In the middle of a much longer and thoughtful post on trust, Jared at the Thinklings wrote this:

Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
This conviction of things not seen isn’t just about trusting God to use our mess for glory; it’s also about trusting He’s in control of that mess and that there really is a higher order in place to which the mess is subject.

That one made me, and still makes me, go hmmm ….
The first part – that faith is more than trusting God to use our mess – and the last part – that there is a higher order at work than we can see – I’m completely on board with. The idea that God is bigger than our mess and that He knows what’s happening and can see much farther and wider than we can is absolutely key to making it through the tough times with one’s faith intact.
It’s the middle part – that God is in control of my mess – that makes me scratch my head. Jared’s a Calvinist and believes, I think, that God is in direct control over everything. If I understand that right, that includes his writing his post, it’s exact wording and my writing my response (does that make God responsible from my typos?). Jared and I have been ’round and ’round on this a couple of times before and he’s even won me over a bit.
His quote here takes me back to that age old question, how much control over the world does God really execute? I will not disagree with Jared that God is ultimately in control. Where I have disagreed is that it seems to me that God has allowed us some freedom, some sovereignty, over our own lives and destinies. We wield that sovereignty to our own peril as we are not equipped to direct our own affairs in this world saturated in sin. Nonetheless, God has afforded us that opportunity. Given us enough rope to hang ourselves, if you will.
Yet every time I come back to this question, I find both answers lacking. A God that is directing and determining every action seems uncaring and distant. Yet so does a God who’s sitting back and watching, waiting for us to ‘get it’. Is there a middle ground, or perhaps some other off-to-the-side ground where God operates?
What do you have to say about this?

For her 10th birthday this month, my middle daughter received this cool book from her Aunt Jenny. It’s called Good and Evil, and it’s a retelling of the Bible story in comic book form. Not a Bible in comic book form, this is a comic book telling the Bible story as written by Michael Pearl.

Before there was a beginning; before the first man was created; before the earth, the sun, the stars, even before light and time were created, there was God. He alone existed without beginning, but he was not lonely. He communed with himself in a perfect trinity of love. But God wanted to share his life. He wanted friends and neighbors. The Bible tells us in eternity past God created numerous kinds of angelic beings to offer praise around his throne but this is not their story.
This is the story of God working with mankind.(From the back cover.)

It’s true to the form of a comic book and has beautiful (if sometimes graphic) art drawn by a former Marvel Comics artist. Why Bible comic book? Well, the comic book format is popular around the world and especially in areas of the world with little knowledge of the Bible. As a comic book, rather than a religious text, it has access to markets that a Bible can’t get to.

We have created a product that will sell itself on an roadside stand in Thailand or India. It will find acceptance in countries otherwise closed to Christians. A box of them can be given to a Moslem or Hindu vendor, and he will put them on his stand for sale. They will go where no Bible is allowed, but will carry the same message. (From the Introduction.)

It’s not the Bible, it’s one man’s retelling of the Bible story. As such, there will be embellishments and disagreements on the content (I wish he hadn’t omitted the David and Goliath story and the disconnection of baptism and forgiveness is unfortunate in my view). I haven’t read the whole thing yet, but it comes across as a cool book that portrays God’s story in a unique and attractive way. I really appreciate the passion both for the comic cook genre and for getting the Bible story into hands that may not otherwise have the chance to read it.
What’s more, in the first 3 days Emily had already read 20 pages. That’s good enough for me.

On my Monday drive to work, I’m listening to NPR as usual and I hear the following.
First, is a short news story from the local station about how Michelle Incanno from Springboro OH is boycotting Starbucks Coffee. Why? Well, I guess Starbucks has been printing little sayings from customers on their cups and Michelle got one where a customer calls God a “figment of our imagination” and that didn’t sit right with her. (There’s no online story from the NPR affiliate, so here’s the story from the Dayton Daily News.)
From the local news to Morning Edition and this story about the Pope’s visit to Brazil and his conflict with a Brazilian Catholic movement called Liberation Theology.

Brazil’s Catholic clergy is actively, at times defiantly, pursuing the struggle for social justice on behalf of the poor: Catholic bishops stage hunger strikes to halt dam projects that they say put profits of big business above the needs of the people. They broker deals with banks to build housing for the homeless. And priests take to the airwaves to denounce the growing footprint of agro-business that has cut down the rainforest to make way for cattle and much-in-demand soy.

The contrast of this was striking to me.
In America, a woman ‘sacrifices’ a $3 cup of coffee in the name of God.
In Brazil, Catholic clergy face down governments for the sake of the poor, in the name of God.
Now, in some respects I applaud Michelle’s convictions and her taking a stand against a business that she sees as opposed to God. I also don’t buy Starbucks’ response that the views aren’t their own. Sure, a customer submitted it, but Starbucks chose to print it. It’s not some rogue employee speaking out of turn, it’s a corporate decision with deliberation and forethought. That conscious choice makes it their words too in my book.
I can also see questioning whether it’s the church’s role to oppose dams and save the rainforest. I’d say, you bet it is, if those actions trample on the voiceless and discarded. Comforting and serving them after the damage is done is less valuable then standing up for them to prevent it.
Regardless, the juxtaposition of the two stories together was interesting.

From David Burchett via The Requiest:

I related a story in my book, “Bring’em Back Alive”, about a little boy with a terrible temper. His father gave him a big bag of nails and instructed him to hammer a nail into the fence every time he lost his temper. After the first day over three dozen nails were hammered into the fence. But as the days went by the little boy began to control his temper more and more. One day the boy realized that he was no longer driving nails into the fence. When he proudly told his father he was given the new task of pulling out one nail for every day he continued to hold his temper. Finally all of the nails were removed. The father took his son out to the fence. “You have done a great job, son. But look at the holes in the fence. This fence will never be like it was before. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can stick a knife in a person and no matter how many times you say I’m sorry, the wound is still there. A verbal wound is just as bad as a physical one.”

Wow, that hurts. I’ve said too may a hurtful things in my day and left far too many holes in the fence.