we chose to spend our time, if we are not intentional then we will miss out.

We will still work to meet the needs of the students, but we must remember the very reason we exist. Pray that as we look at whatever this next year brings that this message of intentionality will move beyond a theory and become a law of our ministry!

Are You Batman?

2008-04-01T13:55:00.003-06:00

Of all the superheros, Batman is my favorite! He's 6'2", good looking, and had to develop his skill instead being born or made into a freak - this is where our similarities end. Unlike me, Bruce Wayne is rich, cultured, and always gets the girl.

We all share similarities with our favorite superheros. The desire to see wrongs righted, defend the defenseless, and so on. The aspect that we probably have most in common is the fact that we all have secret lives. Bruce Wayne is a playboy billionaire during the day and a crime fighter at night. This secret life is only known by a few - which is why it is a secret. Now the question stands, which is your secret life?

I love bbq, Scotland, and philosophy - these are not secrets. I love Terra (my wife), Cora (my daughter), and Biscotti (my dog) - these are not secrets. Rugby, coffee, on-and-on the list could go of the various things that I fill my life with that everyone knows about. So what is my secret life? In high school I didn't act too smart because none of my friends wanted to go to college. At the end of college and afterwards I worked in an office and was moving up the career ladder so no one knew I was thinking about the ministry. Before Terra, I would only confess to like the things that the girl I was interested in liked because I wanted her to like me - only that wasn't me.

The secret lives that we live are not always lies, they can just be a part of ourselves that we don't want the world to know about. If the world knew they would the laugh at us or, worst, walk away?

College students live multiple lives as student, child, employee, friend, etc. For a lot of students the faith they brought to college is not their own but something that was handed to them by their family like a poster to hang on their wall. Students move in with Bible in hand until the family leaves and then they put it down - only to take it up when they go home or mom comes for a visit. For students who have a personal faith they may not do much more because of the pressures or the stereo-types that others believe.

Jesus never was secret about his intentions, his mission, or with his friendships. The world was more hostel to Jesus than it will be with us so why do we think we need to have a different approach? If Jesus and later his followers were willing to be direct with their faith, intent on impacting culture, then why do we feel we need to be secret Christians?

Matthew 10:32-33 “Whoever, then, acknowledges me before people, I will acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever denies me before people, I will deny him also before my Father in heaven." (NET Bible)

Not Here For Unity

2008-02-13T10:12:00.003-07:00

Last week Christian Challenge was approached by another campus ministry claiming that there was a spirit of disunity between the Christian groups on our campus. After some time in prayer and contemplation here is my response for not promoting "unity".

The measure of unity should not be based on the number of events that each other goes to. This type of unity is not something we should strive for. Christian Challenge is not here to promote this definition of unity among the Christian groups. We are here to reach, train, and encourage the students of Pueblo. We believe that God’s desire is that we use our time on campus to help students to learn more about the Christian faith, salvation through Jesus and to personalize what it means to live according to Biblical standards.

This is done through our different events: Tuesday night meetings, Bible studies, fun events, and personal discipleship for those interested; that is what we promote. Reaching this campus will not be done through an over-involvement in every Christian activity that takes place on this campus. Not many come to every Christian Challenge event, which is okay, so why would we try to then push or guilt students into going to every other Christian event that we hear of. This would be a violation of what we see as our mission and mismanagement of their limited time between school, sports, work, study, hanging out and other clubs and activities.

If you were to only hang-out with or interact with Christians then you have set up a short-sided way of seeing the world. Once you leave college, unless you work for Focus on the Family, you will need to know how to befriend and work beside non-Christians. As Jesus has called us to share our faith in Him, college is a great time to learn how to share what God has done in your life with non-Christians.

Please understand we are not against involvement with other ministries but would ask our students to evaluate your time, the benefits, and involve levels that will work for them. If an event is coming up where the different Christian groups can agree on and work together towards that goal then we will promote it.

2008-01-07T21:39:00.005-07:00

We had a baby girl on Saturday, January 5^th! Last Thursday we went for the 38 week doctor’s appointment where Terra had gained 8 pounds in one week. Because we were high risk and Terra’s rapid weight gain the doctor suggested that if we wanted to induce the next day that would be fine with him. We prayed and decided that night to go in Friday night to be induced.

Cora Grace Lindsey was born Saturday night at 6:45pm weighing in at 7lbs 10ozs and measured 18.5 inches long; imagine what another 2 weeks (potentially another 2 lbs would have done)! She has blue eyes and a lot of white-blonde hair like her dad did until he was a teenager and grew out his mullet.

Cora Grace is a name that comes from genealogy on both sides of the family and is not a name which would not normally be duplicated by a student in our ministry. Cora is Ryan’s great-grandmother’s name and the week of her birth we found that Terra’s grandpa had an aunt who’s name was also Cora. Corazon is heart in Spanish and with the difficulties we have had getting pregnant we are blessed by God’s heart (Cora) of grace (Grace).

We thank all of you for your thoughts and prayers during the pregnancy and delivery. We now need them even more as we adjust from swinging 30-somethings to parents who now have to weigh ministry, family, and all the other facets of which we are just becoming aware.

We hope in a week to have a more established schedule and adjust to the lack of sleep most parents are well acquainted with. This is also the time that the students are returning and will be busy (at least Ryan will be) with the students. Karen, Terra’s mom, was able to be here moments before the delivery and will be here for the next week or two. Please pray also for the ministry as this semester the students will fill the spot that Terra will step out of the time being. Terra has done a great job preparing the girls for this task through discipleship and Bible study so we are sure they will do splendid!

God and Parents

2007-10-29T12:13:00.000-06:00

Why is it that God wants us to honor our parents? Have we ever thought about how we treat our parents is how we more than likely treat God? God is called our Heavenly Father that is what He is. How do we treat our earthly parents; is there a difference between the two?

What do we do with our parents? Keep them in the dark, try to get something from them though we don’t necessarily want to spend the time with them that they request – not demand but request, we don’t want their opinions though they have experience on our side instead we look to our peers who have only minutes over us in life experiences. Are your parents just a voice of the past or are they a real part of your present and future. Your parents are not God but they are a picture God has put in front of you as an example of how God wants a relationship with us.

God knows our name…God adopted us and calls us sons & daughters…God will not leave us no matter what we have done. Our parents are not perfect but if you are willing to deceive, steal, ignore, and push away those who have known us from our first breath then what are we going to do with a God that we have not seen though He know us from the first moment that we started the path to be who we are…He knew us from the first thought HE had of us and at that moment He called us His.

Remember when...

2007-10-29T12:12:00.000-06:00

Remember back to the time you first left home to become an adult. It may have been when you joined the military, it may have been got married, or to start an apprenticeship or college. Whenever or whatever was the reason, it was with the idea that you were no longer a child but deep down you knew you were not an adult.

There can be much sorrow in this experience. You’ve lost something familiar that you will never get back. A trip home remains that, a trip. Short-term visits, even whole summers, will never return to the comfort that just a few months earlier seemed so permanent. The absence of this security sends us looking for that which we have lost; family.

Christian Challenge is one of many options these students have to replace that lost piece of the puzzle. For some, Christian Challenge gives the comfort of Christian familiarity that they wish to hold on to. For others it represents that thing they have most longed to run from as soon as they were out of view of their parental authority.

These are the challenges that Christian Challenge faces every week. Some students visit our events because they know God should have a role in their life. Some students come because of what they will get out of it – free food or discounted tickets to the corn maze. Some students do not come because of poor examples of Christianity they have experienced in their past.

These are the students we attempt to reach, train, and encourage. We look for partnerships that will pray for them and for us – this is the best time to gain perspective or loose your way.

Working out with God

2007-09-04T13:21:00.000-06:00

This summer was a rough one in regards to my gym routine. When the summer started I was going an average of 4 days a week, 3 of which were to do weights since I don't like cardo.

We started the summer with a 15 day trip that did not give us any gym time. We returned to paint the lower two levels of our house. Though we did go to the gym for the first few days of this, it was on the day that I worked shoulders and then came home to paint that I decided to forgo my workout to ensure the house got done by July 4th.

We were able to go for two weeks after that until we left for Texas. This 8-day trip turned into a 23-day trip due to car problems. Though I worked for my dad moving and refinishing antiques this was not part of my normal routine. I still felt strong and looked pretty much the same, I was getting a little soft around the middle from vacation eating.

Last week was the first time we were able to get to the gym. Though some of the power was still there in the first two sets of each exercise, the endurance was not there. Later that day and into the next you could feel the workout taking its toll! The odd thing about this pain is that it actually makes you not want to go back to the gym.

The same seems to be true with our relationship with God. We get on a role of prayer and reading our Bible but the routine is disrupted for some reason: vacation, start of school, new job, relationships, etc. Then after a few days (week or years) we decide it's time to start up where we left off at. This is never quite the case.

The first few days of starting up our old routine is rough. We feel crushed for time, am not sure if God is listening, and may not like what we read or pray because we know there needs to be some change in our life. Instead of pushing through the "burn" to renew the routine, we decide the pain is too much and maybe when life gets easier then we'll start up again.

Problem is life doesn't get easier. Relationships don't get better by ignoring them but by interaction. God is there and does not hold it against you for not being able to push your old weight. He is your spotter; He will work with you to get to where you were and to help you push to even new levels.

Movie-ology

2007-08-26T22:30:00.000-06:00

My wife and I love to watch movies! Since I was a kid, watching movies has been a reward. My first straight A report card allowed me to watch my first rated R movie with my dad, Missing in Action 2! It was always something that my family could do together though we are all different.

While I was in college movies were not only a weekend past-time but part of my course of study. Several of my classes had us watch films and write reviews of what the movie was trying to get across to their contemporary audience and what we could get out of it today. The question came to me, if I did this for a university prof why not for my Bible study.

Since college this has been a passing thing with no real structure. Last year when we started Christian Challenge in Pueblo we decided to make it a main event. This is a time that we watch a contemporary movie, discuss it's cultural and social message, and discuss what religious message it may contain or association derived. With a little practice, almost any movie could be used to bring about a spiritual conversation.

Most of your non-Christian friends will not come to church on Sunday but they will watch a movie. If you want to find a way to share the story of Jesus Christ with a friend, use a story that they know from Hollywood; this is what Paul did in Acts 17.

Deep in the heart of Texas

2007-08-15T10:51:00.000-06:00

While driving to Texas to refinish a dining room table and go to a cousin's wedding we had a major breakdown. Our '95 Mitsubishi Montero appeared to have thrown the timing belt. Once the motor was opened up it turned out that the water pump has froze up causing the timing belt to actually melt on all the pulleys within the casing. This was on July 27th, our 5th anniversary.

It is now August 15 and we are still here. The little shop in Eddy finally threw in the towel (after working on the Montero two weeks) and towed it to Waco where the Mitsubishi dealer has gotten things underway. Once we are back in Pueblo I will re-write this blog to share the whole story.

It is enough to say that we've had enough of Texas humidity, trains, and climbing stairs. My dad lives in an old meat packing plant on the third floor (the first two are his showroom and workshop for antiques) and is less than 100 yards to some active train tracks. What we have missed in the way of coffee has been fulfilled with great BBQ! I'm missing my smoker about now.