DACA

First let me say that if you think a preacher should stay out of politics you should probably stop reading this blog here.  Now that that is out of the way, let me tell you why I have issues with President Trump getting rid of DACA.  

For those who don't know DACA is a program started by an executive order of President Barack Obama.  Some will argue that in doing this President Obama overreached the executive powers in setting up the program.  Regardless of how we got here, we are here and now we are having to figure out what we should do.  The DACA program allows people who were brought to the country illegally when they were young to register with the government and they will not be deported and it gives them a work permit.  These are young adults mostly, who have grown up in America and know no other home.  To deport these people would be sending them back to a place they have no idea about or that they have never seen.  

I want to look at this from a theological and Christian perspective.  If I look at the totality of Scripture and what it is I am called to do and support as a follower of Christ I cannot help but to say something to this situation.  I often look to Scripture such as Matthew 25, Amos 5, Hebrews 13, Deuteronomy 26, etc.  All of these call for us to welcome, love, care for the stranger in our communities.  These young people have grown up in our communities and have grown up in our schools.  They are classmates of mine and yours.  These are young people with a dream to live in the US, the only home they know, legally.  They are asking to be a part of the community in this way.  If we get rid of DACA and say nothing, what will happen to them?  How are we showing the love of Christ if we turn our backs on them and allow them to be deported to a place they don't know and is not home for them?

I have heard some argue that since it was an overreach by President Obama the proper thing to do is to reverse the executive order and allow Congress to pass a law.  I have a question for you.  If your life depended on it would you trust Congress to do anything in 6 months?  There seems to be a feeling in Congress that if I don't get what I want exactly the way I want it then I will just walk away.  I don't trust Congress to get it done.  I am pleased that Sen. Grahm and Sen. Durbin have put the Dream Act back in front of the Senate, but there is no guarantee that anything will happen.  I encourage you to stand up for those who will be affected by these decisions to let them know that they are loved and they are part of the community that they call home.  They are part of the community of Christ.

Here is a link of an article that Rev. Keith Ray wrote:

http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/opinion/2017/08/31/wilson-and-others-should-consider-harm-they-causing-daca-students/618174001/

Why?

As I sit here, I have been looking at pictures of the flooding in Houston and it is painful.  I can't even begin to imagine what the people in Houston are going through.  It reminds me of Katrina and the flooding in New Orleans.  I bring up Katrina because I had the opportunity to help just a little in rebuilding some homes after the flooding.  My heart breaks to see natural disasters.  I struggle to answer reasons why they happen.  I hurt when people say why would God let this happen to people?  I struggle even more when I see people saying that the floods are some sort of judgement by God on people, which I saw more after Katrina than now.
I got the grand opportunity to watch a total solar eclipse last week here in Central.  It was amazing to see day turn to night.  To hear animals that you would only hear at night was surreal.  It was unbelievable to see Venus in the sky during the day.  It was an experience that I will never forget.  I was troubled a little though when some people began to say the eclipse was a sign from God that the judgement is near.  My question is why this eclipse?  It is not the first one.  Why not the one that is coming in 2024 or 2045?  Did you know that since 2000 there have been 11 total solar eclipses somewhere in the world?  Was that God showing judgement on those areas that were in the path of totality?
I struggle with people trying to take something and make it about what they want to make it about.  Total solar eclipses happen because of the path of planets and the moon.  I believe in God's creation and God setting things in motion.  There will always be total solar eclipses.  There will always be hurricanes.  There will always be tornadoes.  There will always be tsunamis.  I can't bring myself to think that these are the way that God shows judgement on people.  These are natural disasters.  Natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, and monsoons are part of how the earth works to support life.  They are necessary for the planet to sustain its environment.  We have learned this through science.  I am always heartbroken at the loss of life that these disasters cause.  I always want to do something to help.  I never want to blame God for what has happened.  I believe that God can work in the midst of disaster.  I believe that God is there and the heart of God breaks when people die as a cause of these disasters.  I never think that God is the cause or is bringing judgement to these people or places.  I believe in a God who is in the business of redemption not destruction.  A God who is in the business of hope not despair.  A God who is in the business of love not anger.

Ants Marching

I love the Pandora app on my phone.  I have created a great channel for me.  It is a mix of country and all the 90's and early 2000's music that I love.  The other day as I was listening and Dave Matthews Band's Ants Marching came on.  I thought to myself, wow it has been a really long time since I have heard this one.  The next thought was, wow I still really love this song.  As I was listening to the song and especially the lyrics I began to realize something.  I am an ant.  What I mean by that is that I get stuck in a daily routine or pattern in my life and I stay there sometimes because it is what I know and what I am comfortable with. It is safe.

I recently wrote an article for the church newsletter talking about Ecclesiastes 3 and there being a season for everything.  This is true in my life.  There was a season when my focus was on school.  There was a season when I was a bachelor.  There was a season where I lived at home and was fully reliant upon my parents.  There was a season when I was a newlywed with no children.  The thing about all of the seasons that I mentioned is that they have all come to an end.  If I am honest looking back I don't miss any of them. When the end came for those seasons it was not always the smoothest transition.  There were times that it was messy and I wasn't sure about what was coming.  It meant leaving the safety of what I had know.  I love the new seasons that I am in now, but getting here was not easy.  I often question if the seasons I am in now are seasons that need to continue or do they need to end for something new to begin.

The church is like this as well.  The church has events that happen for a season and then they stop.  Sometimes they stop for a reason sometimes they stop and nobody knows why.  Sometimes in church there are seasons for a particular leadership style or person.  But just like in life seasons in the church come and go.

What I am most afraid of is not letting a season go because it is safe and comfortable.  I am afraid of becoming an ant.  I am afraid of not being willing to cross over to the promised land that God has called me to.  My District Superintendent, Susan Leonard Ray, recently talked about the Israelites coming to the end of their 40 years wandering in the desert.  They came to the edge of the promised land, literally just a couple of miles away, and they camped there.  They sent scouts out to see the land and report back about whether or not it was safe or prudent to go.  The report was that it was all that God had promised, but only two of the twelve scouts said they should cross over to the promised land. They sat there paralyzed stuck in their safety not sure if they should really go where God has called, because it is something new, and this season of wilderness that they have know for 40 years will have to end.

It is my hope that I don't get stuck in the wilderness being comfortable.  I don't want to be an ant.  In some ways right now I am an ant.  I want to do some things different and get out of the routine.  I want to listen to where God is calling me.  It is my prayer that I am always looking to cross into the promised land where God is leading me to.  I pray this not only for me, but for the church that I serve, and for the church universal.

Just for kicks here is a link to Ants Marching
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tId-aB8sDa0

Believing

I am creating a blog as a place for me to share thoughts and ideas with others.  As most of you know I have recently moved my parents to Greenville to be closer to my brother and myself.  In this move we have had to make the difficult decision to move my dad into a memory care unit in Greenville.  Since this move the question I get asked the most is how are my parents?  I will not speak for my mom because if I know her she will read this and will be able to tell others how she is without my help.  I want to talk a little about my dad.  He is adjusting well, and I think most of us are adjusting well also.  It is difficult to see your father and realize just how advanced his Alzheimer's is when you see that he needs the care that he is receiving at the memory care facility.

As a pastor one thing that I am always thinking about is where is God in all of this.  I have found God in many difference places with my dad. The other day I went to the memory care unit to visit dad and got there for the end of the Bible study.  Let me say this first.  This is in no way meant to be an attack or slam on the person leading the Bible study, but more some of my own reflections.  At the end of the Bible study the leader went around the table and asked each of the people there if they believed in Jesus Christ?  My assumption is that the leader was looking for assurance of their salvation.  I am fairly certain right now my dad could not tell you what that means.  I am fairly certain right now my dad could not carry on a conversation with you about God, Jesus, church, grace, salvation, or any other theological topic.  By no means though does that mean that my dad's faith is any less than it has been.

I believe in a God that is more powerful than words.  I believe in a God that is more powerful than a disease that takes away the ability for my dad to communicate what he believes.  I believe that God is at work in my dad.  I believe that God is at work in all of us.  We are all a creation of God and we are all valued, we are all LOVED.  My dad answered yes that he believes in Jesus Christ when asked. I am happy that he did, but his answer is not my focus.  My focus is how God is still at work in my father and others who suffer from this disease.  I am reminded that in Romans 8 we are told that nothing can separate us from the love of God, not even Alzheimer's taking away my dad's ability for "meaningful" verbal communication.  My dad still knows what love is and he still knows he is loved.  Bishop Kenneth Carder shared this video with us in class one day and I wanted to share it with yall.  Let us remember that when we are talking about God we are talking about the Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer of all, who works in ways that we cannot begin to imagine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrZXz10FcVM