my four walls

Where Am I?

lucas — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 13:24:10 +0000

not dead yet that’s for sure. If you’re looking for me go here. The status of this blog is “limbo” or perhaps purgatory depending on your denominational affiliation.

Magi Mullets?

lucas — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 02:30:34 +0000

Well, it’s not Epiphany yet so there is still time to ponder the mystery of the Magi Mullets. Thanks to Andrew Jones for shedding light on this important question of biblical history and interpretation. My vote is firmly in the pro-magi mullet camp if you must know. I hope that doesn’t deter you from continuing to read this blog.

The Beginning of the End of the Beginning of the…

lucas — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 15:42:25 +0000

I’m not really big on graduations. I wasn’t even planning on walking this semester, but I do appreciate marking important milestones, particularly with people important to you. So, today is full of graduation shenanigans starting with lunch. I’ll be wearing actual dress clothes, which rarely happens, and trying to appear civilized for a day.

While I recognize the value in marking occasions like this, I don’t get too worked up about. Tomorrow I will wake up and have a long list of stuff to do between now and moving to the farm. My kids will have me as their full-time caretaker and my house still needs to be put back together.

That said… it is pretty amazing to take stock at a moment like today and realize how much went into this particular moment. A lot of reading, writing, researching, driving, thinking, wrestling and not a little bit of praying went into the last three and a half years at seminary. So here I am after my last drive to Waco for school. Wish me luck and stay tuned…

On the Record: Vocation

lucas — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 16:22:37 +0000

An appropriate quote as I come to the end of my time in seminary and seek to live out my vocation.

You have to die to enter into a vocation. Profession summons the best of you, and vocation calls you away from what you thought was the best of you and promises to make you into someone or something you are not.

Roger Paynter, pastor of FBC Austin (via)

On the Record: About Justice

lucas — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 16:10:10 +0000

Justice is not cheap. Justice is not quick. It is not ever finally achieved.

- Marian Wright Edelman,
Families in Peril

Reconciliation should be accompanied by justice, otherwise it will not last. While we all hope for peace, it shouldn’t be peace at any cost but peace based on principle, on justice.

- Corazon Aquino,
political leader and president (1986-92) of the Philippines.

Don’t tell me what you hope for. Tell me what you are doing to bring it. Then you will know both patience and justice.

- Joan Chittister

Droidel, Droidel, Droidel

lucas — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:32:02 +0000

This was too cool to pass up posting. Here’s something for the Jewish Star Wars fan that has everything. Happy Chanukah everybody!

Get Over the Exodus Already!

lucas — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 22:43:26 +0000

Mark Van Steenwyk at Jesus Manifesto had this brilliant little aside in his post on Angst-giving that I thought worth tossing to the wolves here.

Why is it that we say that African Americans and Native Americans should simply “let it go” when God encouraged the Israelites to remember the injustices done to them? Why, when talking about Scripture do we assume that the various empires “have it coming” when judgment falls for how they treated the Jews, but when it comes to the USA…

Thoughts? I’ll save mine for the comments.

Meanwhile…

lucas — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:17:08 +0000

I can’t believe that I’ve been blogging (off and on) for something like six years now. I’ve switched services several time and my archives did not always make it through the transitions. So, while the posting is hot and heavy at WWJE? and a little slow in these parts, I thought it would be a good time to finally go back through the archives from my blogger and iBlog days. (Yeah I said iBlog…so what? A couple other people used it once.) So, you might not see anything new around here unless you are nerdy enough (or perhaps a stalker) to poke your nose around the archives for gaps getting filled in. I might drop a note to let you know what month or year is now available for your perusal. I’ll be leaving out the mundane and culling many of the posts so you only get quality my four walls history.

You know… a little something to print off and give to your loved ones this holiday season.

First Sunday of the Season of Conspiracy

lucas — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 12:00:02 +0000

Advent Conspiracy

On the Record: Nouwen

lucas — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 18:49:05 +0000

You are a Christian only so long as you constantly pose critical questions to the society you live in … so long as you stay unsatisfied with the status quo and keep saying that a new world is yet to come.

- Henri Nouwen