It's About the Gospel

Most of us have heard the Sunday school version of the Gospel; that Jesus loved you and died for your sins, and it's an very important truth. But honestly, how does the Gospel infiltrate your world and radically change your lifestyle? That's the question Tim Keller asked and answered so poignantly for me in his short but power-packed book, The Prodigal God.

Tim Keller has been the most influence preacher in my Christian walk, and this book has made me more excited about my faith than I have ever been. Read it and you'll discover how "Jesus, unlike the founder of any other major faith, holds out hope for ordinary human life", how the Gospel can completely reorient your life and give reason to obey, free to live life without dread of not being accepted. And you'll learn of a love that can "delight, galvanize and console you. That will lift you up and free you from fear like nothing else."

If I could suggest one book for you to read this year, I would recommend this book above all the rest I've mentioned. If you can't get a hold of it, I’ll make you a deal. Email my dad Chris (teleoschris@gmail.com) with your shipping address and tell him Kelly told you he'd buy you a copy. He will, I guarantee it. Your end is to promise that you'll read it within a couple weeks of receiving it and send me your feedback about it. Now you have no excuses. ☺

Happy Independence Day!

Music + The Reformation = Killer

I've had the amazing blessing of staying at the beach with my family this last week. When the Taylor's are at the coast, it's basically a routine of read, eat some food, walk on the beach, play some games, read lots more, go to the coffee shop, (repeat). During my participation in phase one of this wonderful cycle, I stumbled across an awesome correlation that I'll shamefully admit I'd never considered before. The book is Francis Schaeffer's How Should We Then Live, and here's what I found:

Last post I mentioned (or rather, complained) how I couldn't really explain my music here. That's still unfortunately true, (I have horrible mental pictures of me saying, "In measure 35, the polyphonic melody switches to the left hand and reaches the phase climax four bars later. In measure 52..."). But what I can share is even cooler. Schaeffer is discussing the results of the Reformation and how it affected music. Check this out:

"Johann Sebastian Bach was certainly the zenith of the composers coming out of the Reformation. His music was a direct result of the Reformation culture and the biblical Christianity of the time, which was so much a part of Bach himself. There would have been no Bach had there been no Luther. Bach wrote on his score initials representing such phrases as: "With the help of Jesus"-- "To God alone be the glory"-- "In the name of Jesus." It was appropriate that the last thing Bach the Christian wrote was "Before Thy Throne I Now Appear." Bach consciously related both the form and the words of his music to biblical truth. Out of the biblical context came a rich combination of music and words and a diversity with unity. This rest on the fact that the Bible gives unity to the universal and the particulars, and therefore the particulars have meaning. Expressed musically, there can be endless variety and diversity without chaos. There is variety yet resolution." (page 92)

If you're not a musician and have never played Bach, that most likely produced, "Thanks for that, Kelly, I'll log that away." But for me, it has totally changed my perspective on Bach's music and I'm never going to be able to look at that Concerto the same again. In fact, I can't wait to get back home and practice it! (I’m shocking myself here, because up until now, I was NOT a Bach fan.) Thank you, Schaeffer!

More Books!

There are two things I absolutely love: playing music and reading books. Unfortunately, it's difficult for me to really go in depth about the former, (I'm sure most of you don't really care to hear all nitty gritty details and technicalities of a Bach Concerto, anyway), so I usually prefer to write about the latter. My friend and I are just finishing up Bridges' book, Respectable Sins, and what an eye opening and challenging book it has been! I didn't actually know what to expect when I first picked it up, but the subtitle "Confronting the Sins We Tolerate" rapidly clued me in. If you want to read a "feel good about yourself" book, this is NOT for you. But I can say without a doubt that you will never look at yourself the same way again.

I always knew I was a sinner. At the end of the day, I would recall bad things I'd done during the last 24 hours, (impatient with my younger sister, didn't share my computer, complained about dishes, etc) and be thankful once again that the Lord had forgiven me for all my sins so that I could start afresh in the morning. It wasn't until I read this book, however, that I realized how deep-rooted my sin really was; how things I thought perfectly justifiable were actually as horrible as sins like murder and hate in God's eyes. Bridges plunges into the slightest details of everyday life and shows how thoughts and actions we tolerate in ourselves are not acceptable to God. Yes, I'll admit, it's depressing.

Thankfully, Bridges doesn't leave you hopeless and sinking in a mire of misery about your own sin. He is constantly reminding you of the Gospel; that Jesus has already born the punishment your sins incurred and you are now sinless in God's eyes! And he reiterates the importance of acknowledging the sovereignty of God in allowing difficult yet common situations to further refine you. Besides that, he offers many practical suggestions in fighting these oh so acceptable sins. It's encouraging, I promise.
So as always, I would recommend the reading of this book; you won't regret it.

The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis

This book is a short read, but is packed full with thought-provoking ideas and intriguing concepts. The story is told by a man who travels in a bus from hell to heaven; it revolves around his interactions with fellow bus riders and later, those traveler's conversations with people they meet in heaven, people they once knew on earth. (The conversations are actually quite different than you would expect, however). Eventually, the main character meets up with his earthly hero George MacDonald, who walks with him, explaining how things work in the life after earth and why it's different than everyone anticipated. As you read, you'll discover why most of the bus riders surprisingly take the same bus back to hell, and hopefully come to a better understanding of the nature of man and Lewis’ take on what things might be like in the life after death.
My favorite aspect of the book was the observations made, (particularly by the heavenly spirits) about life here and there. Here’s just one of the many I thought fascinating:

A spirit is talking with a man who was on earth a famous painter. The artist remarks how he wished he’d brought his paints along to capture what he was seeing. The Spirit replies:

“When you painted on earth-- at least in your earlier days—it was because you caught glimpses of Heaven in the earthly landscape. The success of your painting was that it enabled others to see the glimpse too.”
MacDonald comments in a later context:
“There is but one good; that is God. Everything else is good when it looks to Him and bad when it turns from Him.”

When art points to God, it is good. Value comes from God. I just thought that was really interesting. :)

That's just one little bit. I'd encourage you to take a look and read for yourself Lewis' insightful novel. It's certainly worth it.

The Story of a UM

*UM=Unaccompanied Minor; child flying without an adult.

His name was Isaiah; he was 7 years old. He sat right next to me in the window seat, complete with his spider man backpack and mini carton of goldfish. The poor little man was terrified of flying by himself, and my sister and I tried to reassure him saying that the pilot was very experienced and would make sure we didn't crash. Then out of the blue, Isaiah said just like a little boy would, "But I'm sad." When we asked why, he said it was because he was going to miss his dad. Then he told us he was going to be staying in Portland all summer with some relatives. I didn't blame him, I would be sad too! We never found out why he was going to be away all summer, but he didn't mention missing his mom, so we assumed he lived with only one parent. We asked him how many siblings he had, and what followed made me want to cry: He lived with his dad in Las Vegas, he had two siblings that lived in the Midwest with his mom and then one other that lived with another mom in Florida.

What did this darling little boy do to deserve such a dysfunctional family? Why is it that so many families, even Christian ones, are torn apart so that little kids like Isaiah grow up knowing only one parent, barely seeing any siblings? What has happened to the concept of family commitment in our society?

Could it be because we've lost focus of what should be the center, God and the gospel? Could it be that we have forgotten the purpose of marriage and family in the midst of our shameful self-centeredness? Stories such as this should be labeled as nothing less than a tragedy. Yet sadly, Isaiah's is all too common.

So the question is, what can we do as Christians to help demonstrate how God intended family to operate to a watching world? I'll be the first to admit that we aren't perfect, (just hang out at my house for a few hours and you'll see for yourself!). But praise God, he is more than able to use weak people to make an impact on a culture that knows so little about God's idea of marriage and family and give opportunity to adorn the gospel.

"Although we might not always be aware, people are watching our lives. If we exhibit the qualities... such as love for our families or purity or kindness, we are promoting the gospel, and the unbelievers who see us-- be they family member, friend, neighbor, or strangers-- may actually be drawn to the gospel by the way we live." -Carolyn Mahaney

And when they begin to understand the gospel, family commitment makes a lot more sense. So as Linguini says in Pixar's Ratalouille: "Let's do this thing!"

Wait, Why?

Matt Chandler is pastor of The Village Church in Texas. Ever since my dad heard him speak at a church planting conference, he's been hooked. And because our family can't drive anywhere without hearing at least part of one of his messages, we're all hooked, too.

Check out his interesting argument regarding the lack of follow through in the Darwinian worldview, (I'll paraphrase):

If we really were all about the survival of the fittest, why is there so much research conducted for cures for diseases? If you really think about it, why do we even have hospitals? In evolution, disease should really just be seen as nature's way of kicking off the weak. If people die from cancer, it's just proof that they are not the ones who should advance. But that's not the way people live, is it?

Why?

I believe it's due to that fact that people are intrinsically valuable because they are made in God's image. Darwinists can't totally accept (whether they want to or not) the ramifications of their beliefs. The fact that people care enough to help find cures for sickness (or even the fact that we have ambulances!) shows that this world is governed by a higher law than survival of the fittest.

Why I Love Capitalism (Part 3)

Here lies the ultimate reason I believe capitalism is so vital to our society:

3. Capitalism means freedom

O'Sullivan sums up this point excellently once again:
“In a capitalist society, individuals are not condemned to their lot in life. Capitalism not only encourages individuals to better themselves, but provides market incentives for them to do so… If conservatives are passionate about capitalism, it is not because they are passionate about money; rather, it is because they are passionate about freedom.”

When it's people are free to pursue what they will, to follow their ambitions and are not restricted by overbearing, detrimental government restriction, the economy and society will thrive to their fullest potential.

This is why I love capitalism and believe it is something worth contending for.

Why I Love Capitalism (Part 2)

2. Capitalism brings wealth by the service of mankind

“People who earn large incomes do so because they provide others with lots of things that they value. If these individuals did not provide valuable goods or services, consumers would not pay them so generously. There is a moral here: if you want to earn a large income, you had better figure out how to help others a great deal.

Economist Walter Williams offers similar insight into the definition of capitalism: "Capitalism is relatively new in human history. Prior to capitalism, the way people amassed great wealth was by looting, plundering and enslaving their fellow man. Capitalism made it possible to become wealthy by serving your fellow man." –O’Sullivan

I teach piano lessons. I love teaching for many reasons, but also because I’m able to offer a service to students that benefits them (hopefully), and benefits me not only economically but also mentally and musically. What is there not to love about a system that profits consumer and producer alike?

(Continued in part 3)
---
Patrick Sean O'Sullivan
http://www.conservative-resources.com/definition-of-capitalism.html

Why I Love Capitalism (Part 1)

Conservatives seem to have a reputation of being obsessed with the idea of a free market. The Adam Smith laissez faire (lit. “leave alone”) economy is the only way, they claim, and then get angry when it is interfered with. And with good reason. You see, I have a confession to make: I love capitalism. Here’s why:

1. Capitalism takes into account human nature and bridles it for our advantage

In the first colonization attempts at Jamestown back in 1607, the settlers were commanded to pool all of the profits from their labors. Each worked according to his ability and took according to his need. What happened? It was a complete disaster. Two thirds of the first group died of starvation in a land abounding resources! Reinforcements were sent in 1609, and the results were the no better; 440 men died out of 500 because of lack food. Things changed in 1611, however, when Sir Thomas Dale arrived from England. He did away with this early communist pooling system and gave each settler 3 acres of land and provisions to get each started in beginning their own settlements. What happened? The colony finally began to prosper and thrive. The moral is, if people will not benefit from their own efforts, the natural human response is a halt in those efforts. Enter, capitalism.

“Incentive is the key word. Incentives matter so much that economists James Gwartney, Richard L. Stroup, and Dwight R. Lee begin a marvelous little book with the declaration, "All of economics rests on one simple principle: that incentives matter. Altering incentives, the costs and benefits of making specific decisions, alters people's behavior." Where profits are denied, entrepreneurship and innovation are stifled and all our lives are the worse for it. Beneath the definition of capitalism is the realization that we are never so efficient and effective as when we pursue our own reward.” – Patrick Sean O’Sullivan

Maybe it seems to you that basing a system on the idea of pursing your own rewards is a little… carnal. But think about it, is this idea that you reap what you sow really all that foreign?

Ayn Rand sums it up excellently:
“Capitalism demands the best of every man – his rationality – and rewards him accordingly. It leaves every man free to choose the work he likes, to specialize in it, to trade his product for the products of others, and to go as far on the road of achievement as his ability and ambition will carry him.”

Although Rand may have supported some interesting beliefs religiously, her ideas on capitalism are very insightful and have greatly benefited American society.
Any system that does not reward hard work any more than laziness will ultimately fail.

(Continued in Part 2)

Steps for Life, Portland

Last Saturday, my family and I had the privilege of participating in Steps for Life, the Pregnancy Resource Center's annual fundraiser and walk for the unborn in the center of downtown Portland. What an awesome experience to join with hundreds of other like-minded individuals and show the public that people care! Here are just a couple of shots from the morning, (and as you can tell from the sunglasses, we had sunshine in Portland!).
Three cheers for my youngest brother Brandon, who raised $2,005 dollars for the PRC and took first in his age category. Go Bran!My sister Brooke and her friend Leeann.My sister Christa, and our friends Sarah and Ashley Rogers.My awesome little (but big) brothers Sam and Dan. My sweet walking buddies and I.

Regrettably, I don't have any shots of the actual walk. But it happened, I promise, and it was cool. :)