There, of course, were boundaries. Tend to the garden, mind the boundaries.

As we understand, the boundary was toed, and then in a moment of weakness, a moment of grasping at power, the boundary was crossed. It was in that moment that death entered the story. It may have been when her teeth sunk into the fruit, but it was probably before that, when she began to doubt.

Regardless, the death that entered the story was not a metaphorical death (although it was, certainly) but a very real, earthy, untimely death. We all feel this in our bones when we think, it wasn’t meant to be like this.

And Christ, hanging from the cross cried out about forsakenness. It wasn’t meant to be like this.

So we join in the suffering and death. We look into our own hearts, and face all the ways we add to the feeling that it wasn’t meant to be like this. The good news of Jesus is that he suffered and died to make all things new, to set things right, and to restore life to how it was meant to be.

Growing up, there wasn’t a lot of lent-love in the Craig home. Raised Baptist, I mostly (errantly) believed that Lent was a silly form of legalism created by the Catholic church to keep people afraid and in line. With little-to-no knowledge of the early church or even the fact that it’s not just Catholics who celebrate the Lenten season (whaaaaa?!), it was simpler for me to marginalize the belief and practices of others than to be self-reflective.

Discipline and Reflection

Over the years, I have become less critical of the practices of others and have personally had my eyes opened to the beauty and value of church traditions like Lent. One area that I’m still underdeveloped in, however, is the ability to be self-reflective, especially in the structured type of way that the Lenten season is carried out. Silence and stillness are two disciplines that I recognize my need for, and long to have, but I still struggle with the process of closing my mouth and opening my ears to God.
When I think about Lent, I think about a somber, silent time filled with self-reflection and confession. This season is a reflection of our God’s human suffering in the wilderness as he fasted from food and community for 40 days. Honestly, I’d rather fast from the food. The amazing part of Christ’s 40 day feat in my mind isn’t that he didn’t eat, it’s that he didn’t go crazy from the silence. In prison, solitary confinement is considered the harshest punishment, but Jesus didn’t crack a bit. Jesus was enjoying the purest community when he had no one around him at all.

Fasting for Lent

I know people giving up all sorts of things for Lent. Chocolate, coffee, social media, the list goes on. Unlike my former self, I recognize the value of these sacrifices and believe that my friends and family will grow from the experience of fasting for these 40 days. I am also fasting for Lent, but in a different way. This Lent I’m committing myself to self-reflection and personal, silent time. Fasting from the community of people to seek the community of God. Maybe I’ll journal, maybe I’ll read scripture, I’ll definitely pray, but ultimately the goal will be surrender.

God take my fear and my trembling

Take my pride with my filth

My life is but a vapor, filled with sin.

I bow knowing that this passing life

Does not deserve your grace and love.

I bow knowing that you pour it out anyway,

With a fiery grace that consumes all

That passes all understanding and quenches my thirst.

In my dirt, and greed, and turning away,

I come broken and aware.

I ask that you would cleanse me

With your blood shed.

I ask that you would touch my lips and touch my heart.

Take this life, that is but a vapor

And create beauty from the ashes.

Your cross bears my shame.

I pray that this death would join in yours

Crucifixion that sets all things right

And buries the old deep in the earth’s dirt.

Amen.

Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.

There was a time where, as a sign of repentance, the people of God would throw ashes over their heads as a sign of repentance. That has been adapted by some communities, and they place the sign of the cross on their foreheads, drawn with ash. Regardless of how we commemorate, Lent provides a time to maintain a posture of repentance.

This was appreciated by the designer because of the current lack of content being produced that’s…not ugly. It seems that for whatever reason, there is a lot of content (now more than ever) from the faith perspective done poorly. Blogs are written poorly, books are designed poorly, an so on. I don’t claim to have a corner on this market. However, I think we need to be mindful of the problem with ugly. It turns people away.
While I am saddened to read sloppily written content (content that is good no less!) and see ugly work in general, I hope that more church leaders will take notice.

Hire an editor.

Consult a designer.

Bring on an intern with a good eye and sense of style.

Do something.

After all, we reflect the master Creator.

Even patches of the man-madecounterfeit can bring pause

The sentence, which is about the impact creation can have on humans, came out of a writing exercise I completed as part of a non-fiction writing course at the University of Iowa. Not the sentence itself, but the epiphany that had to take place in order for the sentence to be written. The exercise was to carry around a notebook, everyday, and observe our surroundings. What struck us as unusual, or out of place, or mysterious, or beautiful?

Although I walked the same paths to and from class, sat in the same classrooms, roamed the same hallways, and maintained the same schedule, I began to notice peculiar things. One day, I remember being particularly struck by a bright red fire hydrant planted in a swatch of prairie grass. I was also struck by the beauty of the pentacrest lawn. The manicured shrubs and mowed grass, the precise spacing of trees, and the mixture of giant aged trees and young saplings. This was the landscape that surrounded me everyday, but I had never allowed myself to observe.

I learned a great lesson that day. Writers, along with anyone who wishes to have a deep connection and relationship with those (and those things) around them, need to master the art of observation.  

In this lesson, I uncovered a concept of the book: creation brings pause when observed. Of course, as I dug deeper, I realized that this observation spoke to the core of what it means to be human, what it means to be created in the image and likeness of the Creator, and what it means to have a relationship with the creative spirirt that set this whole thing in motion. I pray that those who read the book are lead to a place where they step into a deeper and more fruitful relationship with the creator of the heavens and the earth.

Since long before the American Revolution, the notion that Christians should be involved with government has been broadly taught, accepted and practiced. It doesn’t bear repeating here, nor is it necessary, to tell the tale of Constantine and his Divine calling and the affect that the institutionalizing of Christianity has had on European and American politics throughout history. Simply stated, the idea that God-fearing, Bible-believing Christians have a responsibility, nay, aduty to be politically active has reached a hegemonic level. Whether it’s Jim Wallis or James Dobson, Christian leaders are at the forefront of the fray, rallying troops around their own particular positions and parties. Be it a Faith and Family platform or God’s Politics, the assumption remains the same regardless of party lines: the soul of America is at stake, and it’s up to us to save it.

But beneath all of our cultural assumptions are questions that must be considered. What happens when claims based on Romans 13 are held up against Luke 22? Or when Old Testament passages are understood within their proper context? How do we choose between issues like social welfare which is generally supported by democrats, and fighting for the unborn, a Republican standard? How can we reflect God’s perfect will and Christ’s perfect example in a system that is inherently flawed and considerably un-perfect?

In the two party system, the choices we’re left with are severely lacking in a lot of ways. Beyond that, different Christians will have different ideas of what responsibilities the government should have vs. what the church should take care of. Yet listening to the discourse happening during this election cycle, it doesn’t seem anybody is taking time to reflect on these issues, instead opting for the simple way out and flocking to one ideologue or another. The “hip” Christians circle the wagons around Wallis and Obama, while the “value voters” stand with their familiar flag bearers of Dobson and the Republican party. From the looks of things, nobody seems to see a bigger picture, and that’s concerning.

The Bible does not support any one political system. Arguably, the Bible supports every political system. Free marketers will point to the book of Proverbs or Old Testament laws while liberals want to make Jesus sound like a socialist. Both sides are drunk on their own kool-aid, and both sides want to push their political position. Either way, the problem is the same: God never calls us to be involved in politics. Lets repeat that: God, at no point in scripture, commands, implies, requests or even suggests that we mobilize as a group and support a party, politician or platform. It’s just not there. That’s not to say that voting is evil, or having party affiliation will condemn you do damnation, but it is to say that God is far more concerned with our testimony and our relationship with him than he is with who wins school board, or governor, or even *gasp* president.

1 Peter 2 calls us to live as aliens in a foreign land and immediately follows up that call by telling us to submit to governing authorities. Not influence, not campaign for, not campaign against, but submit to. Our allegiance has nothing to do with America. Sure, go vote, but don’t vote because America needs its soul saved. Don’t vote because God told you to. Don’t vote because you know which candidate is a closer approximation of how Jesus would lead. Just vote because of your opinion. Your flawed, imperfect, finite, human opinion. And then accept the results happily, however the chips may fall. Remember, this world is not your home, you’re just passing through.

Jonny is a 25 year old Seminary student currently living in Des Moines, Iowa with his wife, Kayla, and son, Joseph. He enjoys getting coffee with friends, talking sports and theology and getting out to the movie theater once in awhile. He’s passionate about orphan care and the future of the American church. You can reach him at jmcraig009@gmail.com or on twitter @jonny_craig

Mandy Stewart (@messycanvas) posted a response to the book. One sentence made me particularly happy:

My first response when I opened the PDF file? This is no ordinary book.

You can read her response to the book here.

I wrote a guest post for Restoration Living, which if you remember, caught my attention with their Advent resources. I wrote about how it all has to come from somewhere, and then I took a whack at what it all means. A snippet:

When it comes to creativity, it’s important to understand that nothing is created in a vacuum. Every creative burst, every problem solved…it all comes from somewhere. Some pay homage to the Muse, and others claim evolutionary progress. But we all have a deep sense that the creativity which propels us through life is indicative of something bigger than ourselves.

You can read the entire post here.

I was also able to guest post on Echo Hub, where I posted about how the new kingdom requires creators, not “creatives”

So we have a choice. We can buy into the myth that some are creative and others aren’t, or we can play a part in creating a new reality. A reality founded in the truth that we are all created to reflect the living God. A reality that our lives are bodies of work pointing to something larger than ourselves. A reality that this life is constantly pointing to a new reality that is yet to come, full of redemption and restoration.

You can read the entire post here.

Whenever the government provides opportunities and privileges for white people and rich people they call it ‘subsidies.’ When they do it for Negro and poor people they call it ‘welfare.’ The fact is that everybody in this country lives on welfare. Suburbia was built with federally subsidized credit. And highways that take our white brothers out to the suburbs were built with federally subsidized money to the tune of ninety percent. Everybody is on welfare in this country. The problem is that we all too often have socialism for the rich and rugged free enterprise capitalism for the poor. That’s the problem.