PRABE Reflection 10

This week I began reading a book called “Chose Yourself” by James Altucher. I guess it would technically fall into the “self help” or business category of books, but those often get a bad rap and so far I have found this very interesting and helpful for anyone trying to navigate our changing world and find success and happiness.

            The first few chapters of the book, which I read this week talk about how the world and economy is changing significantly in our current time—and how this will affect each of us as we try to become successful and plan for the future. The author talks about a time in 2002, when he was working as a stockbroker on Wall Street and the market came crashing down—he had no friends and suddenly—no money. The main message of the book so far seems to be that in today’s society, we have the option to not be enslaved by the powers that be—the hegemony that big business once held over people (and the market) is vanishing and individuals have opportunities never seen before. The author is calling readers to action, suggesting  that the only real hope is to stop placing our hope and futures in other people’s hands and begin to choose ourselves.

Reflection

The past 10-12 weeks of reflecting on my weekly reading on this blog have been helpful to organize my thoughts. It has also helped hold me accountable to continue reading on a regular basis. I am an avid reader to begin with, so to be honest—the assignment to read 90 minutes “for fun” each week is like a dream come true. Especially while I am taking 18 hours of classes, I read this assignment and thought, “I am required to read for fun every week? And it CAN’T be something school related? Awesome!” Perhaps the most beneficial aspect of this was seeing how my own thought processes became more inflective as I wrote down my thoughts and ideas about what I have read on this blog—this is a practice I will likely continue in some manner as I feel it helps organize and retain things that we read, especially if you are someone like me who reads 3-4 books a month.

PRABE Reflection 9

This week continued the reading of "Beautiful Outlaw" by John Eldredge.

One of the main ideas discussed in my reading for this week was that of Jesus' "disruptive honesty." The author gives examples of Jesus confronting people in the bible with incredible honest and challenges the question of why we rarely experience this and do this for others in our own lives.

One example used is when Jesus is invited to the house of a religious leader, and rather than keeping the custom of washing one's hands before eating, Jesus proceeds directly to the table and makes himself comfortable. This amazes the religious leader that this man who claims to be the son of God would ignore such a deeply rooted tradition. Jesus responds by saying that such traditions put on a good image outside, but on the inside allows people to still be corrupt. His response may be demeaning and rude, but the author argues that this is more so just honesty and that it was necessary to challenge the beliefs of this particular individual.

He cites another example from the story about Mary and Martha, showing more gentle, compassionate honest confrontation from Jesus.

The point of this is to suggest that sometimes the most loving thing we can do is be honest with those that we care about--even when it is hard, and even when it may cause turbulence in our lives or in the relationship we have with them. Similarly, it is important to confront others with the truth in an appropriate way, knowing that some people need a more direct approach while others, more gentle.

This was a very interesting way to present the importance of honesty with those around us using Jesus as an example.

Reading Log:
Monday: 9-9:15
Tuesday: 9-9:15
Thursday: 9-9:30
Saturday: 11-11:30

PRABE Reflection #8

This week, I continued reading John Eldredge's "Beautiful Outlaw", which aims to explore the personality of Jesus. As mentioned previously, this whole idea is somewhat new to me. I was raised with a conservative background where Jesus was mainly some dude that read to children and wore a lot of white. Identifying his "personality" was never a topic of discussion- and certainly not in the way that Eldredge discusses it.

This week I read a chapter called "The Most Human Face of All." In it, the author discusses the troubling issue of Jesus being both entirely human but also an extension of God. Eldredge argues that Jesus is a portrayal of what humanity could be like if sin wasn't involved. Similarly, he cites evidence of Jesus suggesting that he is the best representation of what God is like, and that we can know what God is like by evaluating how Jesus was while on earth.

From this, the author begins to suggest that how Jesus acts is much different than the way in which much of religion suggests. He says that "religious fog" has corrupted our view of Jesus and caused a christian faith that is more concerned with rules, regulations, and tradition than it is a reflection of who God really is.

This idea builds upon some of the books I read and discussed here previously, suggesting that religion and Jesus are at odds in mainstream Christianity in the U.S. This once again is somewhat of a troubling thought because it challenges nearly everything that I was raised believing.


Reading Log:
Monday: 9-9:30
Tuesday: 8-9
Friday: 9-9:30

Prabe Reflection #7

This week, I continued my reading of  Beautiful Outlaw by John Eldredge. The idea that Eldredge talked about during the chapters I read this week were about the question: “Is Jesus really playful?”

            Eldredge refers to nature, and the fact that God created all things, to suggest that Jesus has a very playful nature and means for us to experience this in our lives. He talks about his dog—who, without instruction—plays a game of rolling a rock down a hill in their backyard and chasing until he is so tired he has to stop and lie down. No one has to tell the dog to do this, or teach him how to play the game, the dog just does it naturally as part of its God-given creation. Eldredge also references the way in which, in the Bible, Jesus reveals himself to the disciples after his resurrection in ways that are, well, strange to say the least.

            One account, has the disciples out in a fishing boat, apparently trying to bury the grief of Jesus’ death by partaking in something they find comfort in—fishing. Jesus, rather than running out on the water to greet them and tell them he is alive and everything is ok, and rather than calling out from the shore, identifying himself—simply stands on the shore and asks if they have caught anything. Rather than announcing that it is him, he hides his identity for a few minutes, suggesting that the men cast their nets to the other side of the boat—which inevitably provides them with so many fish that their nets can barely hold them all. Eldredge suggest, that through stories like this, we begin to see a playful side of Jesus—when reading this story through that frame of mind—it seems clear that Jesus is being somewhat playful with his disciples. Here is a time when he is showing himself to them for the first time after his death—and what does he do? He pretends to be someone else and gives them fishing advice—this does seem to portray Jesus as a jokester--not exactly the way I typically view him or how he is portrayed in many churches.

            I am excited to see where this book goes, the ideas presented are different from anything I have read before, and I enjoy reading new and interesting ideas about this sort of thing.

Reading Log:

Monday: 8:30-9

Tuesday: 8:30-8:45

Wednesday: 8:30-9

Friday: 8:30-8:45

Prabe Reflection #6

This week, I started a new book called Beautiful Outlaw by John Eldredge. This book is about what the other refers to as “experiencing the playful, disruptive, extravagant personality of Jesus.” In the first two chapters that I read this week, Eldredge essentially suggest that Christians take Jesus way too seriously. This is an idea that, at first, causes me a little discomfort because I was raised in what I would consider a conservative church environment where topics of Jesus’ sense of humor were not often front and center.

Eldredge suggests that iconic pictures of Jesus, that consistently portray him as a somber, nearly statuesque man void of any type of real personality. I have never really thought about this before, but as I began to reflect on my personal view of Jesus, I realized this is how I view him—all serious, all the time.

The author tells a story of a coffee mug that he received as a gift from a friend for Christmas one year: normally the mug has a typical picture of Jesus, with the saying “Jesus saves” underneath. However, when you fill the mug with liquid the picture transforms to a now beardless Jesus and the words below say “Jesus shaves.” He recounts how his kids asked him “what he thought Jesus thought of joking about him” and how he unconsciously realized he would hide the mug whenever people from church came over, so that they wouldn’t see it and think he was taking his faith too lightly or making a joke at Jesus’ expense. He then suggests that Jesus actually has a thriving sense of humor and uses scripture and biblical commentary to back his claim up—encouraging readers to try and view Jesus in a way that has room for humor and fun.

This story reminded me of when I was in high school and went on a mission trip to New York City with my youth group. While there, a few of my friends and I bought “Jesus is my homeboy” t-shirts from these vendors on the side of the street. My youth leaders didn’t really like that we did this and told us that we were making a mockery out of Jesus and that God probably wasn’t thrilled with us at the moment. Reflecting back on this, it’s kind of sad that many Christians have adopted this idea of a “no fun” Jesus and let that permeate their world, defining how they view God and life.

Reading Log:

Monday: 8:30-9

Tuesday: 8:30-8:45

Wednesday: 8:30-9

Friday: 8:30-8:45

PRABE Reflection #5

This week I started a new book called "Love Does" that I felt was a good follow-up to the last one I read. In this book, the author essentially provides his view of following Jesus through various stories that he has experienced during his life.

It seems clear through the first 4-5 chapters that the author's main idea is that he doesn't agree with much of the religious aspects of faith and God, and feels that can get in the way of a true, authentic faith.

As the title suggests, many of the stories focus on the way the author experiences (either towards others or from others) aspects of unconditional love. He presents faith in a way that is far from neat or clean, but suggests that the purpose of the whole thing is to love others unconditionally.

I am enjoying this book because it addresses many of the issues that I have been struggling with lately. Over the past few years, I have begun to try and determine what I really believe--not what my parents or grandparents believe--but what I believe. This has led me to asking "what is at the root of this whole having faith in God thing--like, what's the point of it all?".

This book that I'm currently reading and the last one I read both address this in different ways, suggesting that being too focused on religious practices may distract from that which is truly at the center of God's purpose for our lives.

Reading Log:

Monday- 8:30-9
Tuesday- 8:30-9
Thursday- 8:30-9
Friday- 8:30-9

PRABE Reflection #4

This week, I continued my reading of "Accidental Pharisees" by Larry Osborne. I progressed to the end of the book this week, and it has been a very interesting, and challenging read.

I read part 3 this week, called "Gift Projection", which essentially talks about the various "gifts" associated with Christianity (some people are gifted evangelists, others gifted to lead the missional front in other countries, some gifted to be pastors and preachers, etc.).

The author reveals a view of these gifts that I have heard very little of before, and would venture to guess many in the Christian community would not be thrilled about the ideas that he presents. He suggests that "gift projection" happens when people with a given gift, such as being a missionary project this onto all Christians, creating an environment where missionaries are held up as "ideal" Christians that everyone should strive to emulate. He argues that different people are given different god-given gifts and that suggesting that one is superior to another produces an environment of guilt that does little to help and, he suggests, is not biblical. 

The author also discusses another idea that was new to me, calling it "gift-envy." This is when we see someone around us who has a certain gift and feel envy towards them becomes we don't have the same natural gift. This typically happens with high-profile gifts like bible-teachers, missionaries, and spiritual risk-takers. Some people are blessed with the ability to crave taking risks and living moments where if God doesn't come through, they will be in big trouble, others prefer more security--the author suggests that neither of this is wrong if it fits your God-given tendencies.

All of these idea, like much of the rest of the book, presented new and challenging ideas that have caused me to re-evaluate how I view the topics discussed. This book certainly has presented ideas in a way that counter that which I was grown up being taught as right, so it is always a challenge to try to discern between the truth of the new ideas and those which I have been raised with.

Reading Log:
Monday- 8:30-9
Tuesday- 8:30-8:45
Wednesday- 8:30-9
Thursday- 8:30-8:45
Friday- 8:30-9

PRABE Reflection #3

This week I continued my reading of Accidental Pharisees by Larry Osborne. This has been a book that has really challenged a lot of the beliefs that I have held (knowingly or unknowingly), or at the very least, challenged me to consider why I hold the beliefs that I do and evaluate whether or not they are truly founded on biblical principles.
       One of the chapters I read this week was called "The problem with Rose-Colored Memories (Why These Might be the Good Old Days). In this chapter, the author discusses how many Christians (and churches in general) tend to view the past as the good old days, and hold more of a doomsday, everything's going to hell view of today. He then suggests that, perhaps, many who hold these views are remembering "the good old days" as far better than they were and taking a too critical view of the present. This whole idea connected with me, because while I am not a "doomsday" type of person when thinking about the present time, it is easy to get caught up in the many preachers, scholars, etc. who like to preach about how society is becoming more and more sinful and everyone needs to change our ways and revert more back to how things were 10, 20 or however many years ago. In the book, the author provides biblical examples that show how people and churches had significant issues during biblical times as well. In fact, many such issues look a lot like the issues we have today. Whether it be churches full of "lukewarm" Christians or individuals struggling with conforming to ideals of society-- these have been issues since the beginning of time. This isn't to say that we shouldn't strive to correct this, but suggesting that people today are horribly corrupt and need to be more like it was "back then" is inaccurate and creates more of an opportunity for pride and talking down to others than it does open communication and accountability so that we can actually improve.
        Some of the overall takeaways from this book have had some significant impact on my current beliefs and are causing me to reevaluate much of the ideals and beliefs that I have grown up with. A mentor of mine recommended this book, and I'm not sure if it's because he noticed this particular struggle in my life, but in reading this book I have realized that I have struggled with being far too judgmental; and not enough focused on grace and forgiveness. This book has also forced me to reflect on whether or not I spend my time thinking and telling others about what is truly important. If I'm being honest, the past year or two I have fallen into the line of thinking of "The way is narrow and few will find it." This is a popular verse to preach on today, where the speaker essentially uses this verse from Matthew to tell everyone (even "Christians") that they may not actually be Christians because their lives haven't changed enough and this likely means they don't "truly" believe- therefore they are not "truly" saved. For the past two years or so, I have based my faith on this principle and felt it my duty to judge others and convey the message of: "Your life doesn't look "Christian" enough, therefore you may not actually be a Christian." Often using the verse mentioned above as evidence. However, this book has helped me realize this line of thinking leaves out a very significant aspect of following Jesus-- The Grace brought through the death and resurrection of Jesus on the cross. This grace means we don't have to be perfect. And that so long as we believe in him, and continue to confess our sin, ask for forgiveness, and try to drawer nearer to him-- we are saved.
     I still wouldn't say that I have a all of this figured out, but this book has been very helpful in encouraging me to evaluate what I believe, why I believe it, and to test and see if this actually aligns with the biblical teachings of Jesus.

Reading Log:
Monday- 8:30-9am
Tuesday-- 8:30-9am
Wednesday:8:30-8:45
Thursday: 8:30-9:00

PRABE Reflection #2

This week, I spent my "free" reading time with the book "Accidental Pharisees" by Larry Osbourne. This book addresses ways in which Christians will "over zealous faith" have the potential to create an environment of pride and exclusivity rather than acceptance and love. I started reading this book at the recommendation of a mentor of mine after some conversations we had regarding faith and what it really means to be a follower of Jesus.

I finished nearly the first 100 pages of the book this week and it has provided challenging and thought-provoking ideas for me. Osbourne references the Pharisees from the bible as a means of exemplifying how good intentions when trying to develop committed relationship with God can sometimes turn into oppressing others and an attitude of judgement.

One particular idea that resonated with me was Osbourne's discussion of various "groups" of Christians. He talks about "radical Christians", "organic Christians" and a few others. The main idea with this was to identify how certain groups create criteria by which they determine who is truly "Christian" and who is not. For example, radical Christians reference that the bible says that Christians will experience many trials and therefore feel that anyone who is not experiencing what they consider significant trials- then they must not truly be a Christian. Other groups suggest that if you have "too big" of a house or too nice of a car, then you are too focused on materialism and must not be a true Christian. The author suggests that this is "litmus test Christianity" and fails to see the whole picture (we often are judging people's actions or possessions without full knowledge of everything else that they do/believe), and ultimately is a faith of comparing ourselves to others and creating "requirements" that may not be rooted in biblical truth.

So far, this book has definitely presented ideas that goes against how I was raised, and it has been challenging to read with an open mind and consider his points and find a way to grapple with what I believe to be true. But, I think it is an important step to maturing and really understanding what I believe.

Reading Log:
Monday: 8:30-9:00am
Tuesday: 8:30-8:45am
Wednesday: 8:30-9:00am
Thursday: 8:30-8:45am

Reflection #1

 Throughout the past week, I have been reading a book called "Under the Bar", by Dave Tate. Dave is the owner of Elite Fitness, a company that builds equipment for weightlifting and powerlifting. In this book, he discusses lessons of life that he has learned while being involved in the world of powerlifting as a competitive athlete.

This week, I made it through the first eight chapters of the book. Each chapter begins with an idea (chapter one- Aim, chapter 2- Attitude, etc.) and Dave delves into explaining how events in his life has helped him develop a certain skill or altered his outlook on life.

Chapter 2, titled "attitude" was a chapter that has really stuck with me and made an impact on my thought process throughout the week. Dave talks about attitude, suggesting at the start of the chapter that he defines attitude as "approaching life and work with passion, a smile, and a positive state of mind." He continues to say, "Attitude is a clear indication of who you really are and who you really want to be. If you are not where you'd like to be-- or at least on your way-- then the first place to look is attitude. The most important thing to keep in mind is that YOU choose your attitude in response to any given situation" (Tate, 27).

This last part of the statement is what really hit me-- YOU choose your attitude in response to any given situation. It is your responsibility. This reminded of another quote I heard somewhere that goes something like this: "Life is 10% what happens and 90% how you respond." This is both a freeing and terrifying thought at the same time. Often times, I like to blame others, or even just "circumstances" for what happens in my life, Dave boldly challenges this and suggests that we are in control of how we respond and how we approach life-- and this can make all of the difference.

This leads me to another idea that really challenged me throughout this week, Dave says, "when things go wrong, as they inevitably will, then learn from the mistakes-- and let it go." The idea here is that we often hold onto mistakes, thinking of them as failures and allow it to dictate much more of our lives that necessary. I have struggled with this a lot throughout my life and this perspective provides a sense of freedom that is invigorating-- when you encounter a mistake that seems monumental, simply take time to reflect and discover what you can learn from the situation and then get on with life. Keep moving forward-- don't let your past dictate your future. This may sound like "ra-ra" cheezy talk, but there is a lot of truth to it!

Reading Log:

Monday- 8:30 am-9:00am
Tuesday- 8:30am-9:00am
Wednesday- 8:30am-8:45am
Friday-8:30am-8:45 am