The Tour

I've watched the Tour de France every July for the last ten years. This July has been no different. Two things I want to say right now about what I've witnessed over the last week of the Tour.

First, there's been a Subaru commercial that has aired nearly everyday since the start of this year's Tour. I don't know if you've seen it on too on Versus or any other channel, but it really convicts me. It's probably silly that it does, but nevertheless, convicted I stand. Here's the scene: A man walks down the sidewalk on the way to his car and the camera pans away from him and shows a new Subaru Impreza parallel parked on the street. The man sees that the parking meter has run out and places change into it just before the meter police lady can write the owner of the car a ticket. The man's voice is narrating, and he proclaims his love for his Subaru Impreza and says that he loves anybody else who also loves Subaru Imprezas. It just convicts me of the way Christians treat each other, and more specifically, the way I treat other Christians sometimes. Just like the Subaru guy loves other Subaru people, shouldn't we love anybody else who loves Jesus?

Second, I've pretty much lost all respect for Lance Armstrong. I know that he is a strong symbol of the victory a person can have over cancer, and I know that he is one of the greatest athletes in the world (and perhaps all time). But he is a very poor example of integrity, moral capacity, love and friendship. I won't even go into what he did to the mother of his children for an example; today however, he and his team backstabbed the man who helped him win all seven of his Tour de France championships. George Hincapie was Lance's right hand man for all of his victories in France. He tortured and sacrificed his own body in order to propel Lance up mountains on his way to seven years of glory. And how does Lance thank him? When George had the opportunity to wear the yellow jersey for just one day, Lance's team, Astana, headed up the peloton and chased back enough of the time gap to oust George from his shot at the podium. And in the post race interview, Lance had the gall to blame another American team for chasing down George, denied having anything to do with George's loss, and even said that he regrets what happened today and said it must have been something personal between the two American teams. A shameless, gutless, ruthless, cheap, and insolent injustice that was. I feel bad for George (who even though was obviously vexed in his post race interview didn't throw anyone under the bus and handled the situation with dignity and respect).

I'm sure none of you who actually read this even care about Lance or George or the Tour de France, but that wholeheartedly pissed me off, and I just needed to vent.

Peace and A Sword

She lives between peace and a sword.
Her aim is Love,
Division her casualty.

She rests on bare ground.
Her home is Love,
Despair her casualty.

She welcomes her enemy.
Her fate is Love,
Death her casualty.



This is a poem I wrote over the last couple days. Let me explain:

In Matthew 10: 34 Jesus says, "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword." I've heard this verse before in my life, but when I heard it the other day, it struck a chord in me. Especially because in the last couple months I've come to realize just what love and peace and joy mean to mankind. And I've also developed the mindset that above all things, loving God and loving your neighbor are the most important tasks given to Christians. Yes, even above proclaiming the gospel. (If you disagree with me on this point, I would love to discuss the matter with you; just leave a comment.) Anyway, the fact that Jesus says blatantly that he didn't come to earth to bring peace, but a sword, well, that really just sent me for a loop. I've done a little research and a little thinking on what this verse means. First of all, let's quickly throw away the notion that this verse has anything to do with war or violence. It doesn't; it never has, and it never will. If we read it in its context we find that Jesus is saying that there will be conflict within families and groups of friends because of his name. If you love your dad, your mom, your brother or sister, or anyone else more than you love Jesus, then he doesn't want anything to do with you. This is why he brings a sword. Don't be afraid of division in the name of Love (Jesus). So I came up with this poem to represent my thoughts on the problem of having to juggle the task of loving your neighbor and harboring conflict because of that love.

So, now to decipher my poem. "She" is an ideal representation of the church in my mind. What the church should be and stand for. "Love" in the second line of each stanza represents Jesus and all that he and his kingdom represent. Each stanza reflects a different shade of that concept.

The whole idea of the first stanza is that the church's goal in the world is to spread Love (Jesus' Kingdom and love in general). But, like Jesus says, his name causes tension in relationships. i.e. She lives between peace and a sword. (That line has been swimming in my head since Wednesday.)

The second stanza represents the idea that Jesus and his church do not belong in this world. In other words, our home is not on earth, but wrapped up in this concept of the kingdom and the presence of the Triune God (Father, Son, and Spirit). He was a haggard and meandering soul, and so too is his body. Therefore, because of our out of place nature, despair can, and will, set in.

The third stanza represents the idea that loving God and loving your neighbor (a.k.a. following Jesus) is never to be taken lightly or given up- especially in the face of enemies and even unto death. The second line pretty much wraps up my view that above all, love is at the center of the Christian faith. If not for love, there is no creation. Without love, there is no forgiveness. If not for love, there is no redemption. There is no Christ separate from the divine Love that the Father has for mankind.

Love and Be Loved

There's just something about love. I don't know what it is. I can't define it; it's hard to write about it. But if there's anything you do in this world, please learn how to love yourself for who you are, then learn how to love God, then learn how to love other people with the same love that you love yourself. And if you want to go another step forward, let other people love you too.