Nothing is more iconic to the Tucson landscape than the saguaro. The emblematic cactus is to the Sonoran Desert what the palm tree is to Miami: hard to imagine without it. Saguaros typically live between one hundred and fifty to one hundred and seventy-five years, not sprouting its trademark arms until around thirty to seventy years of its life and growing to around fifty feet tall.
For those Sonoran Desert natives, we intuitively know where saguaros thrive. They love the rocky (both granite and volcanic) soil at the foothills of the five beautiful mountain ranges that surround Tucson.
I drove a little manual 2005 Scion xB for about eight years. It finally gave out after 230,000 miles. I loved that little car. It was fuel-efficient and required minimal maintenance. But it is undeniably close to the least powerful car on the road. I’m pretty sure that on its specs, next to 0-60mph, it says, “Eventually!”
Unless I was lined up against someone from a nearby retirement community, I was the last car to reach the speed limit coming off a stoplight. Unsurprisingly, more aggressive drivers with more powerful vehicles tended to treat my little Scion like a safety cone on the road, more like an obstacle than a fellow traveler.
In the past post we considered the biblical priority of leading in our homes before stepping into leadership callings outside of our home.
When I was asked to speak to our Mom’s Matter group on leading well in the home I was a bit intimidated. I felt far from equipped to speak as a man to women on the topic of leadership. And so, I did the only thing I could think of: I asked wise, godly women who were also great leaders. Starting with my wife, I began to listen to the advice my female friends offered on leadership in the home and beyond.
Who are the most influential leaders in your life? What made them such great leaders?
I fear that our cultural understanding of leadership is going further astray from true leadership. We Americans seem to have a bizarre attraction to two types of leaders: celebrities and powerful communicators with bold, brash opinions. We judge leaders by the size of their platform.
Some time ago I was asked to speak to the Moms Matter group in our church about healthy leadership in the home and beyond. One of the comments made by the leadership team was that many moms believe they “don’t need to be or can’t be a leader because they are just moms.” We can all similarly dismiss ourselves.
I bet you hold Jesus in high regard. Nearly everyone does, no matter their religious leaning. We’ve been considering the position of the inclusivist. Let’s invite Jesus into the conversation.
With love in his eyes, Jesus begins, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn 14:6).
Jesus is no inclusivist. How would he respond to the inclusivist?
The Bible claims that Jesus is our only rescue. Throughout the pages of the New Testament, writer after writer and Jesus himself claim that Jesus Christ alone connects humankind back to God. Jesus claims he is no mere human being, but is God himself.
Christians claim that the only way to restore our relationship with God is through Jesus Christ. This is an exclusive claim: there is only one way to God. But why would God be so narrow? Isn’t it arrogant for Christians to say Christianity is superior to other religions or worldviews? Isn’t inclusivism a better way than exclusivism?
As one bumper sticker and meme says: “God is too big to fit into any one religion.”
God wouldn’t hold it against me if I don’t believe in him?, would he? Given the complexities of our world, how could he?
Is unbelief a sin? Surely not!
Culturally, we don’t take unbelief very seriously. We tend to think of unbelief as a neutral characteristic, if not even something that might show a particular strength of character. We might consider someone who doesn’t believe as being sharp minded, thoughtful, or not gullible.
Many Christians even diminish the nature of unbelief. I recently read a book by a popular pastor who claimed that Jesus didn’t call his followers to believe, but rather to love. Jesus calls us to love, but he also calls us to believe.
2019 was a heavy reading year for me. This year I read 101 books: almost two a week. I love learning and reading is of my favorite forms of learning. If you’re wondering how I read that many books, I’m going to reflect on that next week.
This year you could divide my reading into six (plus one) categories: Christian Living, Theology, Apologetics, Pastoral Ministry, Leadership, and Fiction. The plus one is in the fiction category. I got on a John Steinbeck kick, so I pulled out an extra Steinbeck category. If you’re interested in tracking my reading, getting fuller reviews (I review every book I read), and sharing with me your favorites, I use Goodreads and would be happy to have you friend me there. Here were some highlights for me in 2019:
In the coming months at New Life we are looking forward to stepping into a series called Questions for God. In the series, we hope to openly and honestly engage the most difficult questions people have about Christianity. For some those questions keep them on the outside looking in. For others, it causes them to wrestle with their faith.
We hope that Questions for God invites everyone into the conversation no matter where you are spiritually. It is our aim to address these questions with respect and honesty. And it is our hope that some might lean in to engage their questions in a safe environment. It is hope as well that it might serve as an opportunity for Christians to open the doors for conversations with friends and family members.
As we prepare for this series, I would commend the following books. Maybe one of these piques your interest. I would encourage you to pick it up and start reading it in the next few weeks.
Two Books That Engage the Broader Questions
Confronting Christianity by Rebecca McLaughlin
Deep thinkers have pointed questions for Christianity. “Aren’t we better off without religion?” “How can you say there’s only one true faith?” “Doesn’t religion cause violence?” “Hasn’t science disproved Christianity?” “Isn’t Christianity homophobic?” “How could a loving God send people to hell?”
In Confronting Christianity, Rebecca McLaughlin takes those questions seriously. As a former skeptic, McLaughlin brings both empathy and clear reasoning. She does three things particularly well:
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