The Olympics are starting! The Olympics are starting!

I am super pumped about the Olympics. I will be watching way too much television over the next couple of weeks. Kelly and I are already trying to figure out how we are going to handle the appearance of hypocrisy in front of our kids. We have made very clear to our children that if you watch too much TV, your brain turns into mashed potatoes. I am calling for a special dispensation at Olympic time. It is perfectly fine to zone out in front of the tube for the next two weeks - as long as you are watching a sport that you only get to see during the Olympics.

Which kind of brings up a beef that I have - not with the Olympics, but with Olympic coverage. I want to see the obscure stuff - rowing, badminton, fencing, ping pong - that kind of stuff. The problem is - NBC would rather show a gymnast eating dinner than a badminton match. My feeling is there are opportunities to see gymnastics throughout the year. If you watch Sunday afternoon sports regularly you'll know that the World Championships, the Olympic Trials along with other gymnastic competitions are indeed televised. I would just as soon they not show anything but the highlights of gymnastics. There is so much other cool stuff to watch. Show me the drama in the Taekwondo ring. (I don't even know the rules of Taekwondo - what a great time to learn). What are the odds that I will be able to catch some good archery competition, or kayaking, or handball? Probably not very good. Now, granted, I know nothing of those sports. They might be very boring to watch. But, the job of the network is to make me excited about it. They are missing a golden opportunity. There are only a couple of times every decade when I am willing to devote hours to watching and learning about a sport that I care nothing about. You get the Olympic spirit and find yourself cheering on athletes you have never heard of from countries you have never visited playing sports you don't understand. Isn't that great?

It remains to be seen if NBC will capitalize on their opportunity or if they will just show non-stop swimming, gymnastics and track and field.

From their perspective it probably doesn't much matter. I am going to watch anyway.

of bad backs and robots

bad backs

I am still hobbling around because of my gimpy back. I am amazed at variety of opinions I have received regarding lower back pain. I had no idea. Passionate opinions too. I must see a chiropractor; I must not go to a chiropractor; I really need physical therapy; Vitamin B helps nerves; stretch, stretch, stretch; rest and don't aggravate it; exercise; Have I considered a massage?; Codeine; muscle relaxants; heat; ice; reflexology; I probably need better shoes.

It is clear that a lot of people care for me and want to help any way they can. I am touched by their concern. I am still a little fuzzy about what I should be doing, however. Too much information - too many options. The only things I have done so far have been stretching and Codeine. (I have become a big fan of Codeine - it makes all your problems go away - I like it a lot). I am seeing the Doc again tomorrow. I think they will take X-rays. We'll see.

My buddy Rob things I am just being a wimp and that I just need to quit my crying and toughen up. He's a real friend.

Robots

My 12 yr old daughter Abby, just finished a week long robotics camp at Wichita State University. She and the other middle school students on her team worked all day, day after day, designing, building, and programing robots to perform certain tasks in competition with other teams. It was really cool - and she did awesome. It was strange, though, watching her at work. She seemed so much older sitting there with her laptop and wires everywhere trying to program her robot to use echo-location sensors so it doesn't bump into things, or light sensors so her robot can differentiate between colors. It was really quite impressive. And, it's all over my head. I find myself wanting to say things like, "well, I'll be" and "It's amazing what they can do these days" and "I never would have believed it" and "in my day we just read about robots and watched them in movies" - things like that.

My aging back and my aging kids are making me feel quite... aged.

Ed Knippers and the theology of the body

Some of you may already be quite familiar with the artist who painted the above painting - many of you are probably not familiar with him. Let me introduce you. His name is Edward Knippers and his work touches on several themes, but most notably is the theology of the body. Looking at his work and reading his "artist's statement" on his web site highlights for me once again the confusion that many in the evangelical camp seem to have about the place and importance of our physical bodies. (I am not saying that Knippers is confused - I am saying his work highlights confusion that is all around us).

I believe that much of conservative evangelicalism leans way too heavy toward gnosticism (a belief that places much greater importance upon the spiritual realm than the physical realm - to the point that the physical realm has very little importance at all). One of the teachings that the Apostle Paul consistently battled against was gnosticism. And, while none of us would admit to being gnostic, it seems to show up in the way we talk and act. We shy away from ministries that focus solely on physical needs. We are so afraid of the "social gospel" label. "We preach the gospel", we say. "Feeding the poor is what them dad-gum liberals do".

We emphasize Christ's death and not His resurrection. Even less do we emphasize our own physical resurrection. We emphasize heaven and speak of eternal life in spiritual terms only. We talk and sing about physical death as if it were a good thing - a chance to fly away and be with Jesus. Death is the heartbreaking result of the fall. Death is an awful thing - but it will one day be done away with.

John Buerger - our Pastor of Student Ministries has a great blog post about this issue - here

Well, anyway - Ed Knippers deals with this issue too. Check him out here. Make sure you read his "artist's statement". Warning - the "physicality" of his figures might make you uncomfortable to look at. He definitely prompts conversation and thought.

My aching back

My back has aged about 20 years over the last 2 weeks. I don't know what has happened to me. I can't stand for more than about 10 minutes without sitting down. (This last weekend I had to preach from a stool. I have been told that preaching from a stool makes me look hip and cool - which is a nice added benefit I suppose - not that I need any help looking hip and cool.) I'd give up the hipness if my back didn't hurt so bad. My lower back feels like it is collapsing under the weight of my torso. The pain continues when I lie down. It just aches. I don't know what I did to it.

The only time it feels ok is when I sit with bad posture - you know - kind of slouching. Supposedly, slouching is bad for your back. Not mine I guess.

Most people have lower back pain - at least that is what I have been told. I guess it is my turn now.

It stinks.

A humbling morning

My blog page has been fairly quiet because I haven't felt the liberty to share many of the things on my mind. Personal conversations and sensitive ministry issues are not material for blog discussions. Through it all I have been feeling quite introspective and a little sorry for myself.



Within the context of that self-pity, I decided to get out of the office this morning and spend some time with a few folks that I hadn't talked to in a little while. One dear woman is taking care of her husband who cannot take care of himself. Her husband is staying in a nursing home because he is too heavy for her to lift. She comes in every day and feeds him lunch and then when he rests in the afternoon, she goes home and rests. She then comes back in the evening and feeds him supper. Every day. I asked her if she has much opportunity to get together with other ladies - just for fun. Not much.



Another dear man I spent time with also has to be away from his wife quite a bit because of health issues. His Parkinson's disease and cancer have required more care than his wife can handle. But his brain is in great shape. He thinks a lot as he sits... and waits. He shared a poem with me about how blessed he is and how he desires to be a living testimony of the power of Christ.



The third person I spent time with was a woman who was recently moved out of her home and into an apartment within the nursing home here in town. She is getting old. Her kids are scared that she is going to fall. So, now she can no longer do many of the things that she used to love to do. She is in a new environment. Her kids are all far away. Her new apartment does not have a full kitchen with an oven, but the facility where she stays lets her use their oven to bake pies for the homeless shelter. She has made a conscious decision not to complain and to be an encouragement to all around her. I know of no one who is acquainted with this dear woman who does not overflow in praise for one so gracious, loving, kind, generous and joyful. What an amazing woman.



The fourth person I visited was a woman who just recently had knee replacement surgery. She lives by herself, so mobility and independence is very important to her. She was ecstatic that she is now able to walk to the mail box and back with nothing but a cane. She can also take a shower by herself. She was rejoicing and giving glory to God for His gentle care.



I went as their pastor - to be an encouragement. However, it is clear that I needed them in my life today much more than they needed me.



I am discovering that a good prescription for self-pity is to be around godly people who live under much worse circumstances than I do, and are still able to maintain their composure and exude grace and joy. I have so very much to learn.



Thank you Marguerite and Jim and Helen and Lena. You all ministered to me today.

Update May 17

It's been a while since I have written. Here's what's going on with the family.

Emma had her orientation at the middle school. We are going to have two daughters in middle school at the same time. Ready or not, here it comes.

Abby is getting more and more hardware added to her mouth. Now, along with the normal braces she has a pin acting as an anchor between two of the roots of her teeth; she has a bar going along the side of her teeth and a rubber band connecting things together. It looks painful, but she's not complaining too much.

Vacation is coming! Vacation is coming! In two days we will be heading to San Antonio. It's been nearly a year since we have been down there as a family. I have been suffering from vacationitus for the last couple of weeks. We are all looking forward to getting away for a while.

While we are in Texas, Kelly and I will be spending a night and a day in Austin - just the two of us. Austin is where we met and spent the first two years of marriage. We'll eat at great restaurants and stay in a fancy hotel. We are both super excited.

I've started running again - sort of. I am taking it really slow - trying to be gentle on my gimpy knee.

I went to a conference down at DTS a couple of weeks back. It was called "beyond the doors of the church". It was pretty good. Since we are rapidly turning into a "post-Christian" culture, the church in America will increasingly need to learn how to view and interact with culture the way missionaries interact with theirs. It sounds like an obvious statement to say that the church needs to see itself as group of missionaries to the culture in which they live. Most churches are far from that reality, however.

I finished The Lord of the Rings with Abby. She loved it. Her and I then watched The Fellowship of the Ring movie (the long version). She loved that too - pretty intense though. I think she is going to wait a while until she sees The Two Towers. Now I am reading through the Chronicles of Narnia with Emma. We are starting with The Magician's Nephew because chronologically, the events of that book predate all the others. We haven't gotten very far into the book - so far so good though. We are both enjoying it a lot.

It's been a glorious spring here in Kansas. It's been a long spring - it has taken a while to jump into summer. Our gardens are looking awesome. Flowers are blooming and the birds are singing.
That's about it.

potty emergencies

Kelly and I had a great idea yesterday. Our small-group from church was scheduled to meet at our house, but we had one child that was not feeling that great. Being unsure of whether or not Emma was acually sick (and possibly contagious) we decided to move the venue outdoors so that all the other children (and adults) would not be stuck in a house with sick germs.


We had our small-group meet at a park not far from our house. It was a pretty good plan. The kids would be able to play on the playscapes while the adults talked at the picnic tables. Abby and Grace and I went out early and claimed our tables - just in case any other pesky church groups had the same idea. All was going well... until people started asking where the bathrooms were.


We had kind of forgotten about that detail.


We had a whole lotta kids who "had to go potty real bad", but there was nothing close by. Parents had to get into their cars and drive them to restrooms. And, of course, the kids didn't all have to go at the same time. They were all about 15 minutes apart. Some of them had to go more than once. We had quite the rotation of cars coming and going.


Meanwhile - here is "Pastor Greg" trying to lead meaningful discussion about the Christian life among our group. And, my group is so great - so polite. They were nodding at statements, answering questions, participating in conversation. All the while, one by one, they were called away by children who really had to pee.


I am sure it would have looked quite comical to an outside observer. But, no one complained. I think everyone was just happy to be together on a beautiful spring evening. Everyone stayed till well past the kid's bedtimes and it was too dark to see. And, while I certainly won't make the mistake again of taking my group to a place that has no restrooms, I still think the evening went quite well.

Somehow, meeting around picnic tables in a park without restrooms took some of the polish off or our normal meeting times. Usually we meet in a comfortable living room with good lighting and soft music - and adequate restroom facilities. Tonight was very different. It was a good reminder of just how ordinary we all are. And, while we have real and complex issues that need to be talked through with other Christ followers, we nevertheless, live in an ordinary world - a world in which children just can't "hold it" for very long.