And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

A similar encounter occurs again in Luke 15, a chapter I had read this past week. While it would have been more appropriate for me to have quoted that passage, I feel this one illustrates a similar point more succinctly. Christ is dining not with the priests and scribes, but those looked down upon as sinners.

Both confrontations have taken up residence in my mind, occasionally popping out of their bedrooms and imposing upon me their presence. What seems a simple, straight-forward message is soon over-complicated by my own contemplations, and before I know it I’m submerged so deep I can no longer see the light glistening upon the surface.

This has become commonplace as the Bible continues to spark my mind. Ideas that seem fascinating enough to openly ponder suddenly become overwhelming as I scribe letter to document. The natural rebound from my overzealous desire to act, I suppose. Further confirmation that creating a column for such things was none other than a jumping gun.

Read More >>

"Christ and the Rich Young Ruler" by Heinrich Hofmann

Let’s talk about some self-imposed pressure, brought on in part by a burst of zealotry.

And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Over the past few weeks I’ve encountered this story twice: once through my pastor’s Sunday sermon and once through my own personal readings. Between those lines I found a call to action. This same trumpet sounding distracted me from what the lines themselves were saying.

Read More >>

Back in January my Pastor invited me to participate in a book study. I had only attended the Church a few times, and having him not just show up on my doorstep one day but send me a text out of the blue like this… it felt incredibly pushy. Never had I known a Church leader to be so intrusive and seemingly desperate to get someone to come to their services. This sort of behavior was like a step-by-step guide to get me running.

At the moment I read the text, I sighed and thought “there’s no way I’m going to an 8a.m. book study with a bunch of older men I don’t know”. I’m rarely an impulsive person, and when I am I like it to be my decision. If I had a plan to spend a day doing something solo and someone extends an invitation to do something with them, my internal CPU crashes. The pie chart I’ve made of time per activity needs to be redrawn. If I lose one activity, can I make it up later? If I turn them down, will I come off as rude? How do I avoid being rude? Is it more worth it in the long term to just accept the invitation? What am I going to discuss? What do I want to discuss?

So I gave my pastor a non-committal response even though I had already decided to be a no-show.

Read More >>

Uh oh. A column of faith? That can’t be good. Several pages of hot-air proselytizing when all you come for are opinions regarding video games, anime, or film. Guess it’s time to stop following!

Only this isn’t about telling you why I’m right and you’re wrong. I mean, I don’t even know who you are that’s reading this! It’s about finding a way to discuss something important to me. Something important that I’ve continually kept hidden out of fear of judgment. Too much of my life has been spent worrying what others think of me, modifying my behaviors to try and become a person more easily loved.

Some of these adjustments have certainly had benefits. Others have given birth to anxiety, frustration, and even existential crises. I know the manner in which I dissect entertainment is going to have a limited audience, but I still sought to appeal to as broad a group as possible. As such, I began removing bits of myself from my critiques. Effectively, I began to deny myself aspects of what made me who I am, which in turn lied to everyone about who it is they’re reading.

Read More >>