Tuesday, October 22, 2024 at 01:03 PM in God | Permalink | Comments (0)
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The Feeding of the 5,000 was almost certainly an insurrection attempt.
1. Jesus & the disciples go to the desolate side of the Sea of Galilee before Passover Week, a known MUSTER POINT FOR REBELLION PLANNING outside Rome's gaze.
2. The crowd saw the "signs" he was doing with the sick, making him the LIKELY MESSIAH to overthrow non-Jewish rule & set up the Throne of David.
So thinking there is a rebellion afoot, men come from everywhere to join. Josephus indicates these musterings happened yearly.
3. The texts only count the MEN IN ATTENDANCE. If you are going to insurrect, only the total number of men would matter.
There were more men, by far, in the area during Passover than any other time of year.
Passover week was always, "Now or Never!"
4. When they sit, Mark and Luke tell us that they sat in groups of 50s and 100s.
i.e,, military-type ranks and formations.
They were there for a purpose, and it wasn't a lecture and a meal.
5. Why so many leftovers? Sometimes you have to make a choice of what you are going to carry away from your run-in with Jesus:
It's always Forks over Knives.
You can't carry both. Jesus gives them weapons of meal rather than mass destruction.
Think I'm crazy?
This is how John ends the story:
"...When Jesus saw that they were ready to force him to be their king, he slipped away into the hills by himself." — JOHN 6:15
They didn't want leftovers, they wanted Barabbas.
Monday, October 21, 2024 at 07:21 PM in God | Permalink | Comments (0)
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Monday, October 21, 2024 at 05:59 PM in God | Permalink | Comments (0)
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The truth is out there, and we’re gonna try to find it together.
Whether it’s reports of strange lights in the sky, declassified government documents, or the new smash podcast High Strange, the little green guys from space (or gray, depending on who you ask) are gaining unprecedented ground in our collective consciousness.
No matter if you consider yourself an extraterrestrial skeptic, believer, or somewhere in between, you might be wondering: does the Bible have anything to say about UFOs or little green men?
To be short—nothing really. The Bible doesn’t specifically address the possibility of life outside our home planet. Yes, there are a few key passages that Ancient Aliens wants you to believe are referring to aliens in the Bible (like the inaugural vision of Ezekiel in chapter 1 or Jesus’ remarks about “sheep from another fold” in John 10:6), but those interpretations feel like major contortions at best.
At its core, the Bible is a book about God and his interactions with life on earth. While the story occasionally peaks its head above the surface of our pale blue dot to bask in God’s creative grandeur (like Psalm 8 or Psalm 19), its major focus drops the “extra” and tends to stay pretty terrestrial.
Because, well, the Bible is absent about lots of things. There’s nothing in the Bible about the Internet, DNA, or the airspeed velocity of an unladen European swallow… and yet we know and love all three of those things (that’s a Monty Python joke, Mom, just keep reading).
However, the Bible is perfectly clear that life beyond humanity does exist. There are living beings that occupy time and space with influence over our lives; they just don’t make it a point to visit Roswell regularly. The good ones, who serve God, we call angels; the not-so-good ones, we call demons. (And ‘no,’ I don’t think aliens are demons—or angels—in disguise.)
But even if the Bible doesn’t specifically talk about the possibility of UFOs or interplanetary visitors, scripture still speaks loud and clear on topics that could (and should) inform how we think about the intersection of aliens and faith. With all due respect to my favorite alien investigators, ‘the truth’ is not ‘out there’. It’s actually inside that old book.
Enough preamble; it’s time for probing…the Bible. Below are four scriptural truths to inform (and possibly challenge) your thinking on the possibility of extraterrestrial life.
#1: GOD IS CREATOR… SPACE IS BIG… WE ARE SMALL
The Bible is clear from the first two pages: God is the driving force behind everything we see (and even the things we don’t). The very first sentence in the Bible says:
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)
For the English majors out there, you’ll notice that heavens in that passage are plural, as is the original Hebrew word from which it was translated. We could make conjectures about why that is, but I tend to think it’s to signify the vast expanse of what God has made. Just as monarchs use plural pronouns to signal their power and prowess, the original word for everything above the earth is plural.
That’s just a fancy way of saying the obvious: space is huge… and mankind has only managed to explore an infinitesimally small amount of it. But what we have seen is striking. The thing is utterly beautiful. Seriously, go Google ‘James Webb Space Telescope’. It’s like God built us a home inside the Louvre and then put that inside the Grand Canyon. Everywhere we look, we’re surrounded by masterpieces—on the surface of the earth and well beyond it.
The Bible makes the case that creation, from cicadas to the cosmos, is meant to push our eyes beyond what we can see. Paul, an early leader in the church, explains that even though we can’t see God, creation speaks of Him. In Romans 1:20, he writes, “God’s invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived…. in the things that have been made.” Hundreds of years earlier, King David was so enraptured by creation that he poetically gave it the ability to worship. “The heavens declare the glory of God,” he wrote in Psalm 19, “The sky proclaims the work of His hands.”
The immensity and beauty of creation, especially space, draw me to God in awe…and it reminds me how itty bitty we truly are. David expresses the same feeling in Psalm 8:3-4:
“When I observe your heavens, The work of your fingers, The moon and the stars which you set in place, What is man that You remember him?”
God knows no limits except the ones He chooses to observe. What the combined knowledge of history understands of science, physics, or quantum mechanics (or even theology for that matter) is only the smallest sliver of a much larger pie that only God can serve.
I’m not saying that God created intelligent life on other planets, just that that topic doesn’t have to fit into my little boxes of understanding to be true. But one thing I know I can nail down: if there is life on other planets, God is the author of it. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul makes that abundantly clear. Writing about Jesus, he says:
“He is the image of the invisible God… * *By Him everything was created, in heaven and on earth, The visible and the invisible… All things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and by Him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15-17)
In summation: God is the creator of all life on this planet, as well as any that potentially lies beyond it.
#2: YOU’RE KIND OF A BIG DEAL
There’s a good kind of humility that comes from considering the immensity of space, but it’s counterbalanced by another scriptural truth: you’re pretty dang important. No, there’s no Bible passage that specifically says, “Thou art a big deal,” but well before the world knew of Ron Burgundy, God proved it through his actions.
You were born on this incredible planet hurtling through space…and it just so happens to be the very place God chose to make Himself known, the place where heaven comes crashing into human existence. If there was ever an interdimensional portal, it was Earth.
It started with a garden (Genesis 1 & 2), where the Divine and the human lived alongside each other. When that went sideways, God adopted a childless, elderly couple and made them into a nation that would belong to Him (Genesis 12). He gave this nation plans for a tabernacle and then a temple, where His spirit would once more dwell among them (Exodus 40:34; 2 Chronicles 7:1-3). But God wasn’t content to stay behind four walls.
He came, in the form of man, to a little backwater town called Bethlehem (Merry Christmas). He lived among people—touched, healed, laughed, ate, cried, and worked with them. He died, came back to life, and imparted those people with power (Acts 1:8). And His plan is to come back again, making this planet (yes, this one… the one you live on) the seat of His eternal kingdom (Revelation 21-22).
How lucky are you that you’re an earthling? It boggles the mind.
But it also goes well beyond just the planet you inhabit—God has things to say about you. Yes, you, specifically. Like that you were created in His image, reflecting His divine nature (Genesis 1:27). That He knit you together, intricately weaving you into a work of art (Psalm 139:13-14). The prophet Zephaniah says God sings over you, and Isaiah says God calls you by name, claiming you as His own (Zephaniah 3:17, Isaiah 43:1-5).
The New Testament letters say you’re a masterpiece, allowed to approach God’s throne with confidence, the very place where the Divine is pleased to dwell (Ephesians 2:10, Ephesians 3:12, Galatians 2:20). The God who created blackholes and the outer reaches of the universe calls you His child (1 John 3:1).
But of course, the true value of anything—you, your car, a limited edition comic book—comes from the price someone is willing to pay for it. Romans 5:8 takes that check to the bank, insisting that Christ willingly died for you while you were undeserving. How about one more time, for the people in the back? You were valuable enough for God’s son to die in order to rescue you. That’s value beyond anything else on this planet.
Wait, I thought this was about the Bible and aliens? Right.
One of the most frequent arguments against extraterrestrial life, at least from followers of Christ, is that life on other planets would lessen the importance of life on Earth. Which in my experience, doesn’t make too much sense, because I’m a parent of three kids. Did kid #2 lessen my love for kid #1? Of course not. If anything, it enhanced it because each of them reflects parts of my nature (and my wife’s) in different but beautifully complementary ways. Kid #3 did the same.
If God wanted to plant sentient life halfway around the corner from Alpha Centauri, that doesn’t make me less consequential. If anything, it makes me more so because now I’m forced to confront a question of staggering importance: how am I representing the God who made me?
#3 YOU HAD ONE JOB
My non-scientific survey of alien movies calculates that nearly 90% of them involve this plot: aliens show up, battles ensue; we eventually win, but a lovable side character gets sacrificed in the process.
Why do most of our cultural narratives about the possibility of extraterrestrial life jump right to cataclysmic battles and the Fresh Prince face-punching aliens? For followers of Christ, the Bible’s pretty clear about our role in regard to other life (human or alien): we represent Jesus.
In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul gives you a weighty and diplomatic title—ambassador. You’re an envoy of God’s love; a diplomat sent out to spread his grace; a representative of Christ Himself. What’s the King’s expectation of His ambassadors? Reconciliation.
“God… through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation… entrusting us with the message of reconciliation. Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us… be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:18-20)
I realize all this lives strictly in the hypothetical camp since we don’t even know if alien life exists. But for the sake of argument, it’s worth noting that every follower of Christ is considered His ambassador to the world around them. I’ll be the first to admit—sometimes I do a good job representing him, and other times, I do a really awful job.
But if E.T. did ever show up on planet Earth, I hope the people of God would be the first to recognize that our primary role is representing Christ well. We’d need to ask ourselves deeply important questions: does this non-human life know God? What do they know of Jesus? Did God do a redemptive work on their home planet, as He did through the sacrifice of Jesus on earth?
If not, then we have the most important information available to this species—reconciliation with God is possible.
To creation that is groaning under the weight of separation, we literally have one job: show (and tell) the love of God. That’s why we’re sent out as envoys in this world. Why we’re made representatives, why we’re named as ambassadors. That’s going to be rather hard to do if our first reaction to anything we don’t understand is “shoot it with a laser gun.”
In Romans 8, Paul paints our reconciliation work in a wide stroke. It’s worthwhile to consider what he means by “all” and the ramifications for you as an ambassador.
All creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are…creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. (Romans 8:19-20) (NLT)
#4: THEY WALK AMONG US… (KIND OF)
Considering the possibility and ramifications of extraterrestrial life can be a helpful thought exercise, but it won’t be more than that until it moves from your head into your hands. It’s the things you do, not the things you think, that give your life power.
Wait? How am I supposed to take action when we don’t even know if extraterrestrial life exists? Here’s the M. Night Shyamalan twist ending: they’re already here.
There are aliens all around you. They’re your neighbors; friends at work; the helpful cashier at the grocery store; the kids’ soccer coach; even your mother-in-law. There was a time you were an alien too—maybe you still are.
To followers of Christ, sometimes it’s easy to forget that fact. I’ll raise my hand and say I’m guilty. I tend to live my life caught up in my own story and plans, oblivious to the aliens around me. Paul, seeing this in a church he cared deeply about, writes to shake them (and me) from slumber:
“Remember that you were at a time separated from Christ, alienated… having no hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12)
While I scroll through the Pentagon’s UFO report, actual people I know and love remain alienated from their source of hope—cut off from God. I waste time considering theoreticals about little green men and miss the actuals living on all sides of me.
I believe what we’ve said about aliens is true of everyone you’ll cross paths with today. God created them—the friendly ones, the hostile ones, the pretty ones, the cranky ones. God loves them as much as He loves you in a way that elevates their importance without diminishing yours. If you’re a follower of Jesus, you’re an ambassador of reconciliation. It’s our one job to show that life with God is better than alienation…and that it’s available right now.
That’s true about the neighbor who always leaves their trash cans out two days longer than they should. It’s true about your cousin, who won’t stop posting embarrassing things on Facebook. It’s true of the Democrat and the Republican; the American and the Chinese national; the rich and the poor.
There is hope, and it’s our job to bring it to all the aliens out there.
“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace… [that He] might reconcile us both to God… So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:13-14,16,19)
I write this to remind myself because I’m prone to miss the forest for the trees. I’d rather rewatch The X-Files and have stimulating conversations about the intersection of theology and extraterrestrials than actually incarnate the hope of a reconciled life to the people around me. But I have one job… and I actually believe God intends for me to do it.
The “aliens” are already here, but so is the truth that a life reconciled to our shared Creator is possible. The question is: can we stop shooting at them long enough to actually show it?
To quote the late, great, Bowie, could there really be a “Starman, waiting in the sky?” Honestly, I have no idea. But yes, or no, my faith wouldn’t take a hit. Little green men or not, I would still believe a God of love created the universe, and is working (even using us) to reconcile all of creation back to Him.
If a UFO lands in my backyard tonight, I want to think I’d greet the inhabitants the same way I’d greet my neighbors Dave, or Bill, or Robyn. But in the meantime, I should be more concerned with how I’m showing love to the people who live around me, before I worry about visitors from outer space.
For followers of Christ, the biggest question isn’t what’s out there, but what’s inside of us, coming out everyday through our choices, words, and actions?
Space is dark, and Jesus was clear about what we are supposed to be.
“You are the light of the world… let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14, 16) (NLT)
The aliens are everywhere. So “shine among them, like stars in the sky” (Philppians 4:15).
Turns out, the starman is actually you.
Thursday, October 12, 2023 at 07:27 PM in God | Permalink | Comments (0)
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Original Article by Ian M. Giatti
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Why do we know so little about the deaths of arguably the two greatest apostles in the Bible?
It’s a question that has stymied scholars and laypeople alike, one that seems to run counter to the multiple accounts of deaths in Scripture ranging from figures such as Judas, the most notorious apostle, to seemingly less significant figures like the sons of Korah in the Old Testament or Ananias and Sapphira in the book of Acts.
But astoundingly, the Bible says nothing about the deaths of Peter and Paul.
As Jordan Smith, lecturer of Biblical Studies at the University of Iowa, points out, the deaths of Peter, Paul nor any of the other apostles are recorded in the New Testament.
According to Smith, our best source of information on the deaths of Peter and Paul are from extra-biblical sources, most of which contradict others on a number of details, including approximate dates and locations of their deaths.
“For instance, did you know that we have fifteen different versions of the deaths of Peter and Paul — four of Peter, five of Paul, and six of Peter and Paul together — all written by the sixth century?” writes Smith.
Here’s what we do know: Paul is still alive preaching in Rome at the end of Acts, and at some subsequent point in time, both he and Peter were executed by Nero. Their deaths have traditionally been linked to 64 AD, during a period of persecution against Christians, who Nero blamed for the Great Fire of Rome.
According to Roman historian Tacitus, the fire began in July of that year in the Circus Maximus, the ancient Roman stadium, and burned for five days.
Nero, who some accused of ordering the fire to be started, “substituted as culprits, and punished with the utmost refinements of cruelty, a class of men, loathed for their vices, whom the crowd styled Christians,” wrote Tacitus in his Annals.
But for Smith, the idea that Nero blamed Christians for the Great Fire is “highly unlikely” since they weren’t a “large and distinct enough group yet in Rome in 64 CE to provide a believable scapegoat.”
“For instance, in his correspondence with the emperor Trajan in 112 CE, Pliny the Younger mentions that he has encountered accusations against a group that he knows nothing about that were called ‘Christians,’" he wrote. “Trajan’s reply reveals that he has not heard of this group before, either.
“This would not be possible for a group that less than 50 years earlier Nero infamously blamed for the Great Fire in Rome.”
Smith says there are two lingering traditions associated with the deaths of Peter and Paul: Peter was supposedly crucified upside down “because he felt he was unworthy to be crucified in a manner similar to Jesus,” and Paul, a citizen of Rome who could not be lawfully crucified, was executed by beheading instead.
While there are a number of different versions of Peter’s crucifixion account, Smith says it wasn’t until the sixth century History of Shemon Kepha the Chief of the Apostles that we’re told his request to be crucified upside-down was for the purpose of dying while “symbolically kissing the place of Jesus's feet.”
Early Church fathers Origen and Jerome are said to have depicted Peter’s death as a tradition of “humility,” according to Smith.
As for Paul, Smith says one account of his death “bears a strong resemblance to the story of Eutychus in Acts 20.”
Smith writes, “A servant, perhaps cupbearer, of Nero fell asleep in a window listening to Paul and fell to his death. After he was raised from the dead by Paul, the resurrected servant upset Nero by acknowledging Jesus as the ‘eternal king,’ leading Nero to discover that many others among his own [bodyguards] were Christians.”
While details vary in later retellings, Nero is said to have ordered the Christians arrested and Paul beheaded, according to Smith.
He believes, despite the various later accounts of the apostles’ deaths, any mention of them in the canonical list appears to have been “a conscious decision” made by the early Church.
“Perhaps the idea was to focus only on their lives,” Smith wrote. “Maybe it is because by the time the Gospels were written, the Apostles had dispersed and the stories of their deaths were unknown.
“Or, maybe the anonymous Gospel authors simply didn’t think that any of the death traditions could be trusted, and excluded them for this reason.”
It's not clear what Smith meant by "anonymous" authors, since we have known since the first century the identity of each Gospel author:
Matthew was written by the apostle Matthew, also known as Levi;
The author of Mark, the second Gospel account, was Mark the son of Mary, Barnabas’ sister;
Luke, a physician who was close to the apostle Paul according to Colossians 4:14, 2 Timothy 4:11, and other texts, authored the Gospel of Luke; and
Early church tradition strongly and consistently identified the Apostle John as the author of the Gospel of John, who repeatedly refers to himself as the "disciple whom Jesus loved."
Ultimately, is the manner of how the apostles died relevant to 21st century Christians?
Darrell Bock, senior research professor of New Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary, told The Christian Post the fact that some apostles gave their lives for the faith is important.
"It shows they truly believed in what they preached about Jesus," said Bock. As for how they died, the idea that Peter was crucified upside down because he did not feel worthy of dying exactly how Jesus did says a great deal about the humility of this apostle."
Tuesday, May 09, 2023 at 07:11 PM in Doctoral Work, God | Permalink | Comments (0)
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I've often been asked the question: What is the difference between people who thrive and people who decline over a long period of time? It’s not that they don’t get knocked down; it’s that they bounce back up.
Every successful person I can think of has had to come back from discouraging circumstances. That’s true of people I know personally and those I read about in the Bible.
As a matter of fact, every single person in the Bible is a comeback story from something.
Check out this list and see if you can find yourself:
Joseph endured mistreatment from a dysfunctional family. I bet there isn’t anyone who doesn’t have some relative the others try not to sit next to at Christmas dinner.
David bounced back from several devastating failures: moral, leadership, career, and even worse. Have any past failures? A great comeback is possible!
Elijah suffered personal criticism. I speak to hundreds of people every weekend. Usually, people each week write in or come up to say something encouraging. I remember very little of that. But I can tell you every critical comment. Why do we remember the things we ought to forget, and forget the things we ought to remember?
Nehemiah was discouraged with harsh political, legal, and social circumstances at the highest levels. He had wall-to-wall problems—literally.
John Mark was rejected by a high-ranking Christian leader. I know people for whom one negative comment from an authority figure—be it a teacher, a pastor, or a coach—has marked them for life.
Peter was disappointed with his inability to withstand pressure and also disappointed with himself. Sound familiar? My number one source of discouragement is, unfortunately, myself.
Jesus was let down by people of all types—friends, relatives, religious leaders. At His hour of greatest need, He takes three guys and says, “I need your support.” When He comes back, they are fast asleep.
In almost every case, whether somebody bounces back or not has to do with one question: “Does that person have hope?” Hope looks at what can be instead of what is. Hope looks at the future rather than just the past. Hope believes in future possibility rather than resigning to current reality. People bounce back when they have hope.
Tuesday, January 03, 2023 at 06:11 PM in Depression, God, Leadership | Permalink | Comments (0)
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EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is an excerpt from the opening of Jonathan Herron’s book, Holy Shift. Jonathan leads one of America’s fastest growing churches, LifeChurchMichigan.com. Part of his training was his time spent at Second City in Chicago. Holy Shift is about unleashing contagious enthusiasm on church leadership teams; equipping leaders to leverage laughter and passion; and creating sustainable momentum in reaching younger crowds for Christ.
My dad was a pastor, which means our family went to church every single Sunday. This was great for introducing me to the gospel and receiving Christ into my life at a young age but was horrible for my chosen vocation of comedy. You see, we were Presbyterians, a group of Christians not really known for producing high-quality, razor-wit comedians. Our pastors know how to dress up in dark robes like Obi-Wan Kenobi, but we tend to shy away from open-mic comedy nights. Presbyterians must think it’s funny to say that we are God’s “frozen chosen.” I don’t get it. I always found it curious that if you rearrange the letters in Presbyterians, it spells out Britney Spears. That I do get.
Anyhow, I loved our little country church in the fields of Iowa. Looking back now, I realize we didn’t have much to do in Iowa. When you’re surrounded by cows, chickens, and pigs, your options tend to be limited. In my spare time, I excelled at corn-on-the-cob speed eating. What can I say? We are Iowans. We like simple. We thought that the capital of Wisconsin was W.
The day after I graduated from high school, I begged and pleaded with my parents to drive me to Chicago to see a show at Second City. The birthplace of improvisational comedy, The Second City in Chicago has produced most of the major comedy stars over the past half century: Alan Arkin, Bill Murray, Gilda Radner, Mike Myers, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carrell, and the voice of Homer Simpson, Dan Castellaneta. Without Second City, there would have been no Saturday Night Live, no Ghostbusters, no Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and no Simpsons. If I wanted to move toward writing and performing comedy, Second City was my first stop.
As we parked the car a block away from the comedy theater, we looked over our shoulders and noticed another historic landmark: the Moody Church. Constructed in 1924, Moody Church was the result of the aggressive evangelism of Dwight L. Moody in the late 1800’s. Literally and figuratively, I believe that the intersection of church and comedy can be felt at the corner of North and Wells. Many Second City performers and students (including myself years later) would attend worship at Moody Church on Sundays at 5pm and then head over two blocks to the theater to create comedy. There’s a symbiotic relationship there; comedy and leadership are not as far apart as you would suspect.
Fresh out of high school, I found the comedy show that evening to be hypnotic and mesmerizing. I was hooked: Second City was where I wanted to go and learn the principles of comedy. As soon as I could afford a full tank of gas later that summer, my aim was to wave goodbye to Iowa and hello to Chicago.
Turns out I needed to arrive in the Windy City a few days ahead of Columbia College’s freshmen move-in so that I could interview at Second City for a hosting job. When I got the call a few days later that I was hired, I hit the roof! I was in! I didn’t care if there was grunt work involved and all my weekend hours would be spent cooking and cleaning; the idea of rubbing shoulders with established comedians was intoxicating.
One particularly busy night in the fall of 1997, I was handed the tickets for a couple who were eager for the evening’s performance. I quickly sized them up and was astonished at the sight. The young woman was HAWT (yes, H – A – W – T)! She was beautiful, blonde, in a gorgeous evening dress, and had sparkling blue eyes. Hawt.
Her date, on the other hand, was NAWT! He was overweight and sweaty, sported slicked-back-yet-frazzled hair, tie askew . . . definitely NAWT! Do you remember the old musical segment on Sesame Street: “One of these things is not like the other?” That was this guy! He did NOT go with HER! As I began leading them to their table, I silently wondered, What is this, a joke? Did she lose a bet somewhere? Is this guy her cousin?
Their tickets were for the best seats in the house—remarkable because only Second City alumni or relatives and close friends can secure the best seats. I glanced back at the couple to see if I recognized either of them. Nope. Must be friends of a cast member, I guessed.
As I politely pulled back their chairs to help seat them, I looked down at the tickets one last time to quickly use the last name listed and wish them a good evening. They were sitting down as I realized what I was saying mid-sentence: “Thank you for being our guests tonight at Second City, Mr. Faaaaaaaarrrrrrrrley.” My mouth went dry as cotton balls and my palms became clammy. This was Chris Farley!
As I stumbled back toward my manager to assist the next guests waiting in line, she grabbed my ear. “You see Mr. Farley over there with his date? We want to make sure he has a very good time tonight. At intermission, I don’t want anyone bugging him for photos or autographs. It’s going to be YOUR job to usher Farley out of the room and act as his bodyguard.”
Bodyguard? Me? Hadn’t my manager seen my body frame? If I were a superhero, my name would be Captain Toothpick. At intermission, I dutifully whisked Chris Farley out of the main theater and into a holding room. He was very kind, down-to-earth, and, well, sweaty. But I didn’t mind; I had a front-row seat to a rich and famous comedian! We exchanged some small talk, and at the end of the night I thought that was that. Turns out Mr. Farley would be making multiple visits to the theater over the coming weeks . . . and I was the Tommy Boy star’s designated body man for each visit. Over time I was able to closely observe the side effects of stardom.
I remember one night Farley came barreling into the theater with a group of friends. Once we had them seated at a large table near the front, Farley pulled out a wad of hundred dollar bills and began liberally handing them out to his party. They pocketed their cash and scattered. I thought it was odd.
Another time Chris came to a show under the influence of something. He looked like more of a mess than usual and smelled like he hadn’t showered in days. When he began loudly heckling the comedians on stage, I had the awkward duty of discreetly trying to remove Chris Farley from the audience.
Even though I was a front-row witness to some blaring warning signs, I had zero sway over Farley’s downward spiral. My role was being the young, impressionable college kid from Iowa who thought it was cool to hang out with one of my comedy idols. As I bragged about my adventures to friends back home, folks thought I was making this stuff up.
So I became determined to snap a picture with Farley.
My opportunity came that December at Second City’s annual Christmas party for employees and alumni. Closed to the public, this was a night of celebration and revelry . . . and Chris Farley was there! I found him in the back swapping cocaine with some of the kitchen staff. He looked like he had been partying for a few days straight at that point. I jumped in with friends for a group shot, and there in the back of our photo, posing alongside us college kids, was a drunk Chris Farley.
This was the late 1990s, a bygone era before Instagram and Facebook. We didn’t have digital cameras with instantly-uploadable photos. Nope. I had to head across the street to a 24-hour Walgreens to drop off my film for three-day development (three days—oh the horror!). I was excited because on that cold, wintry Monday night in Chicago’s Old Town district, I had partied with Chris Farley.
Thursday morning I was sitting down for a college class when a buddy came in the door. “Hey, Herron! Did you hear about Chris Farley?” he announced. “You bet,” I replied. “I just partied with him two nights ago, and I’ll pick up the pictures after class!
“No,” my friend pressed on, his voice lowering a bit. “I mean, did you hear the news about Farley? They just discovered his body in the John Hancock Building.”
Turns out that two nights after my photo was taken, Farley was continuing a four-day partying binge. After smoking crack and snorting heroin with a call girl, he took her back to his apartment in the John Hancock Building on Michigan Avenue. There was an argument about money that caused her to get up in a huff. Chris tried to follow but instead collapsed on the floor, struggling to breathe. His final words were, “Don’t leave me.” Instead of calling 9-1-1, the escort stole his watch and wrote a note saying she’d had a lot of fun, then left.
Chris Farley died alone.
You can discover the rest of Jonathan Herron’s story in Holy Shift.
Friday, December 16, 2022 at 06:05 PM in Comedy, God, In The News, Reviews | Permalink | Comments (0)
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I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell." (C. T. Studd)
To live within the sound of church or chapel bell was not enough for Charles Thomas (C.T.) Studd, (1860-1931), an English missionary to China, India, and Africa. C. T. Studd was born into privilege and wealth, but God had other plans for his life. His father, Edward, was converted after hearing the famous American evangelist Dwight L. Moody speak. Then subsequently, C. T. and his brothers were also converted.
But, 6 years after C. T.’s conversion, he realized that his commitment to the Lord was lacking and he decided to give everything up, and seek God’s will. He wisely said, "I know that cricket would not last, and honour would not last, and nothing in this world would last, but it was worthwhile living for the world to come."
How many people are content to live within the sound of church or chapel bell, but never step foot inside of a church to hear the Gospel message?
Or, how many are content to live within the sound of church bells and attend, but never take the Gospel to heart or share Jesus Christ with others?
They haven’t counted the cost of discipleship, but C. T. Studd did and he chose a life of hardship and sacrifice, because of His commitment to Jesus Christ.
And when others questioned him about the decisions he was making for the sake of the Gospel, he could only reply with these words:
"If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.” –C. T. Studd
Although salvation through Jesus Christ is a free gift from God given to us by grace (Ephesians 2:8-9), it was not without cost to Him.
To be a disciple of Jesus Christ, one must realize the cost of His sacrifice and respond with a commitment to follow Him wholeheartedly; without reservation and whatever the cost.
Additionally, we should want more than to live within the sound of church bells, and be actively involved in helping to fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission.
To do so we have to daily surrender ourselves to Him. As a result, we give up our own way of living and submit to His will and rule in our lives:
Romans 12:1 says, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”
Mark 8:34-37 says, “Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, 'If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?'”
Great missionaries like C. T. Studd, Hudson Taylor, Jim Elliot and so many more were not content to merely live within the sound of church bells. They gave their lives, and left their homes and families, to be used by the Lord to spread the Gospel.
We also shouldn’t be content to just live within the sound of church bells. We like them, should be passionate about spreading the Gospel; and endure hardship and danger if necessary, so people would be rescued from going to hell. If we can’t, then we should at least support the work of missionaries prayerfully and financially.
As Christians, we can follow in the steps of these great men of faith, by surrendering our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ, seeking His will, and living by faith and trusting in Him.
John 12:24-26 says, “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives. Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.”
This famous quote from the poem, “Only One Life, Twill Soon Be Past” by C.T Studd, is a sober reminder of the brevity of life and that only what’s done for Christ has eternal value:
"Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last." – C. T. Studd
Saturday, November 12, 2022 at 05:28 PM in God, Motivation, Reviews | Permalink | Comments (0)
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Thursday, October 27, 2022 at 02:31 PM in God, Leadership | Permalink | Comments (0)
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Thursday, October 27, 2022 at 02:31 PM in God, Leadership | Permalink | Comments (0)
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