The Catfish Gospel

Technology

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Thu, 29 May 2008 16:24:00 +0000

Technology is neutral. It's not good or bad (or for this blog, it's not catfish or gospel). However, we all know there are a lot of people using technology today to promote and distribute catfish. What are some ways you have seen technology being redeemed by the gospel? hint: this site doesn't count.

Graphic Design Produces Catfish Gospel Experience

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 03:16:00 +0000

I really need to take more time to write on this particular blog in my world. The idea is (like the song lyric it comes from) there is a lot of "catfish" out there - we live in a dirty, messy, smelly world! In the midst of all the crud, there is a beautiful Gospel power that redeems the world's "catfish" into something beautiful. If we pay attention, there are moments and experiences every day in which the Spirit of God actively redeems things not usually considered to be holy.

I had one such experience today while attempting to create a sermon series graphic for our church. Our next series is called "Love Like Jesus." I searched for images with every possible combination of search terms, and on every possible graphic site I know of. Although I came up with several clever metaphors to use, I just wasn't finding anything. I finally gave up and decided to use the web image I had created (it's not all that great, but it works) in the bottom corner of the graphic set, and I began looking for a red "swoop" type image to add across the bottom of the image. As I began searching for the swoop, I found the perfect image to use for the series set! It wasn't until I gave up on trying to be clever that I finally found what I didn't know I was looking for.

John Piper, a pastor whose wisdom often blows me away, posted this quote last week:

No man can bear witness to Christ and to himself at the same time. No man can give the impression that he himself is clever and that Christ is mighty to save. (Quoted in John Stott, Between Two Worlds, 325)

This week, my friend Jen also shared a scripture passage that had been impacting her. I think God may be using the repeat-it-'till-he-listens method on me with this one! I'll leave you with I Corinthians 2:1-5:

1When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.^[a] 2For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 5so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

Best Fishing

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 02:09:00 +0000

The following is my paraphrase of a story told by Gene Apple of Willow Creek Church at a conference recently. The story illustrates why it is important to endure the difficulties that go along with change.

"My family and I take a fishing trip to the same lake every year. I've been fishing here since I was a boy, and on the lake I have a favorite fishing spot. The problem is, the place where we have to put our fishing boat on the water is 20 miles from our cabin. So we get up early, drive the 20 miles to the lake, and put the boat on the water. Once we're on the water, we have to go to the other side of the lake, dodging skiers, swimmers, and other lake traffic. On the far side of the lake is a little channel. The channel is about 100 yards long and only about 5 feet wide. The water is covered with lily pads, and tall willow trees line both sides of the channel. It is slow going, but our fishing boat just fits through the channel. As we travel down the channel, the water gets increasingly shallow, and we must raise the motor on the boat. And as we go farther along, the water gets even more shallow, to the point where the motor has to be completely out of the water. From there, we use oars to row ourselves along, but eventually the water gets so shallow the boat actually hits ground. The last 50 feet my family gets out of the boat and carries me...no, we all get out, and we actually carry the boat the rest of the way. And it's hard work! By the end of the channel, we're all very tired. But, the lake on the other side is beautiful, and the fishing is good! We always come back with buckets and buckets of great fish. Why don't more people fish this side of the lake? Because, getting there is very difficult. Is it worth it? You better believe it's worth it!

For many of us, the Christian life is much like this. It's a struggle to serve others, it's hard to reach out to people different than us. It takes a lot of work to care about people far from God, and we often get hurt when we make ourselves vulnerable and available. Change is never easy, yet we may need to change our methods, our styles, or our ministry practices to reach out to more people. The deeper we get, the harder the struggles seem to be.

But - is it worth it? Yes! you better believe it's worth it!"

Anne Jackson -- UGANDA: the burden of wealth

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 16:28:00 +0000

Here is an excerpt from Anne's blog today:
(Read the rest of the post here.)

contrast.

there’s so much of a contrast here.

we’re sitting in our bus, driving to another project, and no matter where it is i look, the contrast is striking.

the colors in nature…the rich greens and reds in the grass and the mud…and the unsaturated grey in the sky.

the cars and motorbikes that crowd the roads…and the goat i see about ten feet outside of my window…and the cattle that passed by our bus yesterday.

the skyscrapers in downtown kampala…and the rows of small markets of local vendors selling plantains and brooms.

$9 rent

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 20:53:00 +0000

http://www.flowerdust.net/?p=671

Do you pay more than $9 in rent? Imagine it...and check out the link.

Cletus take the reel

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 16:10:00 +0000

Carrie Underwood can sing. But so can Cletus.

Reflection and Affection

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:39:00 +0000

Check out this link to a GREAT post on the relationship between our heart's affection for God and our mind's reflection on who God is. Warning: If you don't want to study scripture, or if you want to have an academic understanding of God with no emotion involved, don't read this article!

Reflection and Affection

Reclaiming the Catfish Gospel Blog

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 19:27:00 +0000

This has been an interesting year of blogging for me. I confess I have fewer posts than I'd hoped, and I have blurred the lines of what the "Catfish Gospel Blog" was intended to be. I have decided to reclaim this blog for what it should be: journaling my observations of gospel redemption in a messy world. From here on out, that's what it will be. For those of you who only watch this blog for posts about my family, I have created a new blog for that. The address is codyvilla.blogspot.com, and you can subscribe to the feed on that page. I will make every attempt to post more pictures of JC and the family this year, as I know I have not met some of y'all's standards thus far. I do hope many of you will enjoy the posts on this blog in the coming year.

I am also beginning a third blog project in 2008 (that's right - three blogs!). Check out lightyoke.blogspot.com for more info on that project. It should be interesting! So, if you haven't subscribed to my blogs yet, here they are in random order:

codyvilla.blogspot.com - an informal blog with pictures and info about my family.
catfishgospel.blogspot.com - Observations of gospel redemption in a messy world.
lightyoke.blogspot.com - Testing the "Light Yoke." A quest for discipline.

Free Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 22:42:00 +0000

Free lunch is always a good thing...almost always. It's not a good thing when the manager of the restaurant is "comping" your lunch with his sincerest apologies!

JC and I spent much of the morning Christmas shopping, and Kristen was shopping separately with her sister Allison. We decided to meet up for lunch, even though JC and I had already eaten. Since only Kristen and Ali would eat, we decided to go somewhere nice at Village Pointe. Alli and I ordered waters, and Kristen ordered a diet coke. So far so good...

When the waiter came back with our drinks, he set Alli's water down, then reached Kristen's coke to her, and somehow in the reaching process lost control of my water, which was still on his tray, which was hovering somewhere over JC's head. What transpired may give me nightmares for a week. The water - no, ICE water - spilled, overflowing the drink tray and proceeding to DRENCH my son right before my eyes. The icy flow began about mid-scalp, wetting his bangs down to his eyebrows as if he was taking a bath. His face and eyes were downstream, and they too were soaked. As the waiter (who was surely by now tasting both his heart and his stomach at the same time) tried to catch what he could, he threw water my direction. I can't complain much about the water spots on my pants, as JC had to remove much of his clothing.

JC's response: Much wailing & flailing.
Dad's response: Pick him up, dry him off...not enough...
Mom's response: Take him to the bathroom and do whatever it is that moms do best, which worked well. Within a few minutes, he was back at the table as if nothing had happened.

Needless to say, our lunch was free. The waiter apologized at least six times. The manager thanked us for handling it so well...I'm not sure what good it would have done to be really mad about it. It could have been the glass that hit him instead of the water, or worse, the water could have been hot. We all had a good laugh about it at the end of lunch, and we still left a tip. I bet the kid was surprised, but I hope it helps spread a little Christmas cheer. If nothing else, he'll remember the day he dumped ice-water on a baby and still got a tip! HA! I love that. Anyway, the moral of the story is, it could always be worse. OR Free lunch is always worth it...thanks, JC, for taking one for the team.

THE GREATEST FIGHT SCENE

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 22:41:00 +0000

Yeah, this is worth a re-post. Thanks, Jared...I'll never get those two minutes back again!

FROM GREG ADKINS: “What you are about to see is completely unbelievable. Yes, more amazing than any Steve Perry sound alike in a hotel lobby could ever be. This is the greatest fight scene ever. I don't care what movie you want to stack against this, I guarantee you it will lose. This is hands down the greatest thing I have ever seen.

The scene is from a 1985 film called Gymkata. It's about an olympic gymnist who is also a ninja. He has invented a new style of martial arts called Gymkata that combines gymnastics and karate. The movie is NOT a comedy. I repeat, this is not intentionally funny.

Things of note: (1) The sound effects are probably the best I have ever heard. (2) The crowd shots of the angry mob. Awesome. (3) The classic ninja movie rule is in effect here... a crowd of ninjas / villagers / goons can only attack the hero one at a time. Under no circumstances may all of the bad guys attack at the same time. (4) Whenever I get attacked by an angry mob, the first thing I look for is a pommel horse.

Enough talking... enjoy. Please comment with your immediate thoughts. Mine were HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA THIS CAN'T BE REAL LET ME CHECK WIKIPEDIA OKAY IT'S REAL HA HA HA HA HA HA HA.”

Great Quote on Worship

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 21:38:00 +0000

Is your worship service about you serving the Lord (cf., Acts 17:25)? Or, is your worship service about the Lord serving you and then your responding in faith with an Amen to all that God has done for you in Christ (Guilt/Grace/Gratitude)?

To read more: http://gospeldriven.wordpress.com/2007/12/03/what-is-worship/

Innovation: On the Shoulders of Giants

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 22:19:00 +0000

Ok, so this is a truly innovative invention...modified only slightly. Interesting, though - it was invented for those who can't, and now those who can want to use it to. Watch and understand...

Tacos for Tots

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 01:49:00 +0000

Paying it Forward 20 Years

The link above is to a news article about my dad. I'm pretty proud of him. You can follow the link to read about the Tacos for Tots event.

Wave of Sorrows

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 04:54:00 +0000

One of my favorite rock albums is "Joshua Tree" by U2. Check out this video of Bono describing and singing a song that was written for the album but was not finished until now. Truly amazing.

www.ilike.com/u2

$2,600.00

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 00:22:00 +0000

$2,600 would buy me a pretty sweet new iMac, now shipping with the Leopard OS. With a bit of software, I could be up and running with my own home production studio. And more than that, it would look sweet sitting on my desk. In fact, now that I've been obsessing about it, I can't really look at my desk without picturing it right there between my PC and my iBook. "Look at you, iMac! All self-contained!"

$2,600 dollars, and it would be mine. I could consider it an investment. A business investment of sorts that will produce income once things get rolling. A couple big projects and it practically pays for itself! I'm actually losing money by not buying it, right? Yeah, that's right...keep convincing me. I can be won over with a good argument. It's not just something I want, I NEED an iMac!

$2,600 consumes my mind as I drive to lunch. Mondays are my day off, so JC and I hang out together and do father/son stuff. As I drive to meet Kristen at her school (the new job is going great by the way), the radio is on, but my mind is still panning through the loads of images apple.com has of its products. I saw them over and over during JC's morning nap. I know I'm obsessing, but it's such a fun obsession. And I could do a lot of good with an iMac. I just can't figure out how I lived this long without one.

$2,600 is hard to come by...I have a lot of bills, and it would take me a long time to save that much money. It's probably not a reality, so I need to get my mind off this stuff. The radio isn't helpful. It rarely is. I've heard each station three times...I guess I'll just listen to the interview on the local Christian radio station. There's a sweet Jamaican accent speaking! Typical...he's asking for money. "If ya save ya change fram naw til Christmas, you could save arawnd $130. That would help a poor Jamaican family." Typical...if I saved my change from now til Christmas, I would be $2,470 away from my iMac! Then the DJ came back on. I'll admit, there was a lot of passion in the man's voice, and he seemed to be moving the DJ enough to plead with us. "That's right folks. $87 will build a foundation for a new home. $160 covers the cost of a roof. $335 provides two windows, a door and a frame. And for $2,600 you could build an entire home for a poor family in Jamaica."

$2,600. I spent the morning obsessing - just short of praying to God - for $2,600. I want to put a fancy computer screen in the corner of my home office. I want to set it next to the two computers I already have, across the room from the TV, down the stairs from the stereo, down the hall from the TV in my bedroom where I set my Motorola cell phone every night as I lay my head down in the most comfortable bed we could find when we got married. I'll wake up, complain about the chill in the bedroom as I walk 5 feet to my double sink bathroom, and heat up the shower for a couple minutes before standing under the hottest water I can stand for at least 15 minutes. Then I'll go to my stainless steel fridge and complain about my food selection, and since I can't make up my mind, I'll just get McDonald's breakfast on my way to work in my new (to me) van. When I get to work, I'll push the button that opens the door of the van so JC can get out and go in to the daycare where he gets well cared for and fed.

$2,600 - if only I had the money for that new iMac, my possessions would be complete. Well...sort of. Once I have a new iMac, I'd soon need to upgrade that phone of mine to an iPhone. After all, why wouldn't I want to connect to my computer from...everywhere. I'd probably have to have an apple tv unit, too, because my 24" iMac isn't big enough to watch the movies I just bought. Oh, but my TV I have now isn't compatible...oh well, for another $2,600 I could have the biggest tv in the store! I really don't NEED one that big...I wonder what I can get for half that? $1,300 will still buy me a sweet TV.

$2,600 means a lot more to a poor family in Jamaica. It means a cement foundation, a roof, two windows and a door, and walls. I don't know if any of that goes towards pluming or not. And they didn't say anything about a fridge, tv, bed, or cell phone. And I'm guessing there's not an apple store in this part of Jamaica. But they don't need those things. They need the things I take for granted. The things I've never been without for even one day.

$2,600 would take me about a year to save, maybe more. I'm over-extended because of all the things I want. In a year, I could put a shiny new iMac on my desk. Or, 12 months from now a family could move into a new home that my money built, the money I saved for them. They could know what it's like to wake up with their own roof over their heads because of my generosity.

$2,600 is my obsession. As I pulled up to Kristen's school, I wiped the tears from my eyes, turned the radio down, and greeted my wife. Over lunch we discussed the remaining luxuries in our lives we can cut out. I will save $2,600. And through prayer and the prompting of the Holy Spirit, I will condition myself to be generous with the blessings God has given me. $2,600 is a lot of money to me, and I can't wait to experience the blessing of being a blessing when I can give $2,600 away to someone who needs it more than I want it.

KGBI Omaha - Food for the Poor

Long Day

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 05:07:00 +0000

Well, it's been a long day, but we're here in Swea City visiting my parents and family. JC had fun with grandpa tonight, and after a little fight, he and Kristen went up to bed. I want so badly to be able to post the pictures/video of the following story, but my Motorola SLVR and my iBook are not friends...according to the internet.

I was just sitting at the kitchen table catching up on my blog reading, when suddenly my dad started saying something to my mom about the oven smoking. I didn't think much of it because when I lived at home, these kinds of arguments were pretty frequent:
dad: what's burning?
mom: nothing! It's fine...it just dripped a little in the oven.
dad: it smells awful! It's smoking!
mom: don't worry about it. leave my kitchen alone!

and so on, and so on with playful arguing over mom's cooking...no big deal. Well, tonight mom used the wrong pan to make chocolate chip bars, and the bars over-flowed the pan while baking. There was some serious smoke, and lots of drippage, but for some reason mom decided the bars that were still in the pan were more important than the bars on the bottom of the oven, touching the burner! Sure enough, a couple minutes later the smoke was back, and where there's smoke...THERE'S A FIRE!!! Flames, rising up from the bottom of the oven. Mom was surprisingly calm, while dad freaked out. The flaming bars were scraped off the burner, and the half-baked pan of chocolate chip bars seemed to be in the clear. Only problem: the pan was still overflowing.

What happened next needs pictures to make it work...and hopefully I'll have them tomorrow. Let's just say, this is the first time I've not been able to differentiate an electric oven for a wood-burning oven. Dad was scraping with a spatula, mom was now freaking out, and I was in the middle of things snapping pictures and video with my phone, laughing my head off! It's good to be home...minus the smoke inhalation damage.

The Gospel According to Jesus (2 of 2)

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 04:22:00 +0000

In Matthew 18, Jesus teaches Peter about forgiveness. Here are a few facts:

Jewish law said one must forgive 3 times. Peter asked Jesus if 7 was enough, realizing that things were different with Jesus, and expecting that 3 was not enough.
Whether Jesus said 77 or 70*7, he means a lot.
In the parable, the 10,000 talents equals about $6 billion dollars in Omaha today. 100 Denarri equals about $16,000.

Gavin made a couple great observations in his talk at the college ministry he pastors. First of all, 16k is not a small number. Often we think of the story like the second amount is 50 cents or so, but it's much more than that. Gavin pointed out that Jesus probably picked this number intentionally, as if to say "I realize you have HUGE debts to forgive yourself." Jesus realizes forgiveness doesn't come easy, and in many cases can't happen when we try to do it ourselves.

What really sticks out to me now from this passage is the last line Jesus says. He tells Peter that forgiveness comes from the heart. This is huge! I am really bad at this kind of forgiveness. I am fairly good at forgiveness of the mind, in that I can rationalize anything to the point where I can let it go. There are also times where I just "make up my mind" to let it go. But forgiveness of the heart...there's a whole 'nother deal. I understand the heart to be the part of the human being synonymous with the will, or the character. It's who you are under the hood. And our actions flow from the heart/will/character. So for us to forgive from the heart, it means we are the kind of people who naturally have forgiveness flowing out of us. This is not a decision made or a hand shaken. This is a change of who you are inside.

How do I change who I am? Unfortunately, you can't. You are who you are. But by adding an outside force to the equation, you might have a standing chance. In order to change your heart/will/character, you must allow it to be influenced by something outside yourself. Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit is in the business of changing hearts. But so are many other driving forces in our world. When we look to Jesus to form our heart/will/character after his own, he is faithful to interact with us. So forgiveness becomes less about the person who is forgiven and more about the heart of the forgiver.

We have been forgiven for much more than 10,000 days wages; the wages of our sin is death. We should have to pay the debt we owe with our lives. But we don't. Instead we have a chance to share in the glory of God, and not as servants, but as heirs to the throne! Still, some of us are not able to forgive the people in our lives who have hurt us. Some of our wounds go too deep to heal. So we carry around a burden. We take it as ours to bear. And it eats away at us. Jesus is asking for each of us to look to him as the answer. There is power in simply looking to him instead of trying on our own. It may not happen all at once. Forgiveness may need to happen over and over, as some old wounds like to resurface. But the command is still clear: forgive from the heart.

As we allow God to form us into people who forgive, this will almost always present itself as an opportunity to forgive. We must pray for these opportunities, and we must listen to the voice of God when these opportunities arise.

May God's forgiveness break our hearts today, so we may forgive others out of a renovated heart.

The Gospel According to Jesus (1 of 2)

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 23:53:00 +0000

I've been thinking about this since it came up in conversation yesterday. Could Paul's account of the Gospel throughout the New Testament be different than the one preached by Jesus? Paul's Gospel could be summed up something like this: Jesus died to forgive our sins, once for all, and he is our only hope for righteousness before God. I don't think this is contrary to Jesus, but it seems while Paul's gospel is all about grace, Jesus was often preaching about how hard it is to live rightly. Take for example the parable of the unmerciful servant. Look it up: Mat. 18:21-35. Basically, Jesus is saying that unless we are forgiving, God will not forgive us. Would Paul agree? Or would he say God loves us in spite of our shortcomings of non-forgiveness? What would most Christians say today? I think we often lean on Pauline grace instead of living in light of the Gospel. The Gospel isn't a rule to follow (forgive those who sin against you) but a lifestyle change (you have been forgiven, so forgive).

I look forward to hearing more from the source of the discussion, and I'll post a follow up later this week. If you are reading this and you have thoughts, let's hear 'em!

I Grow by Believing

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 23:20:00 +0000

Q - What one thing can you do this week to grow in your Christian faith?

Many answers come to mind when pressed with this question. The common ones are probably read the bible, pray, serve the poor, attend a service of some sort, etc., while some may even include confession, fasting, or some other "deeper" Christian discipline. While all these disciplines surely are useful for growth, I would submit a slightly different answer: belief. There is so much scripture (John 6:28-29, Col. 2:6, I Tim. 1:3-5, Gal. 5:6) surrounding this idea of belief, and a quick breeze through Matthew (8:26, 14:31, 16:8, 17:20) shows that Jesus' biggest criticism of his disciples is their lack of faith. Faith is central to the Gospel.

That's great, but how do I grow by believing? The exciting thing about Christian growth is that God is the one who does the growing. Faith is not the gospel's power in our lives, and it's a good thing, because if it were, we would be limited by the amount of faith we have. Jesus says that faith the size of a mustard seed could move a mountain. This is true because faith is not the power that moves, it is the switch that allows the Holy Spirit to flow. And believe me, if faith the size of a mustard seed could switch on the power of the Holy Spirit, mountains indeed would move. Faith, then, is the instrument for receiving the power of God in our lives.

You may be feeling this way: "Faith is some kind of spiritual energy you get when you obey. I do not have much of it." This vague feeling is common among Christians, yet it's a misunderstanding of faith. The truth is, faith is simply a sinner looking to Christ. This looking is the instrument of change.

So, to grow as a Christian this week, simply look to Christ. Many times we sin and repent, then sin again and figure 'what's the point?' 'I'm just going to do it again anyway.' That IS the point! You will sin again, probably sooner than later. But by looking to Jesus instead of ourselves to make things right, we exercise faith, which switches on the power of the Holy Spirit to work in our lives.

What area of your spiritual life are you trying rather than trusting God?
What would trusting God in this area do to your spiritual life?

Going All the Way

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 15:44:00 +0000

One of my favorite pastors at one of my favorite churches has just finished a book entitled, "Going All the Way: Planning for a Marriage That Goes the Distance." This book is out and will soon be on my shelf, because those of us already married know that the planning doesn't stop at 'I do'. I'll be reviewing the book for you once I've read it, but I wanted to give you the heads up on a new book from a great author.

For more from Craig Groeschel and lifechurch, check out lifechurch.tv for more great books and weekly sermon video. I've been an "attender" at their internet campus for a year now, and I can't tell you enough great things!

In Reply to Julie

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 18:09:00 +0000

"Julie said...

are you on another sabbath?

9/12/2007 10:00 AM"

I knew it would come, and then it came
your comment was funny, but all the same
I have to mount a personal defense
That will show my latest absence
Is justified, though not necessarily excused

Work has been fast paced
It feels like an arms race
My sick kid has needed my
extra attention, and that has tried
my patience, not necessarily my strength

My blog is important in the scheme
Of my own sanity, and others seem
to desire more thoughts written out
for all; So to your comment about
blog Sabbath, though not necessarily unmerited

no.

Blog Sabbath

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 02:59:00 +0000

In church this morning, we studied sabbath. I have been on "blog sabbath" for the month of August. My apologies to all my many readers (especially Julie) for not posting a pre-sabbath blog to let you know not to expect anything for a month. However, I didn't actually go on sabbath until halfway through August. :)

Good news, I'm back. I've re-discovered a lot about myself this past month, and I'm sure I'll be hashing many thoughts out here. One such re-discovery is how much I love reading Plato! Being a Philosophy major, I've read and studied a lot of Plato's writings. However, I haven't read Plato at all since college, and I'm not sure I've ever read his writings for pure pleasure. This past week, Diane has started reading The Republic through a site that gives you a daily chunk of the book by email. She said the passage she was reading reminded her of me, and as she started reading some of it out loud, I realized how much I enjoy the "Socratic Method" that Plato employs. In much of Plato's writings, the main character, Socrates, is a wise old man whom young students come to for answers to hard questions. Often they are trying to define hard words such as knowledge, love, or justice. The Socratic Method is where the student asks Socrates a question (what is the meaning of Justice?) to which Socrates provides an answer (that the student always agrees with), only to completely refute the answer by asking the student a series of logical questions. Here is an example from Plato's Republic.

Tell me, do you think there is such a thing as a function of a horse?
I do.
And would you define the function of a horse or of anything else as that which one can do only with it or best with it?
I don't understand.
Let me put it this way: is it possible to see with anything other than eyes?
Certainly not.
Or to hear with anything other than ears?
No.
Then, we are right to say that seeing and hearing are the function of eyes and ears?
Of course.
What about this?
Could you use a dagger or a carving knife or lots of other things in pruning a vine?
Of course.
But wouldn't you do a finer job with a pruning knife, designed for the purpose than with anything else?
You would.
Then shall we take pruning to be its function?
Yes.
Now, I think you'll understand what I was asking earlier when I asked whether the function of each thing is what it alone can do or what it does better than anything else.

This is an example of the Socratic Method. Socrates is the character asking all the questions and posing all the answers. The fun part is that he's about to ask the unwise character to agree with the function of something (justice) only to ask another question that makes the function of justice something completely different! For some, this is confusing and a waste of time. But for me, it's like climbing a mountain: once you get to the top, there's nothing to do but go back down again...but it's not the destination that gives the journey meaning, but the journey itself.

Monday's with JC

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 14:12:00 +0000

As most of you know, I take Monday's off to spend with JC. Yesterday was an exceptional day with him (maybe because of the 3 1/2 hours of naptime!). We had a lot of fun together, as you will see below. The highlight of the day was the short walk we took at Lake Zorinsky. Here's a picture of JC with my hat on!

And here are a couple videos of him dancing!

As much fun as I had spending time with JC, I was able to spend a refreshing amount of time with God yesterday, too. Sunday was my personal dedication to ministry. I have always known I wanted to be in ministry (whether that means in the church or in the business world), but something changed on Sunday while I attended a 75th anniversary celebration for my in-law's church in Fremont. God definitely had a sense of humor in this one, because the service was 2 hours long on a Sunday afternoon, and I didn't know any of the old guys who were speaking. But it was God who would do the speaking, and while they were celebrating 75 years of church history, I was being commissioned for church future. The interesting thing about God's clear message to me is the first season he has called me to: prayer. Again with the humor, God has me all fired up for ministry, though I don't know what it is, and yet my first assignment is to spend an undefined amount of time in prayer and scripture before a holy God.

God, in his wisdom, gave JC a long afternoon nap, of which I prayed. And prayed. And read, and prayed. And for the first time in a long while, I wasn't praying for answers. I was on my face before the Most High, in the presence of the Holy One. I was asking about the future, but not with anxiety, but rather with excited anticipation of the next season of life. The where, what, and how weren't important...they why and who were ever so clear.

I spent a lot of time yesterday listening for God to speak clearly. I heard nothing...instead, I experienced his presence, his peace, and his comfort. I could feel the Holy Spirit in the room as if he were standing over me, saying nothing, yet his message was clear: "Recognize your sinfulness! Your ministry is not about you or your efforts. It is the work of Christ in you that will impact the world."

Come, Jesus. Come.

Derek Webb - intro to The Wedding Dress

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 14:57:00 +0000

Tubes

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 21:37:00 +0000

JC went in to have tubes put in his ears this morning. He's a trooper...check out his stylin' threds!

He's home and doing great. The drugs they used made him pretty tired...he slept for four hours for mom today!