God Delusion, Part I

I wrote quite awhile ago that I had purchased the book The God Delusion. Among the atheist community, this book is often cited. I thought it would be useful for me to read the book simply to know how they argue against the existence of God. My years in high school debate taught me that you need to explore opposing viewpoints.

I have made my way through almost on half of the book. Did I think the book would convert me to atheism? No. Did I think the book would be challenging for me? Yes. Is it OK for us to have some doubts in our faith? Yes. This book has certainly been challenging for me to read.

So far, this books comes down to science vs. faith. This is not a surprise. Dawkins, at great length, discusses the ability of science to explain how our world works, specifically as it relates to the ideas of evolution, natural selection and the formation of our universe. Through his detailed explanations, he asserts that there can be no other reasonable explanation for how we got here.

When you talk about faith, it is just that. To Dawkins, the Bible is not a legitimate book for argumentation purposes. Thus, the discussion is over. Dawkins simply asks for scientific proof that there is a God. It's not there. Thus, there is no God. Prayer doesn't really work. Creationism has no evidence.

How do you argue faith? I can see a prayer answered. I can see the beauty of creation. I can appreciate my conversations with God. I can see the Holy Spirit at work. I know these things exist, and I look for strength from the Holy Bible. It brings me great confidence and great strength.

While in college, there was a time when I considered myself an atheist. I was miserable and directionless. Since renewing my relationship with God and living a life of doing my best to love God and love one another, I am happier, less worried and find more meaning and joy in life.

I wish that Dawkins and others could have that in their life as well. Yet, I realize that there will be folks with his views and, as a Christian, I am still called to minister to them. While difficult, I realize it is something that we are called to do.

*** Stay tuned for future reflections on this book. ***

Epiphany

It just two days, we will begin a new year, a new decade. It will be 2010. I don't get too worked up about New Year's Day because it seems like such an arbitrary day. It could be the new year any day that you want. You'd think that those of us in the northern hemisphere would pick a time for New Year's where the weather is warm and we could enjoy it outdoors. But, I digress.

Many of us pick to have resolutions for the next year. We aim to workout more, eat better, be more spiritually disciplined, keep in contact with folks better, overcome bad habits, etc. In some resolutions we succeed, in others we do not. January 1 provides an excellent time to advocate for change.

Epiphany comes on January 3 this year, right around New Year's. Epiphany can signify many things. It can be used to celebrate three things: (1) The wise men visiting Jesus, (2) Jesus' baptism, and (3) Jesus' wedding miracle. Typically, we concentrate on the visit from the wise men.

At the Oakfield and Tabor churches, Epiphany will be an opportunity for us to take on an additional New Year's resolution. The wise men, from a land outside of the Jewish community, show us that Jesus was born for everyone! It was a religion meant for all!

We must resolve, as Christians, to spread the Good News throughout the year. Let's start...now.

Post Christmas Reflections

On Christmas Eve, we had a worship service at both the Oakfield and Tabor churches. At the Oakfield church, we decided to try something different. We had a worship service called, "Celebrate the Shepherd." It was a worship service that looked at shepherds in the Bible and specifically the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. There were various bible readings, a poetry reading, two special songs, hymns and a sermon all around the topic of shepherds. We even had a candle light singing of Silent Night. There would definitely be changes that I would make for next year, but it was neat to try something different.

At the Tabor church, we fused together the Children's Pageant with a Service of Lessons and Carols. It went a little longer than I would have expected, but it was great! It was a full house and a big crowd got to see a wonderful performance by the members of the Tabor UMC Sunday School program.

Thankfully, the weather cooperated for the most part. The drive between Oakfield and Eden could have been much worse. Already tomorrow, we will have our Sunday worship service. We will be having John Wesley's Covenant Renewal done at both churches. I think it will be a neat experience for all who attend.

A Few Updates

I would like to take the opportunity to post a few updates in regard to some posts that I have made in the last few weeks:

Marge Blank's Funeral
The funeral for Marge Blank will be taking place on December 18, 2009 at 11:00AM at the Oakfield United Methodist Church. There will be a time for visitation with the family between 9:00-11:00AM. There will be a brief Committal Service afterward, followed by a luncheon.

Tiger Woods Story
A few weeks ago, I posted some comments about the Tiger Woods story. At that time, I wrote that despite the "transgressions" that took place, I would that Tiger and his wife could work things out in peace. As predicted, that did not happen. But, the situation has gotten dramatically worse.

Since my comments, there are fourteen women that now claim that they have had a sexual relationship with Tiger Woods. As much as I would hope that Tiger and Elin could work out this situation, it seems grave. There are already reports that Elin plans on divorcing Tiger. I can understand why. But, I continue to pray for both of them, and the chillden.

Marge Blank

I received a phone call from Marge Blank's son. He informed me that Marge Blank passed away this morning at 11:00 AM. I do not have a lot of details at this point but funeral arrangements will be made soon.

In the first sixth months that I have been a pastor at the Oakfield Church, Marge has come to church almost every week. Christa and I were able to visit her a few times in her apartment. She shared so many wonderful stories about her times visiting Camp Byron, her job as a cake maker/decorator and her involvement with the church.

She was certainly a beloved member of the congregation and she will be missed. When I have additional information, I will make sure to post a reply to this message.

Pray!

Last week at the Oakfield and Tabor worship services, we celebrated by lighting the candle of Christ, the Way. In the sermon on that particular Sunday, I preached about Paul's excitement in regards to praying for the Philippians. He prayed with excitement!

I sometimes think that prayer is something that we are scared of. We worry about what we should pray for. We worry about how to do it...do we do it with hands clasped, eyes closed. We worry about how often we should do it. The most important thing we can do is pray.

Pray however and whenever you like. Pray when you are stuck at a red light. Pray when you are waiting in line at the store. It may be uncomfortable at times, but at least you are doing it! You'd be surprised how much time comes available for prayer.

Mountains of Paper

I took today to get my Oakfield UMC office in order. I had stacks of paper everywhere. Some were papers that were already in the office. Some I've inherited at conferences over the last few months...and the rest has been from mailings I've gotten through the mail.

My goodness! I did not realize how much mail I would get as a pastor. I get a lot of catalogs. I get a lot of mailings for various charitable organizations and groups. I also get a lot of mail from the Wisconsin Annual Conference. I also get all the bills mailed to the church. If you let it sit for a few days, or...for a few weeks, it is amazing how much it accumulates.

It is a testament to my ability to get focused on other areas of the job and lose focus on paperwork. But, it is also a testament to the amount of junk that gets mailed. I sadly recycle a great deal of the stuff that I get in the mail. It seems like such a waste. Hopefully over time I can get ourselves off some of the mailing lists that we are on. Needless to say, the recycling bin is full, but the office is clean.