Purpose Driven Life 11

My normal practice is not to think of God as a person. The anthropomorphic god seems prone to over simplification or misinterpretation – perhaps to apply human frailty to God. But on the other hand both our experience and our language is based on person to person relationships. It would be near impossible to discuss or describe our relation to God without the use of the analogy of a person. There is also richness to expressing my relation to God in terms of human relations. Certainly the Bible used such terms frequently.

So I will no longer complain about the book’s use of an anthropomorphic view of God. This is also part resignation since it appears that this book will use this context to convey much of the truth it has to offer.

Free of my normal stilted language, so much more of the experience of God flows. It is the language of prayer and praise. I wonder if the change in language will have a change in my relationship.

Purpose Driven Life 10

On page 81 the author suggests that your surrender will show in your relationships, including “You don’t react to criticism… you don’t demand your rights.” In this day of dysfunctional relationships those are sensitive words. There is surrender and then there is being a doormat. I think the problem is that the act of surrender is not abandonment of your individuality and worth as a child of God. It is solely to God that you are surrendering not to everyone around you. At any rate, that passage may meet some negative responses.

I have been fooling around the edge of “surrender” for some time and it is a difficult thing. Not because I resist giving up control consciously, but the conscious act of surrender is self-contradictory as best I can tell. It is not a one-time decision to surrender. It is to decide at each moment not to decide. It is the act of not acting. I don’t know if I have truly surrendered since even the act of evaluating how much I have surrendered is a self-willed act.

Talking about surrendering, this ties directly in with being “filled with the holy spirit.” One can use the wedding in Cana as a marvelous parable of redemption following surrender. The ceremonial vessels were empty. Only because they were empty could they be filled with water. Once it fills the vessle the water becomes wine. Biblically water is used as a symbol for the word of God. So the parable becomes, we earthen vessels must become empty (surrendered). Once we are empty we must be filled with the word of God. Filled to the brim, Jesus was very specific. Once the word fills every hollow of our being the pure word becomes the new wine of eternal life. I don’t know if that was intended, but it is a touching message.

Under the broad topic of acting vs. surrendering is a concept that I am working on related to “Effective Prayer”. Some time ago I began to pray for Dafur when it occurred to me, “how can I pray for God to help these people when I have not lifted a finger to help them myself?” That idea led to the concept that prayer may work exclusively in conjunction with our actions. Can I really say, “Lord help the poor” when I do nothing for them other than pray? This is hinted at by James (chap. 2) in the comment about telling a person without a coat to “stay warm” while doing nothing. I have found it odd that Jesus always “did things” in conjunction with his miracles. He made a paste to smear on the blind man’s eyes; he put fingers in the deaf man’s ears, etc. For him it was not necessary (the raising of Lazarus, the young girl and the healing of the centurion’s servant all were done only at a word). But more often than not there was a physical, arguably superfluous act, associated with His miracles.

Was Jesus trying to show us that for a human acts to be imbued with God’s power prayer must be added. And, for human prayers to be effective action must be taken? This would certainly put in perspective some of the platitudes that I have been known to pass off as prayers.

Purpose Driven Life 9

I come from a quantitative background (math, statistics, finance). It just jumps into my head, “How could you build a wooden structure for 120 years without it wearing out before you finished”; how all the land animals would fit into one structure. And once they fit, how they did not suffocate or get sick with 6 months of confinement. There are a lot of questions that I just can't get comfortable with.

I have figured a way out, however. It has to do with two basic facts, one about reality and the other about the Bible.
In reality we have only a limited ability to examine the past. Whenever we make statements about the past we are projecting based on what we can see today. That process is called extrapolation. From math we have a very nice finding that the further into the past or future you extrapolate the more unreliable the answers. And at no point can we use extrapolation to say what did happen but only what is “likely to” or “could possibly” have happened. So, that gives me enough to suspend disbelief long enough to see what is behind the story.

The second key is about the Bible. When the US sent a probe out into deep space, they wanted to send a message to any life that would find it. They had no idea what kind of being that would find it. So they put symbols on it that they thought any life form would recognize: dots that followed the ratio pi, an image of a solar system with nine planets, an embossed male and female figure. The message had to be something that a viewer with a completely different background could understand.

The Bible is a lot like that. The goal is not a detailed historical record but to convey the truth about our spiritual journey. Going back a few chapters, we see the emphasis and the value is on the eternal not the temporary. That is why the gist of the Bible is the spiritual truths not the historical facts. (For the more fundamental among us, I am not disputing the historical facts since both proof and disproof are not possible.)

Those spiritual truths are clothed in stories that anyone can relate to. Stories of family, love, conflict and reconciliation. The details are left particularly vague.

One reason for that is that the language and knowledge changes. Even using the most accurate concepts of the ancients had would seem childish or erroneous to us. And our most advanced science would seem infantile and likely wrong to a reader 100 years from now. The spiritual truths however are relevant to every person in every culture and every time. Amongst them:

Adam and Eve - Woman and man are counterparts of each other.
The Fall - It is in human nature to want to “be as Gods” and invariably leads to loneliness and loss.

Cain & Able - If you allow jealousy in your life “sin is lurking at the door”.

Noah - God cares for each individual and ‘is not willing that any should perish.’ God will not tolerate sin. God cares for all creation, each animal and being.

Speaking only for myself, I find it useful to treat the Bible as “a context” for life. The situations described often fit well to what I am experiencing. One day I am challenged go beyond myself like Esther, the next downhearted like Elijah. And the stories give characteristics of good and bad responses to many situations.

Purpose Driven Live 8

I never thought of God as having emotions. The Bible is full of such phrases but I always thought they were just a way of expressing someone being in harmony or out of harmony with God. I suppose if God knows all he certainly can't feel surprise. But maybe I just don't know and should leave it at that.

The author touches on the idea that worship is not synonymous with going to church and then sends a whole lot of time on church as worship.

I disagree with his conclusion that “worship is for the benefit of God”. This implies that God is changed by our worshiping which is not consistent with what little we can know about God.

I had the pleasure years ago of attending a weekly religious class in which a young woman (perhaps 19) said regarding the topic of prayer, “I pray all the time.” Looking at her idealistic face I could believe it. A couple of times it is mentioned that so-and-so “walked with God.” I think that is the potential of worship that the author started to express before getting distracted by church.

What little “walking with God” I have done has brought about a noticeable change in me. Come to think of it, there are hints of joy, peace, patience, kindness, etc. in the experience. I can’t say if God benefits from my worship, but it seems I do.

Purpose Driven Life 7

I have a real problem with even guessing God’s purpose. God is so far beyond my experience I can’t even conceive of “him”. How the toast am I to know what his plans are.

This is also a case of creative use of translations. A “normal” (NRSV) translation of Ro 11:36 is: “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.” So there is no indication of God’s purpose in that passage at all.

I am not sure why it is important to know God’s purpose. I can’t even consistently keep the simple direct instructions I have been given. Do I need more information so I can choose which of the instructions I am not keeping are more important to fail to keep?

Purpose Driven Life 6

There is a whole lot of “don’t expect anything good in this life” in the chapter. I think things are not that bleak. For example, if we let the Holy Spirit in we will gain “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal 5:22). That doesn’t sound too bad. As a matter of fact, if we were living in a community of spirit filled people I am pretty sure it would give heaven a run for its money.

On the other hand, if one expects satisfaction from the "things" in life, disappointment is inevitable. Maybe that is what was intended.

Purpose Driven Life 5

“Life as a trust” and the concept of stewardship really resonate with me.

“Life as a test” on the other hand does not sit well. How can God who knows all things and the ends from the beginnings need or want to test me? It is truly like giving a vision test to the blind. I think the analogy offered by J. Vernon McGee may suit here:

The railroad bridge over a river near his home town was washed out. After some time workmen rebuilt the bridge. When completed they drove two locomotives onto the bridge at the same time (more weight than it would normally carry at one time) and tied their whistles down. With the noise the townsfolk came out to see. One asked the foreman, “What are you doing?” He responded, “We’re testing the bridge.” To which the fellow asked, “What, are you trying to break it down?” With some offense the foreman answered, “No, we’re showing that it can’t be broken down.”

The test in that case was a demonstration for the benefit of the townsfolk not for the benefit of the engineers. Similarly when I am tested it is not so God will find out how well I can do but to show me how poorly (and perhaps occasionally how well) I can do.

While the author alludes to the various examples of testing he does not show the conclusion of those tests. I think the conclusions fall into the categories offered by Paul for his own actions:

“For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.” – The haughty and self righteous are tested to show their weakness.

And

“…yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.” – The humble are used as tools for super-human works by God.

Purpose Driven Live 4

One of the saddest moments in my life sprang out of an attempt to comfort a friend. The quote “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God.” (from Ro 8:28) came up and I made the comment that no matter how difficult, things are leading to a happy ending. With almost tears in her eyes, she responded, “but that is only in heaven.” She had a near-term hopelessness that sank to the very core of her being with the only consolation the insubstantial hope of heaven.

My reading and experience do not lead to the same conclusion. While heaven is the eventual reward and recompense there is much more immediate promise repeated throughout scripture. For example in Luke 12, “Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds.” My experience has been one of much more immediate realization of God’s protection and providence.

There have been times when I have thought I was losing something of incalculable value despite my best efforts. In the end I found that I had gained something worth far more. It has happened often enough that I now carry that confidence with me. This does not mean that the gist of the chapter “living in the light of eternity” is any less important, but God’s blessings are not withheld until some distant future.

The Author references 1Cor 2:9, “…nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him.” and then starts listing what he has conceived. I will offer only some thoughts arising from the Pharisee’s questions “whose wife will she be” or Jesus’ comment “ghosts don’t eat”. I am not sure, but they may be useful.

Eternity is not “lots and lots of time” but timeless. It is a state outside of time, a state of constancy without time, a state without change. That is why it is key to be right with God while you have “time”. Only then can you change to be right with Him. Once you have passed out of time you cannot change. You may be left in a constant state of harmony with what in life was a “still small voice.” After life, when all the distracting sensations of life are gone, that “still small voice” is an overwhelming flood of experience. If you are in harmony the bliss is unimaginable, like a loving embrace of every molecule of your being. If you are out of harmony that disharmony becomes un-masked, it becomes the “all” of your experience. A horrific timeless state.

This ties in with one of my earliest objections to the idea of eternal punishment: how can a good God punish someone and keep on punishing them for eternity for failure in a temporary life? Throughout life He stands at the door and knocks. All the opportunities in the world are offered during life even up to the last minute (e.g. the thief on cross) for each to come to harmony with Him. But if those opportunities are not accepted it is not the will of God, very specifically not His will. It is the same as when Jesus wept over Jerusalem “How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” It seems that God does not punish. His very existence is torture to those that are out of harmony with Him. During life we can avoid his presence and fill our lives with noise and busyness. After life we will see him face to face.

Purpose Driven Life 3

I don’t see my life as driven by fear, materiality or the other items the author lists. I see it more or less very much led by something between conformity and confusion. There are so many voices from within and without that pull me in one direction and another at the same time. I think that is the state of most of us. It is the choice of which to listen to that makes all the difference.

I wait anxiously to see how the Author proposes I am to perceive my purpose from amongst all those voices (or perhaps despite all those voices). I don’t see how I can see it, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done. For the time being I am concentrating on not listening to those voices that lead me away from things that are good, pure, of good report, etc. (Phil 4:8).

Perhaps the sentence (pg 34), “You were put here to prepare for eternity.” was intended to be a statement of my purpose. I certainly hope not since it is a bit vaguer than I was looking for. It’s not an egomaniacal thing. I don’t need to found a nation or save a multitude, but something a bit more concrete would help me to choose among the various options I face.

Purpose Driven Life 2

Chapter 2 presents the paradox of predestination and free will but does not give a satisfactory answer. I can faintly grasp an answer to this paradox.

People are beings in time. We are consciously acting in the present, can sense the memory of the past and have hopes and fears about the future. But that is not the case with God. We have the marvelous statement “Before Abraham was, I am.” In that statement Jesus uses incorrect grammar. But our grammar is designed to express our experience. Something that is “before” something that “was” also “was”. But Jesus was giving the closest approximation of his experience. He sat teaching in the Temple and was actively creating the universe in the same conscious instant. We live in time while he encompasses time the way we would see a landscape.

A simple analogy would be a dust mite standing on a violin string. He may describe the vibration as starting at the bow and then moving out past him toward some unknown end. But the musician controls both the bow and the finger on the string at the same time. The musician knows the end from the beginning, yet she does not control the random vibrations between.

But the violin string is inanimate. It does not make any changes along the way or the violinist changes the string. But that is why being aware and active across time is part of God’s character. As we move through time we make decisions, but outside of time God responds in the past and future as well as the present.

From our standpoint God shows foreknowledge. From his standpoint he is seeing it all at the same time. It is a single broad tapestry. Each of our lives is a single thread. Few of us are the red highlight in the horse’s eye or the silver sliver on a shimmering stream, but each thread is needed for the completed work.

Purpose Driven Life 1

Chapter 1 brings us something so amazingly fundamental but very easy to miss. It is reminiscent of the "still small voice" Elijah heard (1Ki 19). We live in a world filled with noise and busyness. It is so filled that the simple pure truth is not so much lost but overwhelmed by so much noise. Searching for purpose is what every human does. It is an urge that is nearly irrepressible. But if we seek it by responding to the loudest call, by moving toward the most attractive thing in our view or the most reasonable course we have no hope of finding it. It is the still small voice we should seek and let it be our guide.

Opening to God's call and knowing his calling are two different things. If it is possible to know where God wants us to be next year I certainly have not achieved that. I think that I can tell what God wants me to do next, right now with what I have at hand. That is the best I have been able to do. Beyond that I trust that the end of the story will be in keeping with his plan.