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The Problem with Humanity

Today’s blog post might seem a bit funny at first. It’s not only completely orthodox, but also absolutely needed.
Jesus is not only the Son of God (and fully divine), He is also the Son of Man and fully human. This means that Jesus not only came to earth to demonstrate and reveal who God fully is, but also to reveal who we are to fully be as humans. Jesus demonstrates what true humanity actually looks like, feels like and, most importantly, lives like.
Marilynne Robinson writes, “It is a truism that humanity is deficient in humanity.” And, that is absolutely, unequivocally true.

When you look around the world and see evil, hurt, violence, racism, destruction and a whole host of other evils, the problem is not with “humanity” per say, but rather our lack of “humanity.” The problem is that we are not living as we actually should; that we are missing the mark (the Biblicial term for sin), and it is having disastrous consequences.
To put it positively, true humanity is seen whenever love, generosity, grace and justice flourish. Anything short of this is actually anti-human. Which brings us back to Jesus and why we need Him.
As a Christian, I fully affirm that Jesus is divine, but also that He is fully human. I believe that Jesus reveals to us the path we are to take as human beings. He reveals to us how we are called to live in this broken world. He models a life of forgiveness, grace and justice in the presence of oppressing powers. We need Jesus to not only make us more Christ-like, but also more human, not less.
So, what does this all mean practically? It means that if you want to be part of changing the world, it means embracing your humanity and especially embracing Jesus to guide you into it. Because it’s the path of Jesus that will bring healing to this world. Not just us denouncing evil, but us living differently. Us living into our full humanity. In essence, living like Jesus in and through Jesus.
by Andrew Mills

“I’m Not Going to be Scared”

 

Scared.pngIf you are a young parent (or have been one), you might know this experience… Your child has a bad dream and crawls into your bed, and you get no sleep because the amount of kicking they do in their sleep is, well, unreal. We’ve had that experience with Hudson and now, as he’s grown older, we’re having it with Asher.
A few nights ago, Asher ran into our room and said, “I scared.” And, he climbed into our bed to snuggle, which usually means we let him fall asleep and then one of us gets so tired with the lack of sleep (whoever he is kneeing in the back!), we get out of bed and take him back to bed.
But, on this night, something different happened. We prayed with him about how Jesus takes away his fear, and Asher looked at us and said, “I not going be scared” and ran off to his room. By the time we got to his room to tuck him in, he was already under the covers and asleep.
It got me to thinking, what if I acted like that? What if when fear grips my heart and mind, I decide to trust so deeply in Jesus that I move forward saying, “I not going be scared.”
Because Jesus is clear that perfect love casts out fear. That fear comes from the enemy. That fear is not part of His plan for us. In fact, fear cuts down the future that God has for us.
So, I write this all as an encouragement and a challenge. The next time fear grips you, pray about it and maybe try to be a little like Asher. Say, “I not going be scared” and move forward into what Jesus has for you.
Because no matter what our fears are – monsters in the dark, bad dreams, debt, difficulty, divorce, death – Jesus’ love is greater than all our fears. So, we can trust in Him. And, these days, I’m trying to be a little more like Asher when I get scared by saying that because of Jesus, “I not going be scared.”
by Andrew Mills

Do Not Fear

donotfear.pngJoy Davidman (wife of C.S. Lewis) writes this: “Fear is so much a disease, we have forgotten it is a disease.”
I couldn’t agree with this or believe in this more. Fear is a disease and it’s one that runs our world. We are constantly under the sway of fear. Of course, we don’t call it that. We call it things like: being realistic, prudent planning, worry, anxiety, stress or a whole other host of euphemisms. But often, what is really lurking under the surface is fear.
We save and save because we are fearful we don’t have enough. We try to “grab” all we can because we fear scarcity. We have “stress,” but what is it really? It’s fear of failure, fear of the future, fear of so many other things. What I am saying is that often what is driving our decisions and actions isn’t the goodness of God, but a belief that things will get worse, and that’s fear. 
And, that’s wrong.
Because, if you read the Bible, what you will see again and again is the command: “Do not fear.” Do not fear. Do not give in to fear. Fear does not run our world. Fear is not in control. Fear does not decide your fate. “Do not fear.” Because as Bruce Springsteen sings…
Fear’s a powerful thing, baby
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It’ll take your God filled soul
Fill it with devils and dust
And, that’s true. Which is why Jesus often says in the Gospels, “Do not fear.”
So, my hope today is to remind you of something I’m sure you know deep down: Don’t give in to fear. As Jesus says, “Do not fear.” As the Apostle John says, “Perfect love casts out all fear.” Or, as Joy Davidman writes, “Fear is a disease, so don’t give in to it.”
Because, God is good and God is love, and that has always been the antidote to fear.
by Andrew Mills

When Being Relevant Becomes Irrelevant

Relevant.pngToday, I want to talk about a buzz word and what I believe is actually a curse on our current church culture: relevance.
What I often hear in and around the church world, and ministry in general, is the need to “be relevant” – that we need to ensure our message meets people where they are at and that it’s “relatable.” It’s then often tied to some new cultural trend that we need to “utilize to reach a new generation.”
Now obviously, at a certain level, this is both obvious and necessary. Jesus met us in our world, and it was certainly both relevant and pertinent to our lives. We need to continue to live and change with our world and where it is moving. So, in this sense, yes, we need to be relevant.
But, in another very specific sense, there is a problem with pursuing relevance in that “being relevant” has moved from the sidelines to the centre. And, whenever relevance becomes the marker of faithfulness or success, that becomes a problem. Because the church is first and foremost not called to be relevant, but rather to be faithful.
Please hear me clearly, this short little post isn’t calling church to be irrelevant. What I am trying to say is that the arbiter of success, the point of a church or the meaning of a church has never been in its relevance, but in its faithfulness. And, I believe that when a church is faithful to its calling, it is incredibly relevant to all of our lives. But, when a church is just trying to be relevant, it does not ensure that it will be faithful.
What I’m seeking to write and bring to our attention is a point about priorities. Relevance is a great thing when it follows faithfulness; it is a disaster when it drives faithfulness or function.
So, what does this mean for all of us today? It means, if you are older and don’t get social media, that’s okay. Be faithful. It means, if you are younger and know all the cool cultural trends and memes, that’s okay. Be faithful. It means, wherever you are at, the focus shouldn’t be on “being relevant,” hip or cool, rather it should always be on being faithful. And, that’s a hard thing, but it’s also the most relevant and life-changing thing.
by Andrew Mills

Confession Brings Freedom

The other day while reading (which, full confession, I do kinda frequently), I read this statement by Craig Groeschel…
“It’s so much better to confess your sins and enjoy forgiveness than to be caught in them.”
Wow, how true is that?
Rather than confess, I’m more likely to hide my sins, flaws and mistakes. And, I actually think this isn’t just true for me; it’s a human response. In fact, if you read Genesis 3, this is exactly what you see when Adam and Eve sin. Rather than confess to God and find forgiveness, they hide their sin and are eventually caught in sin.
The truth is just this: Whenever we let sin dictate our decisions, hurt isn’t far behind and hiding never brings healing. Forgiveness brings freedom, whereas hiding brings more guilt and baggage. The beautiful thing is that God is a God of forgiveness; it’s actually what He does best.

So today, I’m probably not writing something you don’t already know. But, it isn’t in the knowing that we struggle, it’s in the acting. I write all this to remind us of one little thing: “It’s so much better to confess your sins and enjoy forgiveness than to be caught in them.”
I know that’s something I need to not only hear, but to act on too. And maybe you need to as well.
by Andrew Mills

Perspective Changes Everything

perspectiveToday, I want to write something that is true, but can also be challenging… We interpret the Bible through our own experience. This is normal. This is inevitable. It is part of being human to interpret our reality in and through the experiences we have.
But, it is also very problematic.
Why? If you are reading this, you likely, in some way, shape or form, have lots of advantages that others don’t. You have a computer, a smart phone, or some other way to connect to the Internet, which is amazing, if you think about it. You have enough leisure time to read this. You might even have some food or drink easily accessible to enjoy while you peruse Facebook. The point is that many people in life don’t have these advantages and the fact that we do affects how we read the Bible.
Why do I bring this up? Well, if we interpret life and the Bible through our own experiences (which is true) and those experiences are more privileged than most (which is also more than likely true), than we may have a slanted view of the Bible because it is written from a disadvantaged position.
The Bible was written to people struggling in poverty, living under an Empire and, in many ways, were very disadvantaged. For many of us, though, we don’t have the same experience.
Lauren Winner puts it this way, “If we are going to draw on our own daily experiences to help us interpret the Bible’s metaphors for God, those of us who read the Bible, as I do, in well-appointed homes, with plenty of leisure time for this pondering, must make the effort to stretch our imaginations to include experiences beyond our own.”
Winner’s point, and mine, is that unless we stretch our imaginations and experiences to understand what it is like to live in poverty, difficulty, under the Empire, etc., we will not interpret the Bible well. And, in this, I’m not trying to make anyone feel guilty for the advantages they have (as a white male, trust me I have tons), but rather I want to encourage you to become aware of them.
So, while I believe lots of education, training, and study is great to learn the Bible, I also equally believe listening to others and having stretching experiences is absolutely necessary to learning the Bible. My challenge for all of us this week is to try to learn from someone else’s experience that is not your own. Learn what it is like to live with deep health challenges, in poverty, as a refugee or displaced, as a minority, etc. with all the fears and worries that come alongside those things.
Because, when we stretch our imaginations and experiences, we can often find the Bible saying new and needed things to us.
by Andrew Mills

Love Your Stage

I’m not going to lie, I was tired on Christmas Eve. After being part of five really wonderful Christmas Eve services, I was pretty spent. I got home and wanted to spend some quite time with Krista, but we got to bed late after getting ready for the morning. And, to be quite honest, the morning came much too soon.
Our kids were bouncing and ready for Christmas well before the sun was up. And so I dragged myself out of bed and tried to make coffee, while kids ran around yelling, “It’s Christmas!!” (and the boys quite literally dragged Eden out of bed while she was still sleeping).
As this happened, I looked out our main bay windows and saw no other lights on, on our street (that being because everyone on our street is 30 years older or more). But something hit me at that moment, while I was briefly jealous of everyone sleeping in – I’m in a stage that won’t last forever. And, so are you.

The truth is, having kids run around yelling and getting so excited about Christmas is a beautiful stage. When Asher opened his stocking, he screamed and yelled, “Dad, you got me Paw Patrol socks! I love socks! You’re the best daddy!”
This stage of loving socks as gifts will not always last.
I write this all as a reminder to myself, as much as hopefully you, to appreciate and love the stage you are in. Because each stage of life has beauty in it. Each stage of life has things to appreciate. And, each stage of life changes as time goes on.
So, whatever stage you might be in today and whatever place you may find yourself, may you appreciate all that you have – even if that means getting up very very early. 🙂
by Andrew Mills

Sharing Jesus

sharingjesus.pngThis past November, I had an odd experience that left me, well, wanting to be a bit more courageous.
I was driving in my neighbourhood, about a block from my house, and an elderly gentleman with a walker was raking leaves. I noticed him, so I stopped, got out and asked if he needed some help. I said I had a half-hour to help clean up his yard.
While it was difficult to understand him, he made it clear that he was fine. He said he had “lots of time.” So I said, “Okay” and went to wish him well, but, before I left, he gave me a small card and spoke to me about the importance of Jesus Christ. In essence, he sought to share Jesus with me. I graciously thanked him and then continued on my way.
I bring this all up because it really got me to thinking… Do I have that kind of courage to share Jesus like that?
Now, while I obviously think that the best way to share Jesus is in the context of relationship (in which people invite that discussion), and I also probably won’t adopt or promote his personal method of sharing Jesus, the point for me lingered… Do I have that kind of courage to share Jesus with my family, friends and neighbours? What might it look like for me to be a bit more courageous in sharing my faith or a bit more bold when the Holy Spirit leads me?
I’m not talking about bulldozing or manipulating people, or trying to insert Jesus into conversations in weird places. What I’m talking about is not listening to fear when opportunities come to share Jesus and to take a step instead. Because I think we stop sharing when there are clear opportunities to. We worry what someone will think, we worry what their response will be and we listen to fear. What if we simply tried to share in humble, simple and approachable ways?
So, all of this is just meant to be a simple encouragement. When you feel moved to share Jesus, why not try it? Why not step out?
I had stopped to see if this elderly man needed help and it turns out he helped me seek to be a bit more courageous. Because Jesus is worth sharing.
by Andrew Mills

Busy, Busy, Busy

busy-busy-busy
“The spirit of our times is joyless urgency…” – Marilynne Robinson
Read that line again, and if you don’t have time, well there is the irony right there. The spirit of our times is joyless urgency.
Doesn’t that capture where we are at as a society, as a culture, as a people, even? Aren’t we rushing from one thing to the next, always busy, always hurried, unable to even enjoy all the things that rush past us?
Marilynne Robinson is known to be an astute observer of our times and she resonates with me. Sometimes that’s exactly how I feel – a joyless urgency to continue rushing forward to the next thing and the next thing after that.
But, when you live like that, chasing one thing after another, you quickly end up just feeling like a “thing.” Because to be human isn’t to rush from one thing to the next; it’s to appreciate life in all of its complexities and nuances. Being human is to have space to experience joy and grief.
So, if you are rushing from one joyless experience to the next, I have a remedy. It’s old, and it’s often admired and untried. It’s called Sabbath. 
Take one day this week to rest. To relax. To unplug. To cease the endless rushing and to live in whatever space you may be in – good or bad. Stop the joyless urgency and running, and slow down for one day. You may feel bored, you may feel purposeless or even inefficient (that’s almost a synonym for sin in our culture), but my promise is if you do it consistently, you will feel healthy.
The spirit of our age is joyless urgency, but that doesn’t need to be your spirit. Sabbath.
“If there is any truth in relevant statistics – I doubt them all – perhaps health and longevity are not the effect of diet, of fish, vegetables, and olive oil, but having a little time to oneself, with family and friends.” – Marilynne Robinson
by Andrew Mills

Discipleship in an Instant?

Marshall McLuhan coined a pretty famous phrase that says, “the medium is the message.” This means that the medium does actually shift, alter and change the message. And, while I don’t want to spend 3,000 words unpacking that today, I want to draw our attention to something that is happening in our culture.
We now live in a world that is about speed, convenience, newness and simplicity.
Here is the tie in to McLuhan’s phrase… When everything is fast, easy, new and simple, we can then unconsciously adopt the posture that anything that is slow, difficult, older and complex is not only odd, but is also wrong.
When our TV shows, food, Amazon Prime shipping and our friendships with social media are almost instantaneous (clear, newly refreshed and right at our fingertips), it can be difficult to appreciate the reality that some things take time. Some things are incredibly hard. Some things ancient matter. Some things simply aren’t simple, but incredibly complex.
It doesn’t take a genius to notice that our current cultural expectations of speed, convenience, novelty and simplicity will have a disastrous effect on discipleship.

Because, here is the truth… Discipleship is not fast, it’s not convenient, it’s not new and it’s anything but simple. The honest truth is that following Jesus is a long journey, it requires you to give up a lot, it’s actually pretty ancient and it often places us in difficult situations in which complexities abound.
So, my point is, the current cultural trends do not fit well with the life of discipleship that Jesus calls us to follow. And, I’m not lamenting that fact actually, because this gives us a chance to truly stand out and be different than the culture around us.
Often, we want to be counter-culture morally (and we should be!), but what if we also became counter-cultural in a different way? What if we, as believers, praised and valued a long obedience in the same direction? What if we didn’t always try to be new, but focused on being faithful? What if we praised doing the next right hard thing over just the easy thing? What if we really sought to never reduce people or ideas to cultural clichés, but sought to enter fully into the complexity of life?
What I’m pondering, and even challenging us to do, is this… To counteract the instantaneous, easy, new and reductionist world around us by living like Jesus. To value slow and long-term change. To value doing the right hard things over the easy things. To value living faithfully over novelty. To value the complexity of our stories over reducing them.
In essence, I’m asking what it might look like for you and me to live differently than our culture. Because, that might just be the thing that actually changes our culture.
by Andrew Mills