Qik - Finding peace and blessing in your life

Over the last few days I have been speaking with many friends and colleagues who have expressed a similar concern - the concern is whether they are spending their lives for something truly worthwhile! The notion of 'gain' seems to be central to so much of contemporary life, whether it is material gain (wealth), or social gain (power and acclaim), or whether it is things such a love and peace... We all seem to apply our talents, energy, and abilities in order to gain something for ourselves and others...

1 Tim 6.6 says that "Godliness with contentment is of great gain". This verse has resonated within my mind for some time - I have it set as a calendar reminder for a Thursday morning! It reminds me when the week is almost done and I am feeling a little tired and worn out, yet the tasks of the week seem no closer to completion, that there is something worthwhile that I can ask myself - has this week been an attempt at growing in Godliness, and and can I find contentment in the context and situation withing which God has placed me? If the answer to those two questions is 'yes', then I can say that I have made a gain that cannot be compared to mere wealth, acclaim, or hedonistic pleasure...

The little video above discusses my thoughts on this concept, and the concept of 'work as worship' (in relation to Col 3.23-24).

I'd love to hear your thoughts, insights and feedback!

A little affirmation! We all need it from time to time.

This morning I had a meeting at the University of Stellenbosch - it is truly one of my favourite places on earth!  After the meeting I popped into the Theology Library (where I am fortunate to have 'privileges' since I am a local minister and was a past student).  I handed back two books (both by Joerg Rieger on Christianity and Empire, which I had been using for a chapter Joerg asked me to write for one of his new books).

The library has a display section for new books, recommended books, new journals and new PhD and Masters thesis.  I always take a quick look at this selection to see what is new and what is recommended (mainly in the books and journals!) It is such an incredible privilege it is to have access to a good theological library on my doorstep!

Well, today when I had a quick look I was suprised to find that two mine and Wessel's books (see http://www.wesselsplace.blogspot.com ) were on display!  The two books in question (see the lower right of the photograph) are 'What are we thinking? Reflections on Church and society from Southern African Methodists' and 'Methodism in Southern Africa:  A celebration of Wesleyan Mission'.

I'm certain it is vanity - but it just felt so good, like such an affirmation, to see our two books on Methodism in Southern Africa singled out for attention among all of the many, many books in the library!  We all need a little affirmation from time to time!

I needed it today, and God gave me this little 'surprise gift'.

I have been feeling a little sad of late - it started with the death of my friend Barry, then my little son Liam got ill, and we have struggled to nurse him back to health for almost 3 weeks now.  I can't tell you what a toll that takes on Megie and I!  Because of the struggle with his lungs we don't get much sleep and Megie had to take two weeks out of the office to take care of him (of course that puts all sorts of other pressures on us!) Then, this last week was my late father's birthday - he would have been 66 years old.  Remembering my dad brings back some wonderful memories - but, I do feel that I miss him.  For those who have lost parents, you may know what I am talking about - it feels strange to be 'alone in the world', without that pivotal point of reference, that person to whom you can turn for advice, counsel and wisdom.

I try quite hard to take a spoon of my own medicine by focussing on the things for which I can be thankful, and believe me, I have more than my share of those!  I am truly blessed!  Moreover, I attempt to spend my time helping others, engaging in acts of mercy and service wherever I am able so that I can gain a correct orientation on my life.  Of course I pray, I read the scriptures, and I exercise.  The intention with all of these is to maintain a healthy equilibrium between my spiritual life, my physical life and my psychological state (emotions).  Sometimes this is easier said than done!

Well, this little blessing has brought a smile to my face! It is good to be affirmed - I think we all need it from time to time...

 

Taking the gap... Making the most of who you are and where you are...

Do you sometimes feel dissatisfied with who you are?  Perhaps you're frustrated with where you are in life?  Maybe you just wish that your life was different!

These are not uncommon feelings - a great number of people struggle with these feelings.  Of course there are many complex factors that can contribute to this state of mind.  I would venture, however, that one fairly common cause for this malaise is a lack of meaning and purpose.  When we feel like we are valuable, able to make a significant difference, we tend to be more at peace, more fulfilled.  On the other hand, when we feel like we're not making much of a difference to the world around us, and that we are not value for who we are and what we can do, then we tend to be less happy, less at peace, and less settled.

Does this sound right to you?

For the past 8 weeks or so I have been doing a series of messages about the 7 Churches of Revelation 2 and 3 for my radio program 'The ministry and me' on Radio Pulpit. I have received some wonderful feedback from listeners!  The purpose of the program is simple - my aim is to help every Christian to grow in their understanding that they are all ministers (of some for or another), and that with just a little bit of courage and a litle bit of focuss and intention each and every person can do great things for God!

Today I recorded the message that will be broadcast on Wednesday in two weeks time (I am pleased to say that I am a full cycle ahead!) - the message is entitled 'Taking the gap:  making the most of who you are, where you are and what you do for God'  We looked at the Church at Philadelphia (Rev 3:7-13).  This was not a powerful Church, it did not have great resources, or even massive acclaim.  Yet, we are told in the text that because of their courage and faithfulness in the things that they could do (not the things they wished to do, or the things that others did...) they were remembered by Christ and that if they remained faithful in that humble and persistent ministry God would write His name on them.  People would look at them and recognise that they are loved by God.

When I read that I wondered what it must be like to be recognizeably loved by God!  That must be something special.

Well, maybe this sermon will have some encouragement for you.  Please do drop me a line if you have any thoughts or feedback.  And please also vote for the episode on the Radio Pulpit website (simply follow this link and send a mail message asking to cast your vote for 'The ministry and me').

You can download the program here (6MB MP3 file)

Thank you!  God bless,

Dion

No wonder Windows works, and looks, like it does!

And this, my friends, is why we struggle with our Windows boxes!!! Note that I say OUR windows boxes - even though I am a Mac user I do have two Windows machines (one is my wife's computer that constantly needs TLC, the other is a work laptop - a little Acer 6292, since the day I've had it ONE thing has never worked... Sadly, it is never the same thing... Some days the wifi won't work, other days the mouse stops responding, sometimes it won't boot into vista... The list goes on and on!) Except for Windows it is an incredible little machine. If only I could put Ubuntu on it. But, it's a work machine. So, it goes off to the IT department fairly frequently. Thankfully I have my Macbook - it just works! I saw at the new Dion Wired store in Somerset West that they're selling Macbooks (brand new!) for R7999! That is comparable to a Windows notebook of the same spec!

Well, here's a video of Windows CEO, Steve Balmer at a Microsoft conference.

To see more of Microsoft CEO, Steve Balmer's antics, go here.

A man posts an interactive browser of his brain (scan).

I spent quite a lot of time working with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans during my doctoral research.  In my case I looked at two specific things.  The MRI is very helpful when one wishes to establish the location of some form of damage to the brain (a tumor, cyst, or lesion).  I used this to help me understand how persons processed meaning (and of course how pathology impacted the processing of meaning in the human brain - it is a common occurrence that persons manifest heightened religious or spiritual consciousness when they have some form of abnormality in their brain).  Just as an aside, note that I say abnormality in this instance and not pathology! Of course this is because being different from the norm is not only a neurological phenomenon.  There are many persons who are different from the norm (whatever the 'norm' is!) because, for example, they may be an immigrant in a new country (sociology), taller than the average population (physical attributes), have extra abilities (such as exceptional sports skills) etc.  Abnormality must not be confused with pathology - just because someone, or something, is not 'normal' it does not make it wrong.

Nelson Mandela is an 'abnormal' being - after 27 years in prison the average person (normal) would seek some form of retribution or revenge for their suffering.  He, however, sought reconciliation!  Abnormality can give us a great deal of insight into how things should be!

Other than MRI scans I also made use of magnetoencephalography - this is different from MRI scanning (well slightly different) in that it gives one the ability to view the whole brain (rather than just 'slices' of the brain) to be able to see where the electrical pulses and 'hotspots' of certain cognitive processes are located.  So, for example, one could ask a person to imagine a certain event, or stimulate an emotion through showing them a picture, inducing the sense of smell, or playing a piece of music, and then see where in the brain there is electrical activity (neural activity).  I am STILL working on a rewrite of my doctoral thesis - when that project is done it will present some of my research on how the brain processes religious consciousness (particularly as it relates to identity).  The working title of the book is "Why you're not who you think you are:  Adventures in neuroscience and theology".

Of course the human brain is only one part of the complex array of interconnected elements that makes up who we truly are - however, it is a rather important part of that complex reality!  I found the following post quite interesting (if not amusing!).  If you're interested to see what an MRI looks like in relation to the person who's brain was scanned then follow this link.  Here's the original story from Boing Boing.

In September 2009 my doctor recommended an MRI to rule-out a couple of potential conditions. The scan came back completely normal, which was a great relief! As a kind of cathartic exercise, and inspired by Dustin Curtis's brain tour I decided to do something with the images. I spent most of a fun weekend writing this MRI explorer. I hope you enjoy playing with it! Inside Bill Moorier's Brain

For more of my posts on the brain and neuroscience please follow this link, or simply search for 'brain' or 'neuroscience' in the search box on this blog.

Where will synthetic biology lead us!? 4 legged chickens and Maurice Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology

I suppose it could be said that I hold quite a positive view of technology (in general).  Of course there are instances, and certain technologies, which violate this general attitude.  However, on the whole I have experienced the innumerable benefits of being able to communicate, travel, interact, do business, and even deepen my relationships and faith life, through the application of technology.

I have written elsewhere  on this blog about the false, even naive, perspective that many persons have concerning technology (please see this post, and this one, and of course the notion of 'singularity', oh and this one as well)!  In reality we are already 'enslaved' by our technologies!  Simply try to go through one day without employing some form of environmental aid (a car, a telephone, a computer, even spectacles, medicine and most foods are all 'technologically' engineered for human benefit).  Maurice Merleau-Ponty, the French phenomenological philosopher, understood that human interaction upon the world is not a one way street... We don't simply act upon the world!  There is a reverse action from the world upon us...  For example, if you were to walk into an empty room that had nothing but an chair in it what would you do?  At some point the emptyness of the room and the presence of the chair would act upon you consciously, or subconsciously, and they will cause you to sit.  This illustrates how the space and the objects in the space have informed and transformed your thought processes.  However, the very act of sitting (as an act of physics, where the human body and the structure of the chair encounter one another) is a mutual interaction of material realities in which each has an effect upon the other.  When you sit on the chair the structure of the chair flexes and takes up strain in certain areas.  Conversely the structure of the chair exercises pressure upon your body (changing the shape of your body, supporting your back, lowering the pressure on your feet etc.)

Technology thus has both 'subtle' and 'gross' interactions with its human creators - by this I mean that technology interacts both with what is unseen (thoughts, choices, dreams, hopes, aspirations, desires, fears etc.) and what is seen (our physical being, our environment, our proximity to self and others...)

When one comes to consider this complex relationship between consumers of technology, creators of technologies, and the technologies themselves one can begin to understand that the ethical considerations of what we do (and do not do) with our technologies is even MORE complex!  For example, how far do we go in manipulating the human genetic code to do away with certain pathological conditions (mental illness, disease etc.)?  When have we taken our use of technology too far, and when have we not taken it far enough!?

It reminds me a a joke I heard recently - a man was driving in a rural chicken farming area when he passed on the motorway by a 4 legged chicken doing 130 km/h!  The man was amazed and so he followed the speading bird to a farmers homestead.  He knocked on the farmers door and asked him "have you see that there is a 4 legged chicken running around on your farm?" The farmer replied, "indeed, there are plenty of them here.  We breed them that way.  You see I like a drumstick, my wife likes one, and so do my 2 children.  So, it was for that reason that we engineered chickens that have 4 legs".  Astonished the enquirer asked "So, how do they taste?" "I'm not sure" replied the farmer, "I've never been able to catch one!"

I suppose that is the 'sweet spot' for technology - it must serve a useful and appropriate purpose in order for it to be considered good!  Well, in my trawl of the internet I came across this interesting post on biological engineering.  I would love to hear your feedback and thoughts (particularly from the perspective of Christian ethics) on the use and abuse of technologies!

In “A Life of Its Own," Michael Specter explores the opportunities and challenges posed by the emerging field of synthetic biology. “No scientific achievement has promised so much, and none has come with greater risks or clearer possibilities for deliberate abuse,” Specter writes. Synthetic biologists “see cells as hardware, and genetic code as the software required to make them run,” he notes. “By using gene-sequence information and synthetic DNA, they are attempting to reconfigure the metabolic pathways of cells to perform entirely new functions, such as manufacturing chemicals and drugs.” One team of biologists, led by Jay Keasling at Berkeley, has had great success with amorphadine, the precursor to the malaria medicine artemisinin: they constructed a microbe to manufacture the compound, and by 2012 they will have produced enough artemisinin that the cost for a course of treatment will drop from as much as ten dollars to less than a dollar. “We have got to the point in human history where we simply do not have to accept what nature has given us,” Keasling tells Specter. He envisions a much larger expansion of the discipline, engineering cells to manufacture substances like biofuels.
Another scientist, Drew Endy of Stanford, has collaborated with colleagues to start the BioBricks Foundation, a nonprofit organization formed to register and develop standard parts for assembling DNA. Endy predicts that if synthetic biology succeeds, “our ultimate solution to the crisis of health-care costs will be to redesign ourselves so that we don’t have so many problems to deal with,” but he also acknowledges the risks inherent in the field. Synthetic biology, Endy tells Specter, is “the coolest platform science has ever produced, but the questions it raises are the hardest to answer.” Yet he also argues that “the potential is great enough, I believe, to convince people it’s worth the risk.” Specter writes, “The planet is in danger, and nature needs help.” While biological engineering will never “solve every problem we expect it to solve,” he writes, “what worked for artemisinin can work for many of the products our species will need to survive.”

(Illustration by Joost Swarte) Where will synthetic biology lead us?

Please leave me some feedback and thoughts in the comments!  Come on ethicists, philosophers, theologians, and the rest of us who use technology! What do you think?

On a common journey! Methodist Ordination service.

In this picture are two of my best friends in the ministry - Rev Kevin
Needham (left) and Angus Kelly (middle). Today is Angus' Ordination
to the ministry of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa. It is a
recognition by the denomination that he has the gifts for ministry and
has responded to the call to serve in the ministry of the church. The
training process is quite rigorous, taking between 5-7 years.

Angus is a good minister! He serves two Churches. One in Paarl and
one in Franschhoek (both in the Western Cape). He is a superb
preacher, an excellent worship leader and a caring pastor. I have had
te joy of serving with Angus when he was our worship Pastor at
Coronation Ave Methodist Church when I was a Pastor there (some 10
years ago if I remember correctly).

I rejoice with Gus and the 30 other friends, many of whom were my
students (as Gus was!), at John Wesley College.

I thank God for gifted people who could do almost anything in the
world, yet choose a life of sacrifice and service for the sake of
seeing God's Kingdom come to earth!

It was so wonderful to be with many friends here in Pietermaritzburg!
I feel renewed, encouraged and uplifted!

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The Unashamedly Ethical Summit 2009

This morning (18-19 September 2009) just over 100 people gathered at the Lord Charles Hotel in Somerset West for the first annual Unashamedly Ethical summit.

Among the speakers over the next two days are Graham Power (from the Power group of companies), Steve Johnstone (international co-ordinator of Unashamedly Ethical), Dr Willem Landman (Ethics SA), Prof Danny Titus (Transparency International), Theo Nkone (former MEC in Provincial Government and senior leader for Old Mutual South Africa).

These two days are set to be a remarkable encouragement and reminder for us to commit to being unashamedly ethical in all that we say, do, and choose. These choices are intended to address systemic corruption in order to impact systemic poverty in a significant manner.

Please visit http://www.unashamedlyethical.com for more details about the campaign and the conference.

A new book! "What is a good life? An introduction to Christian Ethics in 21st century Africa"

Update 13 February 2010


If you are a University of South Africa - UNISA student who needs to order this book for Ethics you can order the book from here:

Books 4 Change

Or from here:

AcadSA

Shout if you have any difficulty!

God bless,

Dion

My congratulations to my friends Dr. Wessel Bentley, Dr Andre van Niekerk and Prof Liouse Kretzschmar who have just released their new book "What is a good life? An introduction to Christian Ethics in 21st century Africa".

Here's some information about the book:

What is a good life? is a question asked by many people. Why can’t the pursuit of money, power or status provide us with a good life? Why is it that who we are as persons and how we relate to others and our environment is important? Why are a spiritual life and a close relationship with God essential? Why are the lives of some of those who claim to be Christians immoral and unappealing?
A person of integrity has to learn the difference between good and right conduct on the one hand, and damaging or wrong actions on the other. This book does not provide all the answers, but it introduces various ethical problems and suggests ways to deal with them.

It offers a model of moral decision-making based on various ethical theories. The model is applied to contemporary ethical problems facing the world, particularly Africa. The issues of leadership, land, the marginalisation of women and children, HIV/AIDS, the environment, the economic problem of debt and the ethical role of the Church in Africa today are discussed.

Authors from various backgrounds who investigated current ethical issues suggest a way forward. They describe how one can learn to make thoughtful and practical ethical decisions, and how individuals and communities can be morally formed. They challenge, inspire, motivate and equip the reader to become a moral agent in their own community and help to build a better life for all.

I am pleased to say that I wrote a chapter on Ethics and the Bible in relation to the matter of persons of a same sex orientation (Chapter 5, entitled "Reading the same Bible and arriving at different ethical conclusions: The Bible and Christian ethics"). Among the other authors are:

Neville Richardson
Desiree Snyman
Glenn Stavridis
Sean McGuigan
Moss Ntlha
Nadine Bowers du Toit...

This book has been prescribed for all Theological Ethics students at UNISA.  It is a superb resource that will help you to understand the complexity of ethical decision-making in relation to issues of economics, gender, sexuality, the environment, and a host of other topics concerns!  I would encourage you to consider ordering a copy from here.

True life in Christ... Or, the Church of the 'living dead'

So, be honest, many of us struggle to find true blessing and life through the Church!  The first thing I want to say about this is that we need to avoid the simplistic perspective of blaming our pastor, elders, or leaders!  True life in Christ (and so true life in the Church) has as much to do with you, and your relationship with Christ, as it has to do with any leader, institution, or even style of worship!

This is the third program in a series on ministry and the Churches of Revelation – today’s title is ‘Do you want to be more than just the ‘living dead’? True life in Christ’.  We look at some of the mistakes that the Church at Sardis made that robed them of their joy and true life in Christ.  Like so many people today, they looked good on the outside to judge the 'life' of their faith and Church, but their inner lives left a lot to be desired! You can download the program  here (6MB mp3).

As always, I would love to hear your feedback. Please also consider voting for 'The Ministry and Me' at the Radio Pulpit website.

Compassion rather than pity... And, the gift of frailty

I'll confess that I've been feeling a little low for the last week or so (sure, my 'low' is pretty much the same as most other people's 'normal'... But, I have still been feeling a little low).  In Afrikaans there is a wonderfully expressive word to describe my emotional state '...ek voel 'n bietjie broos' [I'm feeling a little 'brittle, delicate, bruised'].

My friend Barry's death has left me somewhat pensive... A day or two after Barry's passing I was searching the scriptures for some encouragement and came across these wonderful words from Lamentations 3:22-24:

 ²² Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,
       for his compassions never fail.
 ²³ They are new every morning;
       great is your faithfulness.
 ²⁴ I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion;
       therefore I will wait for him."

[This image comes from here]

The words of these verses have been a source of great encouragement and blessing as I've considered the frailty of life.  There is one particular word that stood out for me, it is to be found towards the end of verse 22 - it is the word 'compassion'.

Compassion is a remarkable emotion - in some older translations Biblical scholars used the word 'pity' instead of compassion (you can also find this in Psalm 103).  Compassion is, however, an entirely different emotion from pity (see the little video above for more).

Let me illustrate it in the following manner:  When I was primary school my mom once gave me a few Rand (the South Africa currency) to get a haircut at the end of a summer school holiday.  My brother, however, encouraged me to give the money to him so that we could spend it on sweets - he offered to cut my hair for free!  I thought this was a GREAT idea!  I would get sweets as well as a haircut.  Well, the haircut turned out to be ... shall we say somewhat adventurous!  As a punishment my mom sent me to school with my 'hacked head of hair' - all of my friends took pity on me!  They were all thinking what one of them had the courage to say - 'Hey Dion, I'm sorry you've got such a bad haircut, but boy am I pleased that I'm not you!'

Pity is an emotion that seperates one from suffering, it causes one to draw away from hardship and retreat to safety.

Compassion is quite different - compassion is an emotion that stems from empathy.  Compassion has quite the opposite outcome from pity.  Whereas pity seperates persons, compassion unites them!  A person who has suffered a great loss cannot help feeling a desire to carry the burden of someone else who has suffered a loss.  Because one has experienced pain, you don't want others to experience pain, and so you draw near to them in order to offer them comfort.

I am truly thankful that God is a God of comfort!  God draws near in grace.  This is the God who chooses to come into the world, rather than rule it from a spiritual Kingdom.  This is the God who gets actively involved in the mess of daily life, rather than remaining in a palace on a hill.  This is the God who transforms death into life, by coming to die.

This is a compassionate God who cares - and I am thankful!

I am also feeling a little bruised ('broos') because every now and then I reminded that my life is not perfect.  My little boy Liam has been very ill for the last three days.  His lungs have struggled to bring in enough air.  It is a truly desperate sight for a parent to watch their child struggling to breathe!  Together with this he has developed an infection both of his little ears.  Since he has learnt to speak a few words he cries out in pain, and there is not much that we can do.  So we hold him, and we sing, and we pray...  We don't sleep much at times such as these.  We listen for his breathing.

But, God's mercy is new every morning, and God's compassion is new!  It never fails!

And so, tonight Liam is looking better.  He is resting now, and so are we.

My life may not be perfect, but at moments like these it is pretty good!

I am thankful for the love of a God of compassion, rather than a God of pity - I am sustained, uplifted, and blessed.

Liam's frailty reminds me to love him all the more.  It reminds me that health is gift to be treasured, and that life is meant to be lived to the full.  Megan's care for him reminds me of her gentle and loving nature.

I am thankful...

A prayer of encouragement for this day.

This morning during my devotional time I came across the following wonderful prayers and text from scripture.  I use a little book called 'A prayer guide for ministers and other servants' (produced by the Upper Room).  It is a great encouragement - particularly when the days are busy and the expectations and demands of daily life loom large!  Perhaps these prayers and thoughts will offer you some encouragement, as they did for me?

Invocation:

My Lord and friend, in the quietness of this hour, reconcile my contrary motives and conflicting desires.  Give me a singleness of purpose that I may come into your presence unashamed and sit under your gaze without embarrassment or fear. Amen.

Scripture:  Lamentations 3:22-24 (New International Version)

 ²² Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,
       for his compassions never fail.

 ²³ They are new every morning;
       great is your faithfulness.

 ²⁴ I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion;
       therefore I will wait for him."

Benediction:

And now, my Lord, I thank you for reconciling my inner conflicts and healing my brokenness.  Sen me, I pray from this place as Christ's ambassador of reconciliation to those whom I meet this day.  Amen.

May you be blessed as you serve Christ and serve others.