In Memorial of Times of Tragedy

More than Magic

This morning I was thinking about when I was a kid studying to be a magician. Seriously. I had a teacher who had been a famous Las Vegas magician, and to be in his class I had to sign an agreement that I would never perform a trick he had taught me until I had practiced it 1,000 times. That seemed excessive, yet when I got out in front of audiences as large as 500 people, I found I was terrified and overwhelmed. I got through the shows because my hands knew what to do despite the fear, despite the adversity.

As we run across things that encourage us and lift us up, we must take time to run them through our minds over and over until they run deep within. Then, in those times when we would be afraid or overwhelmed, those beautiful things sustain us even when we think we do not have the strength to carry on.

Phillipians 4:8

On Defining Who I Am By My Occupation

We just got back from a remarkable networking lunch where fifty movers and shakers in spirituality and media chatted each other up. (What I personally move and shake is confidential and not pretty.) As we met in various groups the conversation primarily consisted of each of us in a round telling the others "what we do." There was no instructions on this at all; this conversation is the default setting for networking. It would seem we are what we do for a living. For most of the folks this was relevant since most of us came to do what we do through an arduous and intentional process---education combined with job choices within our scope/s of interest.

Still, the short hand of summing up who I am, or any of us for that matter, by the naming of an occupation was very disturbing to me. The truth is what we do as a job often does not define us. Further, being stereotyped by our occupation denies the process of life. I have done lots of jobs over the years from paper boy to sales to waiter to writer to pastor to attorney to Deputy Attorney General. Not one of those titles begin to describe who I am, yet each one of those jobs are integrated into my life path. The question perhaps is, "are you a tadpole or a frog?" The answer is I may look like a tadpole, yet I am in the process of becoming something different than what I appear to be today. Not that being a tadpole is bad---embrace that too---yet don't marginalize me because of the stage I am in within the process of life.

I found it hard to give a quick summary of who I am. The titles I have worn over the years sound cool in shorthand, yet it's disconcerting to be quickly thrown into a cubby hole of what each other person thought regarding that title. I became not me, but rather a caricature of the other people the hearer knows within that stated profession. The other side is that if I honestly state who I am it sounds pretentious as hell since I identify not as who I am today, but rather, I am beyond the tadpole, beyond the frog, even beyond the young prince, and see myself as a king. See, I told you---pretentious---yet I can not dwell on my apparent frogdom when it is already the season to consider my kingdom.

I am not who you think I am, whatever that may be; I am more, much more, than even I realize.

Leeches and Wounds from Loved Ones

There is a story of a young missionary's first journey in the Amazon. After a long walk through the jungle he reaches a village and notices he has several leeches on his legs. Horrified he begins to grab and rip them off. A wise villager stops him, and allows him to soak his legs in a salt bath. One by one the leeches release and float away. The fangs from the couple he ripped away remain within his skin and fester.

When a loved one hurts us, so often our first response is to lash out or perhaps run away, forcefully and quickly dealing with the wound. The result is like those hard to remove festering fangs. How much better when we allow the saltwater source to have time and place to allow grace and peace to heal us. Sometimes the process is slow, as we sit and soak until the offense falls away, yet that is always the better way.

As an attorney helping families in crisis, day after day, even night after night, people would call me seeking vengeance or freedom or justice from someone who had hurt them. There were things the law could do; I would do those things as appropriate. Still, time and time again I saw the hurt healed not by the process of law, rather time and grace did more good than any court or high priced lawyer.

There is a balm, a greater power, of salt and water, that can heal. Press into that. Today.

iQ do uQ?

Q stands at the intersection of faith and a rapidly changing culture. The teachings of Jesus have stood strong for two thousand years; are they relevant in the next millenia? Movers and shakers of media and faith will converge at The Tabernacle in Atlanta, Georgia to examine the future of faith---making it real and relevant in a rapidly changing world. Participants will include representatives from CNN, BET Network, the founders of PASTE and WIRED magazines, writers ROB BELL, DONALD MILLER, numerous grassroots world changers, and legendary singer/songwriter/producer T BONE BURNETT.

This is just around the corner, so contact them now. Partial scholarships may still be available. Tell them Kel Vick sent you. See you there!

Details: http://www.fermiproject.com/q/

Easter Song, by Keith Green

Here the bells ringing
Theyre singing
that you can be born again
Here the bells ringing
They're singing
christ is risen from the dead

The angel up on the tombstone
Said he has risen, just as he said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That jesus christ is no longer dead
Joy to the word, he has risen,
hallelujah He's risen,
hallelujah He's risen,
hallelujah

Hear the bells ringing
They're singing
that you can be healed right now
Hear the bells ringing, they're singing
Christ, he will reveal it now

The angels, they all surround us
And they are ministering jesus power
Quickly now, reach out and receive it
For this could be your glorious hour
Joy to the world,
he has risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah,
hallelujah

The angel up on the tombstone
Said he has risen, just as he said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That jesus christ is no longer dead
Joy to the world,
he has risen,
hallelujah

He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
Hallelujah

The Sins of Jesus

Did Jesus sin? A tenet of traditional Christianity is that He was the perfect sacrifice to atone for all because he was without sin. Is this true?

Jesus was Jewish. Occasionally I will mention this and the other in the discussion will say, "Really? I always thought he was a Christian." Uh, no. He grew up steeped in the law of the Torah and Rabbinical law. Yet, over and over Jesus violated Torah and Rabbinical Code. In the culture in which He lived, He was a criminal; in the faith of the society in which he preached, He was a sinner.

A few examples:

1. The first knowing act of Jesus recorded is his running off from his parents. Sure it is made all noble since he was at the temple and explained to his mother, AFTER HE HAD BEEN MISSING FOR THREE DAYS AT AGE TWELVE, that He was at His Father's (Father God) house. If that had been you or me, having dashed off at twelve to go build a house for Habitat for Humanity or some other noble cause for three days, we would have been wildly spanked and grounded for months. Did Jesus "Honor his mother" with that action? no. Jesus repeatedly gave appearance of breaking the commandment to honor one's parents. He even told his followers that He came to turn sons against fathers and that they would have to "hate" their parents to follow Him. (Matthew 10:34-37)2. Jesus' first miracle was to turn water into wine---the quantity is amazing! He made 150 gallons, which is 4,800 glasses of wine! He provided this additional alcohol to guests which the New International Version of the Bible says were already drunk. This would be a violation of Jewish law (Habakkuk 2:15, "Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also..."), and giving more alcohol---lots more---to intoxicated folks is a crime today.3. Jesus flagrantly and repeatedly violated the Jewish interpretation of "Remember the Sabbath Day, and keep it Holy." He did this by picking grain (Matthew 12:1-8) and healing people on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:9-13)---acts which were expressly forbidden. In dealing with the Rabbis who admonished him on this he further failed to show them the respect that such leaders were to be given in that culture.

I could go on; you get my point. So what gives? Prophecy and tradition called for a perfect and sinless lamb to be slain as a sacrifice to all, yet Jesus was not sinless according to the Torah or the laws of the Rabbis.

First, a key teaching of Jesus is that there is a higher law that trumps the laws of man. Interestly, the higher law He espoused trumped prior God given law---or at least man's interpretation of that law. Second, Jesus teaches that motive matters more than the act itself. He touched and embraced lepers, the dead, Samaritans and all kinds of sinners, clearly violating Torah, yet in healing those people and showing them a better way to live, His higher purpose rose above God's previously stated law. Jesus was a rebel. Jesus was a criminal. He cursed things that did not belong to him (like the fig tree and the herd of pigs), and they died. By our standards and laws He was NOT perfect.

There are higher laws; motives matter more than laws; following one's noble destiny is our highest purpose even if it violates societal norms. These are hard teachings and not the typical Good Friday thoughts. For me, this makes me trust Him more and appreciate His sacrifice more. I can not identify with a perfect person who calls me to be likewise perfect. That is more than I can honestly embrace. However, living as a rebel against religious dogma, and seeking higher purpose over all things---I can strive for that. So today, Good Friday, I raise my glass of wine, dip my bread and celebrate the death of my favorite "sinner" and "criminal," Jesus.

Welcome to A Stirring in the Water

What brought Karla and I together, first and foremost, was our joint and equal passion for spiritual wholeness...not just for us, for all of us. At a recent gathering of believers which we join every Sunday morning, someone said that it is time to stop acting like Christians and start acting like Jesus. Amen to that.

There is a story in the Bible book of John where a guy had been crippled several decades, and he sat next to a pool with healing powers. It was believed that from time to time an angel came and stirred the water, and the first person into the water would be healed. The problem is, he had no one to help him into the pool when the miracle came. It occurs to me there was a faith issue too: It would take a tremendous amount of chutzpah for a crippled person to dive into a pool; his dream of wholeness could well be his worst nightmare. Jesus came along and told the guy to stand up and walk. He did and was healed. The problem was Jesus did this on a Sabbath (Holy) day when no work such as doing miracles was allowed by the religious leaders of the community. Jesus loved to screw with religious folks, Men in fancy clothes who had an appearance of truth yet repeatedly missed the point.

So much of our life we think, if we could just get that degree, or that job, or that lover, or that kid out of diapers and into kindergarten, THEN WE COULD.... To often we, crippled by our desire to be better, which is noble, miss the opportunity standing right in front of us. Wherever we are, whatever we are doing, there is no better time than NOW. My friend, join us; let's stand up and walk, and walk together (and screw the religious folks who say we can't).

We are Kel and Karla, and we love you, no matter what.

WHO WE ARE IS THE SUM TOTAL OF ALL OUR EXPERIENCES

One thing I've learned over my lifetime - who we are is the sum total of all our experiences, whether we label them "good," "bad" or "indifferent." If we are much more than meets the eye, if there is more to this life than we can comprehend, a field of Faith, a grand design that is hidden from us, all those experiences are not for naught. If, as I believe, we are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience, then ALL experiences are for our growing benefit.

It's hard, I know, to look at situations that are painful, situations where someone has hurt us, physically, sexually, emotionally or spiritually, and bless that person and what happened. And that is exactly what we (and by this I mean I) must do. In fact, I am re-writing what I just wrote:

One thing I've learned over my lifetime - who I am is the sum total of all my experiences, whether I label them "good," "bad" or "indifferent." If I am much more than meets the eye, if there is more to this life than I can comprehend, a field of Faith, a grand design that is hidden from me, all those experiences are not for naught. If, as I believe, I am not a human being having a spiritual experience, I am a spiritual being having a human experience, then ALL experiences are for my growing benefit.It's hard, I know, to look at situations that are painful, situations where someone has hurt me, physically, sexually, emotionally or spiritually, and bless that person and what happened. That feels better to me - it's more personal - as this is a personal belief and statement - although I invite you to try it on for size.

This means that I bless every situation and person that comes into my life - which includes the traffic jam, the missed turn and detour, the blessing of flowers, art, awareness, the challenging relationship with someone, the experiences in my youth, teen-hood, young adulthood, all my previous relationships and marriages, lovers and friends. It means I bless those who have been malicious to me, who have come to me meaning harm. And I would go further to say something extreme here, and very personal, which you may not YET agree with - it means (to me) that I bless every situation and person who has come my way - even, theoretically, those situations that might include rape, murder, incest, someone causing someone I love (or myself) physical harm, dread disease and terminal illness, not just on a personal scale - on a larger scale as well. I have the faith that I am not put into a situation or given a trial without the resources to handle it - and the major resource I have is my faith in God. My trust is that there is a function bigger than myself - and that I'm here to learn soul lessons. Of course, I need to conduct myself in a way that is gracious and full of Grace. I need to continue to acknowledge the places where there is Love shining through, even in the darkest hour. I need to revisit and hold my hand out, I need to ask for help - both on a human level and a spiritual level. I do not need an explanation - I do not need to know it all - I just need to trust, to lean into my faith, to sit with the inner knowing that there is much more at work than just my little life. And that in my little life, I can have a positive effect on all those around me, just as they all positively effect me.

We are each other. And in stepping into forgiveness, self-forgiveness especially, loving each other, cultivating Higher Love, mirroring the Divine, we awaken the best in ourselves and the best in each other. I am not my circumstances. You are not your history, and yet we are all that, and more. I will say it again - I am the sum total of all my experiences. What a blessing!!!

from Karla