Magic Lines

The following is a copy of the Thomas Question email devotional. You can subscribe to the email edition from our website and tune into our podcast.

It fascinates me that the largest outcomes are sometimes driven by the tiniest changes. For example an unstable mass of snow on a mountain top has an actual limit beyond which even a single snowflake or a puff of breeze (or a single careless footfall) will unleash an avalanche. Think of all the energy involved in all that snow unleashed by so small a thing as that. It can be tragic and terrifying.

We, too, have actual limits of our own which cannot be negotiated. Consider your own endurance. It’s not indefinite, which is another way of saying there is a line which represents “this far and not even one step further.” Having competed in endurance events for more than a decade, trust me – it exists!

We have phrases for these “moments”. We call them “breaking points” or “tipping points” or the “straw that broke the camel’s back”. The represent the point at which small changes accumulate to produce large scale change.
And the real problem is that we often don’t know the exact location of these lines until after we’ve crossed them. Like the moment when one too many harsh words are spoken and a relationship is changed for good.

Somehow we need more information and awareness than we are capable of. We need a larger perspective than can fit in a human mind. In short, we need someone with a God-sized perspective. The Jesus based life is way to not need to know the location of these lines. We can simply walk in tune with the principles laid out by the one who does know them. These principles are a protection against the unknown and the unknowable, the extreme and the permanent. They mark the edges of unseen cliffs we would otherwise barrel over. They help us know when to push ourselves and when to restrain ourselves. They are a way to know what truly matters – relationships, integrity, purpose. Consider life within His limits – it may change the way you look at everything.

This Sunday is as important a Sunday as we’ll have. It’s been some months since we’ve talked about our vision and values – so let’s do it. Let’s consider a compelling picture of what we could become 1, 2 and 5 years from now. The Sunday after that we’ll be having a slightly shorter 1 hour service with communion to celebrate Easter.

I hope to see you there and I hope you bring someone with you.

Chris

CHURCH EXPOSED
Our current series lasts until the end of April. What is church, what is The Thomas Question and what could we build if we set our minds to it?

BEAUTIFUL
Our next series begins in early May challenging assumptions about true beauty, a meaningful life and the struggle to make our most noble choices.

THE ANCIENT PATHS
Beginning this summer, a look back to the foundations of a spiritual life. What were the ancient truths that began this journey? How do we rediscover prayer, worship, and meaningful points of devotion in our own lives in the present?

YOUR VOICE
As always, we’re interested in input before and after each Sunday. If you have questions, comments, directions or feedback, hit reply or email us at info@askthequestion.ca and let it rip. As with our Deep Questions series, it only serves to add a layer of richness.

Seeing Well

The following is a copy of the Thomas Question email devotional. You can subscribe to the email edition from our website and tune into our podcast.

There are at least two ways we do our “looking”. Consider how you drive a car. It takes one kind of looking (out the windshield) to avoid
collisions and another kind of looking (at a map) to get where you’re going. The windshield helps us with here and now, the map helps us with there and then.

Now all of this hints at a potential problem. Too much “map” and you’ll hit telephone poles. Too much “windshield” and you’ll miss all the telephone poles on your way to nowhere in particular (at least you’ll get there in pristine condition). The challenge, as always, is to find the best balance between both.

Now how are these things true for your life as well as your car? In similar fashion, we need at least two kinds of awareness to move forward – both “here and now” as well as “there and then”. Some are so busy managing here and now that their ultimate destination will be a surprise to them – and sometimes a rude awakening. Years fly by without a thought. Others have their mind so far in the future the rest of their life will likely never catch up. Which do you struggle with?

Life is in part a test of guidance. How do we overcome immediate obstacles using available opportunities as we move toward ultimate ends? It’s not an easy thing in any way. You could say it’s like trying to thread a needle in one hand while you hold a hurricane in the other. But it’s a challenge you were made for. Why not thrive in the midst of it? What do you see out your windshield? What dreams fill the edges of your map?

Last Sunday was one approach to the case for faith. If you missed it, tune in to the podcast. This Sunday we have Rich Redman with us. Visit our website for directions and join us for Starbucks at 9:45.

Chris

CHURCH EXPOSED
Our current series lasts until the end of April. What is church, what is The Thomas Question and what could we build if we set our minds to it?

BEAUTIFUL
Our next series begins in early May challenging assumptions about true beauty, a meaningful life and the struggle to make our most noble choices.

THE ANCIENT PATHS
Beginning this summer, a look back to the foundations of a spiritual life. What were the ancient truths that began this journey? How do we rediscover prayer, worship, and meaningful points of devotion in our own lives in the present?

YOUR VOICE
As always, we’re interested in input before and after each Sunday. If you have questions, comments, directions or feedback, hit reply or email us at info@askthequestion.ca and let it rip. As with our Deep Questions series, it only serves to add a layer of richness.

Aiming Well

The following is a copy of the Thomas Question email devotional. You can subscribe to the email edition from our website and tune into our podcast.

March 15, 2007

One of my favorite concepts has to do with target practice. When you’re dealing with a moving target, you never actually shoot right at it. If you did, you’d “hit” an empty spot of air where the target used to be (“hit” is in quotes because you won’t actually “hit” anything). Instead, you pull your sights across the target and shoot just in front of it – at an empty spot of air where the target will be by the time your shot gets there. It’s called “leading the shot” and it has more to do with rhythm than anything else because.

Many will take a good chunk of their adult lives to figure out they need to do the same thing in life. It’s not enough to aim at what you do want right now because things are going to change – and they already are. You’re dealing with a moving target. By the time you get where you think you want to go, you may not want to be there any more because you will have changed along the way. In my own life I haven’t yet achieved the stuff I wanted when I was 25 and already things have changed. Specifically, my two girls have changed everything. So you’ve got to try to “lead the shot” and aim at what you will want by the time you get there. And that’s tough.

It seems our awareness always lags behind our experience. We figure this stuff out after the fact, when the “die” is already “cast”. Hindsight is 20/20. Foresight is 20/400 (which is legally blind). Common sense can tell us that many of the cliché’s we’ve heard are probably true. Quality relationships matter more than time and money. Moral power is more important than anything you can get by cheating your way to the top. And the 75 year old you, sitting in a rocking chair is going to care about a vastly different range of things than what you’re focusing on right now. We’ve got to “lead the shot”. The trick is – can these things become real enough for us to act on them now?

In truth, the really important stuff lies in between the things that feel really important right now. I recently wrote about this in my journal: “The true test of our lives is to develop a backdrop of quality life processes which turn into a set of Jesus-like reflexes over time”. All of which is a far cry from conquering my “to do list”, making lots of money and having a big career. Far more important than all that, will my kids feel my deep love for them or just hear about it?

Why not think long and hard on these things until your awareness of them appreciates to the point where it changes your decisions? Why not think long and hard about how you can “lead the shot” and aim at where your true life will be?

This Sunday I want to work with this analogy in a slightly different way as we begin a whole new series, “Church Exposed: What is the Thomas Question Anyway?”. If I could say anything to all of West Toronto about what we believe, this Sunday would be it. Join us. You can visit our website for directions or tune into the podcast through the week.

I hope to see you there,

Chris

LAST SUNDAY
The final message in our “Deep Questions” series, “Should we really be afraid of God?”

THIS SUNDAY
Church Exposed: What you didn’t know about those Sunday morning people and what they actually believe. Visit the website for directions or tune into the podcast through the week.

DVD’s ARE AVAILABLE
Most of the Deep Questions series, and everything from this point forward are becoming available. For those in our digital congregation, we can look into the cost of a mail based subscription. Let us know if you’re interested (just hit reply or email us at info@askthequestion.ca).

A LOOK AHEAD
March 25TH
Special guest Richard Redman

April 1ST
What could the Thomas Question look like 1, 2 and 5 years from now – and what can you do about it?

EMAIL DEVOTIONAL
If you’re not getting this email devotional, then how are you reading this right now?

JUST FOR KICKS
Dave Zak has done a lot of graphics design and video work for The Thomas Question. He recently finished a feature video for the Scripture Union - and he's also using it to enter Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg's "On The Lot". He's done amazing work. We can all help him get noticed if you follow this link (http://films.thelot.com/films/30628), watch the video and vote for it. You'd be surprised what your click can do!

Giant Squid

The following is a copy of the Thomas Question email devotional. You can subscribe to the email edition from our website and tune into our podcast.

We know the giant squid exists because we find their indigestible beaks in the bellies of whales that have eaten them. That being said, we’ve also never actually seen one alive in it’s natural habitat. Funny, we think all the frontiers have been explored and we know most of what there is to know. But on our own planet there are still unexplored regions and undiscovered creatures. Anyway, back to the giant squid… We know it exists but we’ve never seen one alive in it’s natural habitat. Which leads to a principle: if you want to find something, you need to know where (and how) to look.

I have to admit that if I were God’s publicist, I’d recommend that He do things a bit differently. The almost complete absence of His public appearances is an obstacle many find too large to overcome. “God sightings” have been at a definite low for about the past 2,000 years. It is claimed that He shows up on Sunday mornings all over the world, but this is almost exclusively in the realm of a certain kind of person. A church person. And the can be (admittedly) a little crazy.

Many of the scriptures that have to do with God encounters seem to indicate He has at least one thing in common with the giant squid (for now, at least). His natural habitat is one we have a hard time accessing. For the past few weeks, I’ve been referencing a single scripture verse which is becoming more and more important to me all the time. Matthew 5:8 says “blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God”.

You are His habitat, you see, and purity makes that habitat “ideal”. Now purity us much more than just “good behavior”. It’s also about the goodness of our intentions. So somehow, our way of living can either throw Him into sharp relief or obscure Him almost entirely. In similar fashion, there are some paths which give a better display of a natural wonder like Victoria Falls, and some paths which leave too much foliage in the way. Are you on a path that even can provide a clear view of Him? Live to be the ideal habitat – live to make a God encounter more likely and you may be surprised…

It’s horrible to recommend your own “snake oil”, but the things we got into last Sunday about “guidance” are one of my favorite things to talk about. If you missed it, tune into the podcast. We’ve gotten a lot of interesting feedback so far. I’m as excited about the material for this Sunday, too as we wrestle with “Why is the ‘fear of the Lord’ the beginning of wisdom? Are we really supposed to fear what we also love?”

Hope to see you there,

Chris

DVD's
The first is done and will be available this Sunday. We're looking at getting it up on our website in the next month or two as well as a video podcast.

FEEDBACK
Did something come to you as you listened to some of the teaching at the Thomas Question? Even if it isn’t directly related, send it in. It keeps the conversation going and influences upcoming messages. Click submit and give us your thoughts.

DEEP QUESTIONS CONTINUED
We’ve had so much response from this past series where you submit the questions for a “remote controlled pulpit” that it’s going to be a feature of how we do things long term. Even in the midst of the so called “designed” series, your input matters. Send us your questions. We’d far rather focus on a great idea from you than blindly follow what’s been planned.

THIS SUNDAY
The “fear of the Lord”, driving off the edge of your imagination and what does a friendship with God really look like, anyway. Visit our website for directions or tune into the podcast. through the week.

JUST FOR KICKS
Dave Zak has done a lot of graphics design and video work for The Thomas Question. He recently finished a feature video for the Scripture Union - and he's also using it to enter Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg's "On The Lot". He's done amazing work. We can all help him get noticed if you follow this link (http://films.thelot.com/films/30628), watch the video and vote for it. You'd be surprised what your click can do!

Jesus' Bones

The following is a copy of the Thomas Question email devotional. You can subscribe to the email edition from our website and tune into our podcast.

It’s unusual to find anyone in the Canadian media who’s less than violently opposed to anything Christ related. Seize this rare opportunity to enjoy Rex Murphy’s take on this past weekend’s Al Gore Oscar moments (click to follow the link). It tags nicely with something I wanted to address in today’s email devotional, so take a break, take a look and jump back here. Trust me, it’s worth it.

Rex is a favorite commentator of mine. I’ve been following this bit about Jesus’ bones, too, if only half heartedly. These things have always existed back to the hoax theories about Jesus not dying and reviving in the tomb to disciple/body snatchers hiding the corpse. I think God Himself ensures that we will always be force to make a gut choice between two destinies, two histories and two versions of the cross – one as folklore, one as fact.

The answer has always been a matter for our hearts, which is not to say it isn’t truth in the classic sense, only that our hearts are the habitat of all truth period. Would I hang my destiny and walk away from hope based on our best guess at a 2,000 year old set of bones? Not a chance. Especially given the groundswell of real time “data” in my own heart from as early as this morning’s devotional time. Anecdotal and subjective, I know, but no less real (experts not withstanding).

My only real embarrassment in all has been the Christian leaders flocking to TV studios in a mad panic to defend the sanctity of the Christian story. Their stammering half enflamed, half witted angry rebuttals speak louder than their words. It’s screams insecurity. They look afraid. They look as though a house of cards is crashing down around them. Maybe theirs is. If only we had the confidence to calmly cast half our attention towards this debate as though we’d seen it all before (because we have) and simply wait for the same eternal truths to make themselves known to those who look with the right inentions. These truths have always been something best explored with our whole selves, not just the less-than-half ourselves that is our rational mind played out on a chalk board.

These kinds of “revelations” never convert anyone in either direction, they only entrench people already decided on either side. The naturalists say, “see – we told you so”; the theists respond, “there you go again, making things up”. The vast majority of truly reasonable people know what to do with both voices – ignore them. They also know that an ancient historical truth can be mistaken for folklore and that ancient folklore can be argued as fact. We can help them by being honest and bringing them back to the original terms of this most important of life’s questions: in the beginning, there was either some one or some thing, your answer is a matter for your heart and God is a truth best encountered and uncovered rather than argued about.

As I said last Sunday – I know God is fully impossible. I’ve accepted it completely. I’m also very glad He never let that get to Him, bones or no bones.

This Sunday we’re dealing with questions about guidance – how do we get it, why do we want it and how does it work. Visit our website for directions or tune into the podcast through the week.

I hope to see you there,

Chris

DVD's
The first is done and will be available this Sunday. We're looking at getting it up on our website in the next month or two as well as a video podcast.

THE THOMAS LOBBY
I've got a brand new Sunday routine because my old way of doing things had me missing out on going to church myself. I've always had a passion to grow a church from the lobby out. So I'll be there from 9.30 on each Sunday, coffee in hand, ready to love life. Join me.

THIS SUNDAY
Guidance - what is it, why do we want it and how do we get it? You can visit our website for directions or tune into our podcast through the week.