September 10, 2008

"24"



1 and 2 Peter are letters from the fisherman who had a propensity for filling his mouth with his foot. But after years of following Jesus and serving the church in Jerusalem, his commendable zeal has been matched with his deep wisdom. The Holy Spirit writes powerfully through Peter of how to grow, how to be effective, and how to get ready for the wrap up of human history.

Most of all Peter tells us who we REALLY are...a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, destined for glory forever.

Also as I read Hebrews I was struck by the term "DAILY".
Jesus taught us to take up our cross "daily".
Jesus taught to to pray for "daily" bread.
In Thessalonians Paul pleads that our "daily" lives would demonstrate Christ so clearly that non-believers would be persuaded.
Hebrews says that our battle is so tough we need to encourage each other "daily".

Then in "The Success Principles" book that I am reading by Jack Canfield he stresses the importance of "daily" habits that end up creating a "life".

After a long mountain hike, Deb and I watched 3 episodes of "24" on dvd in the evening. If you have never seen the show each episode is one hour and the whole season is walking you through 24 consecutive hours of adventure and double crosses.

You could watch "The Road Runner" cartoon and see basically the same show with just a little less sophistication. Jack Bauer is "Wile E. Coyote" in The Road Runner Cartoon. You can drop a boulder on his head or throw him off a cliff and he survives and 30 minutes later is miraculously beating up another bad guy. Jack is the most resilient man I have ever seen.

Then I was reading a really heavy theology book "The Prophetic Imagination" by Walter Brueggemann. He writes of how "moderation is a delusion and only extremists are in touch with reality". You would have to read the book to keep you from misunderstanding his meaning in that statement BUT there is a radical call to live TODAY, this 24 Hours with an "extreme" love and faith that disrupts the status quo of injustice!

All this to say, 24 Hours is the division of time that God created us to operate from. With a "death" each night and a "resurrection" each morning.
My prayer is that I can live each "24" with the same passion, focus, and resilency as Jack Bauer.

1 comment:

lindsey. said...

i'll call you 'jack bauer' on a regular basis if you think that'll help...?