Violence Continues in Kenya

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/player/nol/newsid_7190000/newsid_7192000?redirect=7192077.stm&news=1&nbwm=1&bbram=1&nbram=1&bbwm=1&asb=1

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/player/nol/newsid_7180000/newsid_7182000?redirect=7182057.stm&news=1&nbram=1&bbwm=1&nbwm=1&bbram=1

Please continue to pray, or start praying, for Kenya. The violence there following December's Presidential Elections has only grown worse, leaving 600-1000 people dead and causing a massive humanitarian refugee crisis in the countries western regions. Pray for peace.

The Rider on the White Horse

"Then I saw Heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords." Revelation 19:11-16

The last two weeks have been hard for me. Why, you might ask, as they have included Christmas and the New Year, time with family and friends. Well, they have been two weeks where I have been reminded again of the depravity of the world. They have been stressful as I've revisited friends suffering from the effects of broken homes, divorces, parents that stayed together but did such a lousy job parenting their children suffer for years, broken relationships leaving scars of guilt and anger and insecurity, old age and the inevitability of death, alcoholism, poverty, and war, mixed in with my own sins and frustrations.

And then there is Kenya. The photos above are from demonstrations held earlier today in Nairobi in the wake of last weekend's corrupt election. Over 300 people have died in the violence that has ensued, and while things are far more complicated than the mainstream media explains, anyone should agree that political violence is lunacy. These events hit close to home for me because I spent three weeks in Kenya in 2006, working in Nairobi's Kibera slum, the center piece of the current violence. I have friends there, and despite its poverty, it was a stable environment at the time of my visit. I've been to lots of places after or during times of chaos and destruction through various disaster response trips in the the U.S. and abroad, but this is the first time I've seen a place I know that was peaceful descend into violence and chaos. Some of the kids and families I worked with may no longer have homes, or worse yet lives. So far all reports I hear from those I know have been positive, but there is no clear end in sight.

All of these things have given me a renewed slap in the face of the depravity of man and the sin I see in this world. But, there is hope, and perhaps these weeks were an appropriate holiday season as they have reminded me of who the God is that I serve and what he promises. I am thankful for a God that loves me, a God that loves me enough to kill his own son that I may I have life. I am thankful for the reality of the Crucifixion, but even more so for the reality of the Resurrection. I am thankful that despite the pain I see around me, there will be a day when this humble lamb, this baby Jesus that once slept in a manger and obeyed death that I might have life, will come again. And when he comes, he will come not as a baby, subjected to the laws and pains of this world, but as one who has conquered these things. He comes as King of the Universe.

I am thankful that he will come back for a fight. He will come not with humility but righteous anger. He will come not as a servant but as the leader of the armies of heaven. I am thankful that he will bring a sharp sword, bearing a name too wonderful to know. I am thankful that he is faithful and true. And I am thankful that he will be tattooed by his father with the most powerful name in all creation: King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.

I am thankful that this rider on the white horse will come back, and when he comes he will clean house. If it is true that he knows the hairs on our heads, then he has a clearer view of the suffering in this world than I do, and he has greater anger over this suffering than I do. And when he is through routing the false prophet behind our pain, he will restore the families, forgive the mistakes, heal the sick, pardon the guilty, bolster the insecure, clothe the impoverished, and make right all the things that have hurt me in the last two weeks.

So pray hard, knowing that you pray not to a baby Jesus anymore. No, not even to a nice guy, humble carpenter. But you pray to the King of King, the Lord of Lords. He hears our prayers, and he is sharpening his sword. He is able to do far more than we could ever ask him. And though the pain in this world will continue a little while, I have hope that I will one day stand before this rider after he has retired his sword, battles won with no pain left to be conqured. And he will look at me fondly and call me forward. "Come live with me, my beautiful bride, for in my father's house, there are many rooms."

1 in 4 Homeless Americans are Veterans - WTF?

A Philadelphia Inquirer article today reported that Untied States Military Veterans comprise 25% of America's homeless population. That makes me sick. Have we really that little heart to reach out to these who have stepped up to serve, then have to live alone in suffering? Think what you will about politics, war, etc, these men and women deserve our respect and our assistance.
I watched the move "Jarhead" the other day. While I can't recommend it for everyone because of explicit language and sexual content, I get the impression from some former Marines that it paints an accurate picture. If you're interested to see WHY so many veterans find themselves so lost when they return to civilian status, I believe this movie provides some answers.

Back to Basics

Forget everything I wrote yesterday. Well, it was all true, but I was way too concerned about fitting the word "listless" into my post. In the last 24 hours I've screwed up a lot and have been led back to the fact that all this is simply about following Jesus. That's it. I seek to follow Jesus. I do a lousy job of it, but that is what I seek to do and that is the task at hand that I need to remember. "A life in non-fiction" sounds sexy, but really I just need to follow Jesus. So, scratch what I said. I want to live a life that follows Jesus. Donald Miller is right. It really is that easy. As the wise Matt Spainhour once said, "Life is simple."

Life in Non-Fiction

I'm through with the vanities of Amory Blaine. The protagonist in F. Scott Fitzgerald's (remember reading The Great Gatsby in high school? same author) first successful novel This Side of Paradise, Blaine spends his days chasing hopeless romance and selfish ambition, leaving him lost and alone. The novel ends as he adjusts to the realization that his intellectualism is bankrupt: "He stretched out his arms to the crystalline, radiant sky. 'I know myself,' he cried, 'but that is all-'"

I have decided to know more than myself, more than the comforts that surround me, more than the affluence I'm blessed to receive. The life of Amory Blaine was a life of fiction, and I mean that in a far deeper way than the simple fact he was a character in a novel. He choose to capitalize on the corruption of a culture that Fitzgerald wrote, was "a new generation dedicated more than the last to the fear of poverty and the worship of success; grown up to find all Gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in man shaken." I see a lot of this blinded view of reality in America today, in its Church, and in myself. We choose to see the world through fictional lenses, stained with security few in the world know.

I want to live a life of non-fiction.

I've been throwing this idea around in my head for a while. Lost in a sea of stress and errands and preparation to leave the country last minute for a disaster response trip to Nicaragua a few weeks ago, I said to myself that I was at the time lost in non-fiction, burdened with the realities of the world to a point at which I longed to escape. It was then that I picked up Fitzgerald's novel off the shelf, seeking to self-medicate with stories of Amory Blaine's attempts to woo various women in a fictional paradise.

It didn't take me long after reaching the hurricane ravished, rural village of Tuara, Nicaragua, to despise the vanities of Amory Blaine, and more so my desire to allow my own life to drift into such listless realms. Somewhere in a woman's story of loosing her 23 year old son at sea during Hurricane Felix, or a mother's explanation that her beautiful 10 year old girl had been raped when she was 7, I realized that life rarely exists in the world middle to upper class Americans have created for themselves. It was in a moment walking to the well to retrieve water to bathe when I saw the before mentioned 10 year old girl scrubbing the laundry of her family that I resigned myself to break the American mold and live a life of non-fiction.

The world simply isn't safe, comfortable, warm, with riches and a full belly for most of those who live in it. I live the simple life as an individual born into the upper 1%. I believe there is a place here, and good I can accomplish, so I have no intentions of simply disposing my blessings. However, I must keep my life's relation to the rest of humanity in focus, and I must keep the picture clear. My life must be one of non-fiction.

Jimmy Eat World Does it Again

With the announcement of a new album, I wondered if Jimmy Eat World could once again pull off a flawless album. After Clarity, Bleed American, Futures, and a few solid EP's, they have secured their position in my permanent top five favorite bands. But can Chase This Light live up to the others?
Yes. Yes it can. Chase this light is a solid new album with brilliant lyrics and songs that build in masterful progression (see the epic last track, "Dizzy"). Buy it today. Love it forever. This sounds way too much like an add, but I swear they didn't pay me to write it. Jimmy Eat World has simply done it again.

Back From Nicaragua

I made it home from Nicaragua late last night and although I'm still getting over the intense food poisoning I came down with the last day, it was an amazing trip. There are those rare moments in life where you can honestly stop and say you know you are doing exactly what the Lord would have you do. My time in Nicaragua was filled with these moments. My feelings are hard to express as Nicaragua is an extremely impoverished nation also hit by a Cat. 5 Hurricane, so the contrast between what I saw there and the comforts of my home has me speechless at the moment. I spent twice the average yearly salary of a Nicaraguan on new tires and maintenance for my truck today. I'm more than a little ashamed. I'm mostly humbled that God has chosen to give me these opportunities. Two international disaster responses in as many months? Why me? Where does this all lead? It was a blessing to serve. More stories to follow as I readjust.