When All Is Stripped Away

"Christ did not come to end human suffering, but to redeem it."

The recent tornado in Moore encapsulates what I believe to be the single biggest obstacle to faith. It has many expressions, and examples are not hard to find.

The issue is, "If God is really who He claims to be, how can He let this happen?" the question is valid. The same question applies to parents losing children, disasters, sickness, any bad thing. God is Love. God is Good. God is all powerful. God is all knowing. If He knows some bad thing will happen, has the power to stop it and doesn't intervene, He becomes basically culpable. He is not Good, and this is not what Love is.

The issue drives Christians crazy, and they have a zillion ways to excuse, defend and support their faith. Most of them make no sense at all, and some are just funny.

I have a tendency to oversimplify everything. My simplistic resolution to the question is that God never promised stop all bad things in and around our lives. He promised to walk through those times with us. He promised to use even the worst things life can throw at us as opportunities strengthen and deepen our relationship with Him (and His with us).

Like the trailer park scoffers from two days ago, many scoff at the concept. For those people, there is no benefit to God. Their life is what it is, and nothing more. I'm sorry for them, but I honestly don't blame them. I think that is the wrong conclusion, but everyone has the right to reach the conclusion they are comfortable with.

For me (and countless others whose well documented stories are much more interesting than mine throughout history), I know that the bad times in life are already redeemed by what Christ did. The peaks and valleys in life are equal opportunities to experience God's presence, wisdom and power - even if the valleys are very deep and treacherous.

In this way, all things work together for Good (for God) for those who trust in the process and believe in the higher calling of the destiny and purpose He promises. Nothing is meaningless or incidental to that process, and every situation we can ever face in this life becomes a 'teachable moment' in which we learn more about Christ, personally and individually.

And honestly, a healthy separation from all of the stuff we accumulate, mansions we build and empires we think we control is not a bad thing.

So does God do bad things to us to teach us? Nope. Bad things happen and good things happen, to those who walk with God and to those who don't. That part of life is part of creation. Cause/Effect is a powerful part of that creation. Random events are also part of it. They happen to everyone, and the difference between people of faith and people without faith is in how they respond to each episode that life presents.

My working theory is that those of us who focus on our God will always be able to process, overcome and benefit from bad events in life better than those who deny God's existence at all. As a Christian, no matter what I face in life, I can say, "I know whom I have believed in and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I've committed to him against that (or any) day."

That's what it is to be a Christian.

Moore Is Less

"Like a thief in the night - in broad daylight."

Wow. Yesterday I was pissed at the people who ignored all of the warning, stayed in a trailer park as a tornado approached and died.

Today I am overwhelmed at the destruction and loss of life in the aftermath of a tornado that came without warning, that was apocalyptic in nature and that changed the landscape of a very populated part of the Oklahoma City metro area.

Even folks that did things right died. Kids and teachers at school, in the basement below ground right where they should have been, perished as the school collapsed on top of them and the flooding rainwater drowned them. There is no word in English to describe that.

The tornado yesterday in Moore, OK cut a path 20 miles long and up to two miles wide. It picked up houses, people, cars, pets, trees, grass and even dirt and hurled it up to 75 miles away.

The guys in the trailer park yesterday might say with some legitimacy today, "See. It doesn't matter. When it's your time, it's your time. There is no difference between those who do things right and those who ignore every sign and scoff at every warning."

This is a common argument used against those whose worldview incorporates faith, destiny, living for something bigger than oneself and believing in God.

And today it is hard to argue with them. Just sayin'.

Tornado Alley 2013

"The East Coast has hurricanes, the West Coast has earthquakes, we have tornados."

Oklahoma is famous for severe weather, especially in May. Tornados are a fact of life here. I have lived here all my life and never experienced one until 2006. They really are every bit as scary and terrible as one might imagine. I hope I never have to ride out another one.

I used to joke that we aren't afraid of them. We just send them to the nearest trailer park. Then a few tornados hit a few trailer parks, and the joke isn't funny anymore. Why anyone in this particular state would live in a mobile home is beyond me. Why anyone would stay in one when they have a fifteen minute warning that a long track, huge tornado is coming blows me away.

Yesterday, a long track, early warned, heavily chased tornado smashed a pretty big trailer park and two people died.

The pic above was taken yesterday by the pastor of one of our mega churches here. It is supposedly authentic. It is obviously symbolic. The cross in the pic is 163 ft tall, located on the campus of the church. The tornado started a few miles west of the picture location and continued until it significantly damaged the town of Carney, OK, some 60 miles away, causing one injury and a bunch of property damage for a town of 649 people.

What does it take to get people to understand and respect a tornado? Do they really have to die? Tornados are non negotiable. You aren't going to win an argument with one, and they have no respect for whatever rights people think they're entitled to. They are what they are, and they do what they do. Ignore them at your own peril.

What does it take to get people to understand and respect the cross? It to is a force in and of itself. It can change lives. It has changed history. There's a lot of Facebook chatter this morning about the cross representing 'good' and the tornado representing 'destruction'. Some see the cross as defense against the tornados of life. I'm OK with that, BTW.

But my thoughts this morning, as I absorb the impact of the tornados yesterday, are how the cross and the tornado are alike. Both of them have intrinsic power to affect lives. Both of them are what they are regardless of anyone's opinion, interpretation, background, belief system or worldview. To think of the cross as just a symbol of some idealistic or esoteric concept of a utopian lifestyle or way of looking at things is a huge mistake.

The cross is as real as the tornado, and has already impacted people, communities, cultures and history more than any weather phenomenon ever could. Yet people ignore it, shun it and ridicule it just like some trailer park residents do to the weather reports. Huge mistake.

Another Couple of Weeks, Another Couple of Pounds

"At this rate, I'll look like a heroin addict by the turn of the century."

Well, the training, sweating, strengthening and progress continues. I wish it was faster, easier, done already, etc. But it isn't. So I'll keep after it.

It's not like the process is all that bad. But it's not impressive either. Kinda like my whole life, in a way.

But I'll get there. I won't be first. I probably won't be last. And I won't fail.

My trainer decided to up the stakes a little this week. We're doing different and harder stuff, and I'm sore all over. But I do feel like I'm accomplishing something, so that's good.

And I walked right by the box of doughnuts this morning at work to get to the fridge where I have a stash of really good, fresh blueberries. (I still want a doughnut.)

A Good Sports Massage

"Great. Just what I need: Something else to spend money on."

My shoulder hurts. It hurts from my neck to my elbow. It's not constant, but varies depending on what I'm doing. Both the location and intensity change all the time. I've tried ignoring it, taking some anti-inflammatory drugs (which help, but I don't like them), working around the problem, trying to develop better shoulders over time, etc.

If I go see a doctor, I presume that rotator cuff surgery will be needed. After all, insurance companies won't argue with it, it's lucrative for the doc et al, it's routine and who cares how much the recovery hurts? Maybe I should try physical therapy first. Maybe I'll find a good sports massage therapist.

I did that today.

The guy rubbed on me for a long time and it feels better already. The therapist is from South Korea and put some patch on my shoulder and arm. I asked what it was, and he told me. I didn't recognize the name, of course. He said he brought it from South Korea, and it was a special deal. Hmmm. Outcome is everything. We'll see if it helps.

The experience was cool, but not like others who routinely get massages tell me about. I enjoyed it until the end, when I checked out and the receptionist pushed the 'plan' on me. If I buy a massage a month for a year, I save $20 each. If I want more than one a month, the second one is half price.

I suggested we see if this one helps in the gym, and she made it clear that if I didn't sign up today it would cost an extra $100 and I wouldn't get a month free. I explained that I just had my first ever massage, and I enjoyed it, and I felt better. But I wasn't quite ready to buy $750 worth of them today. She acted offended. I felt sorry for her.

Somehow I bet that if I do decide to sign up for a massage a month for a year on my next visit (if there is one), they'll do a special deal just for me and waive the fee and throw in the extra month. But my first reaction is that I will never find out.

We'll see.

Miracle In Las Vegas

"No, we didn't win a million bucks."

Circa 1978, our family hosted a foreign exchange student from Belgium. He was supposed to stay for a school year then go home. He never left.

By 1984, he completely ran out of options to extend his visa. Against our parents' advice, he married the girl he was dating primarily to stay here. He moved to Chicago to marry her, and we never heard from him again.

Fast forward to last weekend, as I am in Vegas with my bro doing 50 proud. We wander into Planet Hollywood and listen to the final set of music from a pretty good rock band. We start a conversation with a pretty blond girl, who happens to be in Vegas with her best friend celebrating her 50th. She mentions that she is from Chicago, lives in California now, went to school at OU and married a European guy who is an aeronautical engineer. My bro mentioned our long lost student by name, and it turns out that the pretty blond is the very same girl the guy left to marry almost 30 years ago.

To say that all of our minds were blown would be an understatement. Sometimes coincidences are just too coincidental to be mere coincidence. Word travelled fast, and the blowing of minds extended to at least four states. We've tried to find this guy several times over the past 29 years and didn't have any luck. Now, without warning or preparation, here's his (now ex) wife. What a wonderful, random, unexplainable, out of the blue experience.

When we finally got to talk to him, It was really weird. I told him it was good to talk to my brother who ran away from home. We heard about his kids, career and life, but none of us had our fill of talking. Hopefully over the next few weeks and months, we'll be able to reconnect with someone who was a big part of my family during and after high school.

What a great birthday present.

And Elton John was fantastic. I thoroughly enjoyed every single second of that concert.

What a weekend!

8 Lbs, 1 Month And No Potatos

"The five food groups: Meat, Cheese, Potatoes, Pasta, Bread"

I've been working with Tylor, my trainer for a month now. I've lost eight lbs, which isn't all that good or bad. I don't miss them, for what it's worth.

It's time to sign up for another month. Here's the paraphrased conversation we had about that.

Tylor: Are we going to keep doing the same schedule this month, or do you need to cut back to two days a week?"

Me: Well, I've been thinking a lot about that. My thoughts drifted towards all of the advantages of being a couch potato. I've been asking myself whether I'm going the right direction. I could be sitting at home watching the Rangers' game, eating potato chips, drinking a Coke and smoking. That scenario offers some real advantages that I'm not going to get spending my time up here working out with you.

I would enjoy eating food from the five food groups again.

I have insurance. If I get diabetes, insurance and eventually Medicare will pay for it.

If I get really, really fat, I can get a handicap sticker from my Dr. ...

[Tylor just kept filling out the paperwork as if I wasn't saying anything. I was hoping for an argument, grimace, objection, negotiation for an order of fries now and then or something. It didn't happen.]

Me: You're not buying any of this are you?

Tylor Nope. You've come too far. Did you want to pay by check or credit card?

[I signed the form and handed over the card.]