Stand Against the Wind

The 1960 film "Inherit the Wind," depicts the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial, in which John T. Scopes (who is called Drummond in the movie) "inherited the wind" (i.e. was convicted; read Proverbs 11:29, KJV) for teaching evolution in a high school classroom in Tennessee, where only creationism was permitted. Today, Christians must stand against the wind in order to defend their rights to believe in intelligent design from not just an emotional/spiritual perspective, but a scientific one as well.

When I was in eighth grade, my Grandpa Russell (my mom's dad) gave me a book called Defeating Darwinism by Philip Johnson. The following year while taking honors freshman biology, I devoured the book, desperate to defend my faith in a Creator God to a hostile public school teacher. I didn't know it then, but Johnson is recognized by the Christian academic community as a pioneer in the scientific argument for creationism. A lover of both science and apologetics, he has paved the way for much of the Darwinian evolution vs. intelligent design debate (what little debate is allowed, that is).

His book helped me articulate my position (why I believed in micro-evolution, or gradual evolution within a species, but NOT macro-evolution, i.e. Darwin's theory, for instance) before my teacher and my classmates. It helped me to ask the questions that my teacher couldn't answer adequately because there currently isn't a satisfying answer (for example, how precisely did life start from nothing? or where exactly is the fossil evidence that proves macro-evolution?) While I certainly wasn't going to win any arguments with this teacher who pretty much berated me--a fifteen-year-old--for my lack of faith in Darwin's theory (which even then was taught as fact), I think I did, at the very least, raise a dialogue that would have otherwise not been possible. The experience was formative.

Years later, the situation has intensified. Darwinian evolution is being taught--to an even greater extent than during my high school years--as factual, and at the exclusion of other theories. The secular climate of the times is pervasive. Friends here in Nashville, the Christian hub, were shocked when their second grader came home from school talking about the Big Bang as though it was proven scientific data. Her father sat with her and went over the biblical account of creation at length, instructing her impressionable mind in apologetics, which she'll need in her public school career, even here in the Bible Belt.

The next night, I returned to my (very drawn-out) reading of J.P. Moreland's Love Your God with All Your Mind, and was disturbed to read the following excerpt from an official document instructing California teachers in how to handle a student's objections to the Darwinian theory:

"At times, some students may insist that certain conclusions of science cannot be true because of certain religious or philosophical beliefs that they hold...It is appropriate for the teacher to express in this regard, 'I understand that you may have personal reservations about accepting this scientific evidence, but it is scientific knowledge about which there is no reasonable doubt among scientists in thier field, and it is my responsibility to teach it.'"

This dogma is outrageous, but very true to my high school--and college--experience. With untrue and unfounded statements like these flying in public school environments, obviously Christians must stand strong in order to expose the fallacy of the evolution-as-fact fraud. Moreland agrees, but he is critical of the Christian climate of our time for allowing science to exclude religious thought as it has in our country:

"Note carefully that the California board of education regards religious, that is Christian, beliefs as personal, private, subjective opinions to be contrasted with the true, public, objectively rational affirmations made by scientists. Where do secular people get this image of Christian doctrine? May I suggest that they get it from watching the Christians they meet, and more specifically, from watching the role that reason and truth play in the evangelical community....If unbelievers do not see a vibrant intellectual life when they observe Christians at work, or engaged in fellowship and worship, are they to be blamed if they conclude that truth and rationality do not matter much to us?"

Last week some friends had suggested watching Ben Stein's documentary, Expelled. Our viewing couldn't have been better timed, as we've been talking about creation in my systematic theology II class this semester and it has come up again and again in my personal reading/experience as well. So on Friday night, we settled in for homemade pizza and a movie I would commend to anyone wanting to know more about science and science education in the 21st century. Watch the movie trailer here.

The best part of the movie (and I wish I could find a clip of this...but you'll have to check out the film for yourself!) is Stein's interview with Michael Ruse, a prominent defender of Darwinism at Florida State. When Stein asks him how life started on earth, Ruse explains that it may have begun "on the backs of crystals." Stein asks, "yes but how did life start?" And Ruse, in a hilariously high-pitched voice of exasperation, says "well I've just told you...on the backs of crystals!" Stein asks a third time, "but how did life start?" And Ruse answers similarly. The discourse highlights the fact that there is still no answer to the question of "how?" in Darwinian thought. Atheist and Darwinian leader Charles Dawkins expresses similar exasperation in an interview with Stein, even to the point of claiming that while the idea of God is implausible, it is quite likely that aliens are responsible for intelligent design.

Stein also interviews a host of professors and writers who have been excommunicated from academia because they simply mention intelligent design in the classroom or in private research. The overall point of the film seems to be that there is a lack of freedom of thought in academia and the scientific field at large on this issue. In a country that claims to value freedom of thought, there is an alarming lack of freedom and an equally alarming religious dogmatism in the science classroom and lab. It has often been said that Darwinian evolution requires more faith than the intelligent design theory, and Expelled seems to prove that point--Darwinists have created a religion that excludes all other thought.

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.
1 Peter 3:15-16

Food For the Hungry in Rwanda

Sponsoring a child through Compassion International while I was in college was an incredible experience. I loved corresponding with Carmela, a little girl in the Philippines, and knowing that my small monthly gift was providing her family with a better life.

When I studied abroad in Italy, I was no longer able to support Carmela...but Compassion International was able to find her a new sponsor quickly. After a hiatus from child sponsorship that lasted much too long, I decided to sponsor a child through Food for the Hungry this year. I learned of FH at the Art* Music* Justice tour's stop in Franklin this fall, and I have loved learning more about the organization's efforts not just to care for children, but to revolutionize entire communities.

My sponsored child, a nine-year-old girl named Nishimwe, lives in Gisanga, Rwanda, a community highly affected by AIDS. Nishimwe spends several hours each day carrying large jugs of water from a shallow well. Many people in her village suffer from worms, malaria, and malnutrition. But thanks to FH she has an opportunity to attend school and will receive adequate food and health care, and her community will see first-hand the love of Christ.

Sara Groves and her family have partnered with FH in hopes of finding a sponsor for every child living in Nishimwe's community. Sarah and her husband have been in Gisanga this month, and she will be writing about their time there on her blog.

If you're interested in partnering with the Groves in Gisanga, or in sponsoring a child with Food for the Hungry in another part of the world, you can learn more here.

Sandwich Days

As I sit here munching on lunch, I've just been informed that my most recent article--about sandwiches!--for the March issue of myMISSIONfulfilled.com has launched. You can read it here, and make sure to browse the website's content while you're at it.

There you go. A shameless lunchtime plug :)

Encouragement from Rainer Maria Rilke

I first stumbled across a beautiful quote by Rainer Maria Rilke in the insert of my favorite Nichole Nordeman album, "Woven and Spun." (It's a GREAT album full of lovely, worshipful lyrics that really spoke to me during a pivotal time in my walk with the Lord.) I have always loved the quote:

She who reconciles the ill-matched threads of her life and weaves them gratefully into a single cloth, it is she who drives the loudmouths from the hall and clears it for a different celebration where the one guest is You.
~Rainer Maria Rilke

What a beautiful reminder! Sometimes life can seem so disjointed--as my life feels most of the time right now!--and yet as we use each little blessing God has given us, and as He providentially weaves everything together, life becomes a glorious celebration where there is but one Guest of honor. I so want God to be praised in my life like that!

I don't know that this was the meaning Rilke (a man, despite the feminine middle name) had in mind when he wrote the prose. In many ways, the 20th century German poet led a very troubled life (according to wikipedia). Nevertheless, it's one of my all-time favorite quotes, and a wise thought to hang on to when life feels like a bunch of ill-matched threads.

Savoring the Riviera: Another Tidbit from Italy

Some days, I'm ready to buy furniture, get a dog, and finally be settled. Then there are days when I especially miss the thrill of living and traveling overseas. On those days, I read through my old essays and journal entries from Italy, and I realize that I'm not quite ready for a puppy. The essay that put that spirit of adventure back in my heart today is about my first full weekend abroad:
We arrived in the quaint beach town of Levanto, just north of Cinque Terre today, and I’m enchanted. I had heard the Riviera was beautiful, but somehow my preconceptions of the haunting Mediterranean prevented me from believing it could really be the “beach lover’s paradise” my guidebook described.

There’s something about all beaches that is universal, and I sensed it here even stepping off the train: the salty smell to the air, brightly colored buildings that glisten in the sun like little jewels, and—once you catch a glimpse of the water—the waves crashing upon distant crags of rock, becoming more evident as the tide comes in. A strange feeling of being at home sweeps over me, an odd phenomenon, considering I’m from the middle of the Illinois prairie.

But then, there is also something so European about this place: focaccia stands on every corner, little girls running topless into the surf, Tuscan style buildings dotting the shore behind me, rocks stabbing my feet as I wade into the water. And then I remember. This is not just a weekend escape to the beach, or one of my endless excuses to spend time baking in the sun. I’m in Italy—a whole semester to explore and to try to find myself at home here.

This past year, my writing has been more anthropological than anything. I’ve been digging through rubble in hopes of uncovering my memories. But this semester, I am writing to preserve memories, for I have learned that they slip away too easily, a ship quietly pulling away from port until it is only a white-tipped spot in the distance. This semester, a perky young teacher from Minnesota warned me when we met on the train, will slip past in the same way. “Cherish every moment;” she smiled wistfully as she gave the command.

But how to explore the all the material—the people, the emotions, the places, and the scenery—how to really capture it all on film, much less on paper? I know that I cannot keep it, anymore than the harbor can keep the ship. And yet I wish I could bottle it up to drink deeply of on days to come when life doesn’t seem so golden or the future so deliciously ripe with the unknown.
Photos (from top to bottom): an Italian girl sunbathing below the hiking trails, a Vernazza fisherman bringing in the day's catch, brightly colored beach umbrellas in Monterosso, getting ready to set out on our [very long] hike from Levanto with a weekend's worth of stuff on my back.

The "Already" and the "Not Yet""

I have written before of the theological notion of the "already-not-yet" aspect of the Kingdom of God, and today I read something in one of my texts for Systematic Theology II that clarifies it beautifully. John Frame, a noted theologian who teaches at the Reformed Theological Seminary's Orlando campus, writes:

"We live in tension between this age and the age to come. In Christ, the age to come has already arrived, but the present age, dominated by sin, will not expire until he returns. Christ has delivered us from 'the present evil age' (Gal. 1:4), so in him we already have the blessings of the age to come. But sin remains in us until the present age comes to an end (1 John 1:8-10). So while we are risen with Christ, we must still seek the things that are above (Col. 3:1-4). We have died to sin (v. 3), but we must 'put to death' the sins of this life (v. 5). So the Christian life is an atempt, motivated by God's grace, to live according to the principles of the age to come. We are motivated by the goal toward which God steers the ship of history."

With all that in mind, it is no wonder that Frame writes (as I have often said with far less eloquence): "It is a pity that the church's teaching on eschatology, the last days, has been concerned mostly with arguments about the order of events."

Rather, we should be fixing our eyes on what it means to live as Kingdom people who await the glory to come!

Grace to Give: Choosing Forgiveness When It Feels Like Personal Death

Is there anything so difficult as forgiveness?!

I can think of few things that pierce our hearts as painfully or wound our pride as deeply as the thought of forgiving a wrong. It can feel so very...unjust to let someone off the hook, especially when they haven't even acknowledged how much they've hurt us.

And yet...again and again the Scriptures command us to do it. Throughout the Tanak, God establishes Himself as the God of forgiveness (Leviticus 4, Psalm 103, Jeremiah 31:31-34,). And then, in the New Testament, Jesus revolutionizes the idea of forgiveness by telling His disciples that they too will have to forgive (Matthew 6:12). He adds insult to injury by telling us that if we refuse to forgive, the Father won't forgive our sins (Matthew 6:14-15 and 18:35). I don't think this is so much a cruel ultimatum as it is an indictment of the condition of our hearts. If our hearts are soft toward God and receptive of His grace, that grace will abound as we forgive others. As my pastor exclaimed in a bellowing voice in Sunday school a few weeks ago, "GRACE. ALWAYS. BEARS. FRUIT!"

And who is more justified in asking us to forgive than our Lord Jesus? As I've sought God this year in the process of forgiving a dear friend who has greatly wronged me, He's been faithful to bring to mind the picture of Jesus on the Cross. As I gaze on His suffering--the cancellation of my debts at His expense--the wrongs committed against me pale in comparison. How petty and foolish to cling to unforgiveness in light of the lavish grace that's been given to me! Surely I have grace to give. The bounty I've received provides an excess to spare (John 1:16, 1 Timothy 1:14).

Two things have become clear to me as I've lingered over this image of Jesus:
1.) Forgiveness always comes at significant personal cost. Perhaps the statement in Hebrews that "without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness" (v. 9:22) is not only literal, but figurative. Forgiveness will always be costly to us. Just as Christ died on the Cross to show us grace, we too, will have to die--to ourselves--in order to show grace to those around us. (See Romans 12:9-21.)

2.) Forgiveness identifies us with Christ. After Christ's death and resurrection, the early believers understood that they, too, would suffer to be made like Christ. (Acts 9:15-17, Romans 8:17, 2 Corinthians 1:5, Philippians 3:10-11, 2 Thessalonians 1:5). And what brought about the suffering of our Savior? His readiness to forgive our sin! So there is no better way for us to be identified with Him than when we forgive, and especially when we forgive those who do not know the depth of their wrongdoing against us. As we learn to cry out with Christ, "Father, forgive them; they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34), we are transformed into His image, a spectacle bearing witness to the gospel of grace.

In light of this, is there anything so lovely as forgiveness?!

My heart grows light every time I read Psalm 103:1-12:
¹ Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

² Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-

³ who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,

⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,

⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

⁶ The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:

⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.

⁹ He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;

¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;

¹² as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Praise the LORD, O my soul! What glorious grace that we are forgiven! And as He redeems our lives from the pit of sin, we are given the grace to forgive others. How I long for my heart to overflow with forgiveness that someone might see the gospel etched upon my life.

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
--2 Corinthians 9:8