suffering servant

(picture stolen from aubrey's blog)


i don't often write about the bible and theology. its just not my style. i'd rather tell humorous stories or use life to illustrate biblical principles.

but today is different.

today we celebrate (?) the death of a man (God).

i have a reading and reflection schedule for passion week that i've been doing for a few years now.

it starts on palm sunday by reading the gospel accounts of "the triumphal entry".

it continues monday through friday with reading the rest of the gospel accounts of the passion week.

friday afternoon (before good friday service) i watch Mel Gibson's Passion.

it concludes with easter sunday.


but


this year was different. easter snuck up on me. i really haven't reflected on it much at all.

until this morning.

i read through john's version of jesus' final day (it was totally ritual...no feeling to it).

so, i read isiah 52:13-53:12

i was moved. here are _my thoughts

[53:3]
jesus was a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief
[53:4]
he bears our grief and carries our sorrows

_he is able to bear our grief and sorrows, because he first suffered. he experienced it.

he hurt.
he felt rejection.
he was lonely.
he longed for justice.
he pined for love.

so do i.

he bears that for me!

[53:4-5]
he bears !our! griefs
he carries !our! sorrows
he was wounded for !our! transgressions
he was crushed for !our! iniquities

his chastisement brought !us! peace
his stripes healed !us!

_for __________ (insert your name here)

jesus took !our!

grief
sorrow
transgressions
iniquities

and gave !us!

peace
healing

[53:6]
{the Lord} has laid on him our iniquities
[53:10-11]
it was the {will of the Lord} to crush him
{he} has put him to grief
the {will of the Lord} shall prosper

_it was God's will to do this for us

[53:11-12]
he makes !us! righteous
he bears !our! iniquities
he bears !our! sins
he makes intercession for !us!

_he takes our sin and make us righteous



schedules and rituals can be good. i love reflection on that final week of jesus' life.

but sometimes our schedules can dull our hearts.

the spirit rocked my heart today with something new.

i'm still going to watch passion this afternoon, but now i feel i'll be able to do it in a spirit of worship and true reflection.

The Bartending Missionary

I have a friend who is a missionary. He is what is called a tent-maker. He and his wife moved to the Czech without raising support and are helping start an international church in Prague. In order to pay for their expenses they are working regular jobs. The work that they are doing is running a pub! That is right, running a pub. They own and operate this cool little pub in the basement of a hostel that is owned by a Christian couple. Is this a paradox? Christians and pubs? Beer and Evangelism? It can't be! Please tell me this isn't true! Well for those of us who love beer, this is a dream come true.

Chris and I met in Colorado at missionary training. As we talked and found out that we both were working in the Czech, one of the first questions I asked was, "So, do you like beer?" He replied, "For sure." To which I replied, "I don't think that you can be a missionary in the Czech without liking beer!" SIDE NOTE: Marisa was also a part of this conversation and she later told me that this comment that I made was one of the first things she liked about me! In a culture like the Czech, beer is a way of life. EVERYONE drinks beer. They drink more beer per capita then any other country in the world. They love beer. Not only that, but it is usually the cheapest drink on the menu. For a half liter of beer you typically pay about one dollar!! That would cost $4-5 in the States!! Many times Czechs think we are crazy for ordering soda since it is usually much more expensive than beer.

This week I got to hang out with Chris and Laura in Prague. On Friday night he had to work. I said I'd come along. He had a lot of office work to do and asked if I wanted to pour beers for him. I said yes. So, from 8-1 AM I poured beers and talked with people from all over the world. It was really an amazing experience. I talked to people from Australia, Germany, Britain, Belgium, Czech and the States. The kid from Belgium and I talked for about two-hours. We talked about travel, life, and love. It was really interesting to talk with him about what was driving him in life and what he cares about. Chris gets to do this four to five nights a week. He said that he has had some wonderful conversations with people.

On Sunday mornings the pastor of the church hosts a simple bible study in the Chapel at the hostel (oh, I forgot to mention that the chapel is a room that is located in the pub!!). Usually they only get a few people to stop by, but imagine the people that they are reaching.

This may sound like cutting edge ministry, but it is ministry that Jesus would do. This is vintage Christianity. Jesus went to where the sinners were and conversed with them on their ground. He resided with those who others wouldn't and couldn't reach. That is what Chris is doing. He is on the front-lines of ministry, meeting people where they are at.

A Bitter Heart and Our Redeemer

I had my garage sale today. Amidst the pouring rain, it was a great success. I woke up at 5:30, made coffee, and then got ready to put the signs out. As I started to push the garage door opener a thought flashed trough my mind, "go through the front door." The idea of having to unlock the front gate and squeeze through the front door carrying boxes with "Garage Sale" signs attached to them in the rain didn't appeal to me, so I proceeded to push the garage door opener. Before the door was even fully up I realized that I should've listened to the voice in my head. Suddenly, a rush of people crowded into the already full garage. I was overwhelmed. It was only 5:45!! Were these people insane. Suddenly cash was flying around as people jockeyed for a chance to negotiate an angel ornament down from $.50. Dollars were flashed in front of my face as I realized that I had just sold two TVs for $30 when the original asking prices were $25 and $20 respectively. It wasn't even six (the original start time) and I was already being talked down on some of my biggest items. Eventually the flurry ended and I was able to sit down and realize that I had just sold $200 worth of stuff and it was barely 6:15. After I got organized I began to read my Bible. Just then an older gentleman strolled into the garage. We exchanged pleasantries and he perused through the merchandise. Before he left he noticed the bible opened in front of me. He said, "So, your reading the Scriptures, huh?" I replied briefly that I was doing the garage sale to raise money to go to the Czech. Seemingly uninterested, he said, "Well, do you want to know my favorite verse?" I said I did, but the look on his face concerned me. For some reason I didn't trust this man. I suddenly wondered what verse he was going to tell me. Was he some cynic who had flirted with Christianity at some point in his life and now was going to tell me some verse that was totally taken out of context? He then wrote down Job 19:25. Once I saw Job I knew that it could've been something crazy. We said bye and he walked out. I couldn't wait to see what he wrote. My fingers flipped through the pages with ease. Job 36, Job 3, Job 20. My eyes darted up the page. Verse 29, 28, 27, 26. There it was: verse 25. "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth." I was immediately convicted, encouraged, ashamed, and excited. My heart hurt because I had totally questioned this man and his intention to encourage me. I was excited and encouraged, because one of my favorite songs and the one song I turn to when I am discouraged is Redeemer by Nicole C. Mullen. I'm listening to the song right now. Just to hear those first couple chords always reminds me of what a BIG God we serve.

The garage sale was a success and I made good money, but what was more valuable than the money, was the eternal investment that the older gentleman made into my life by writing down one verse.

Vacation

These last few days have been very interesting. I'm not complaining...that's for sure, but I have had mixed feelings about this time here in Kauai. I realized that this is the first vacation that I've had in eight years. Yeah, I've travelled all over the world leading mission trips and I've had an occasional weekend jaunt here and there, but is it really a vacation when while sitting at Wrigley Field all you can think about is how I should be getting caught up on my History of Christianity reading or while I'm driving to San Francisco to see the Giants play, I'm memorizing Hebrew words? I hardly think so. The past few days have been wonderful. I have been reading like crazy. I am devouring books. If the pages were made of cookies, then I'd be the Cookie Monster. I didn't think that I'd want to read this much, but it has been great to read mindless novels. But something else has been nagging at me...Goz calls it "Phantom Homework", but I feel like I should be doing something. I feel this invisible weight on my shoulders. Can I really have no agenda for the day? Is it O.K. for me to wake up and go surfing, then drink a margarita and hot tub, then go horseback riding, then have another margarita and then fall asleep in front of the television? I know that there is nothing to do, but I almost feel guilty being here. As you are reading this you are thinking, "No way, Nate, you deserve this vacation." Or maybe, "Everyone needs a break every now and then." I know you're thinking that, because those are the things that I keep thinking, but then I think, "Did Paul take vacations? Did Jesus tell the disciples, 'Hey, guys, I'm heading off with Mary (sliding reference to the recent Da Vinci Code upheavel), and we're going to the Med for a little vaca. Please don't try and contact me. Petey, you and JonJon take care of all the healings and demoniacs. Oh, and Barthalomew, make sure the boys don't fight about who's better. You know how those boys are always bickering. If anything really bad happens, like Lazarus dying, don't worry, I'll be back in a week and I'll take care of it then. If you really need anything go to Martha, she'll definitely fix you up something to eat and give you a place to stay.'" I'm pretty sure that Jesus didn't do anything like that, but then I realized that just because I'm on vacation doesn't mean I can't be doing ministry. If my life is truly to be a living offering, then I need to be doing ministry here. Whether it is to my mom, dad, sister, or brother-in-law or to the random guy I meet while surfing, I can do ministry. I can be a witness here. On this beautiful island. In between sunning and surfing, I can be a light for Christ. Then I think to myself, "Should I really move to Czech, there are plenty of lost people right here on the beach, maybe I'll just stay here..."