The Power Station at LAX Airport

I had an hour to kill before my flight home from Los Angeles.

After you clear security at LAX, the departure gates numbered 31 - 36 form a semi-cirlce at the end of a long, carpeted corridor. My Delta flight was scheduled to leave from Gate 36.

The combined waiting area of this semi-circle is deceptively large. There were hundreds of people scrunched into chairs, sprawled on the floor and pacing in between. Typical airport.

I looked across the expanse, searching for an empty chair, hoping for a nearby outlet to charge my iPhone. I spied a small alcove with several rows of chairs wide open, so I made my way over. Jackpot!  I could see power outlets built right into the metal frame beside every seat. Surprised that more of the seats weren't taken, I plugged in.

"Not charging" flashed on my iPhone screen.  Probably a loose connection in that one, so I pulled the plug and tried another outlet. "Not charging."  I raised my head to look around and a fellow traveler caught my eye from a few chairs over. He gave me a half-smile and shrugged his shoulders to signal his plug didn't work either. Taking a closer look, I could see that this entire alcove of chairs was "unplugged." They had power cords dangling from each row that went nowhere.

Another quick walk through the other endless rows, I could see that none of them were plugged in! So where the heck can you charge your mobile device.....?

Then I spotted a tall, narrow island of a kiosk with shiny white counter tops on two sides. "Power Station." Travelers crowded all around it and others hovered nearby, waiting for an opportunity to swoop in and connect their own thirsty device. I smiled as the same scenario played out. Travelers entered the gate area, spotted the empty chair alcove, plugged in, frowned, got up, walked around, and eventually spotted us by the working power island where we waited our turn. It was obvious that we had discovered the real source of power. And all mobile technology formats, shapes and sizes were in abundance.

I often see a spiritual version of this same "unplugged power outlet" scenario.
Many people are looking for that short, direct route to plug into a higher power. They have a sense of somewhat careless urgency, hoping to plop down in an open chair and take a break from their busy lives.

But many of the beckoning alcoves of spirituality have an unseen dead end. It is an illusory connection with no real source of power. Philosophies of good works,  prosperity, self-discipline or balanced karma are in fact "not charging." They will eventually drain the hope and confidence of a sincere seeker, sometimes replacing it with cynicism toward all things spiritual.

It's not always easy to admit that, to get up and search again.  But for some, it's actually the perfect motivation to more carefully, thoughtfully walk through the ocean of disconnect to discover that singular island kiosk of Truth. There are other people there to welcome you and share their own journey to God's counter. To affirm a sure and confident connection to God through Jesus. There is room for everyone. All formats, all versions, all shapes and sizes, all are welcome at the table with Jesus.

Romans 15:7
"Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God."

What do you believe?

Artificial Intelligence and Jesus

"10 minutes to your destination...."

My bride of 36 years turned to me in our car and mused, "It usually says, '20 minutes' when I'm driving to work."   She picked up her phone and looked at the screen. The destination address was that of our church.
"How does it know where we're going!?"

Answer, its Sunday.  And on most Sunday's when we get in the car, our destination is the church where we've worshiped for 15 years.
It's a simple artificial intelligence algorithm. The phone has paid attention with location tracking and time. It gets 'smarter' as it learns a repeated pattern, like going to church on Sunday and work on Monday.

I gave this some thought as we waited for the service to begin.
Our phones and tablets and laptops are all paying attention to patterns of behavior.
We all know that amazon.com will suggest purchase ideas related to this new item or our past purchases.
I get a lot of CD reminders for 60's and 70's music, boating equipment and kindle books.
Amazon video and Netflix both provide a "just for you" list of topics (action and mystery/thriller).

Those are simple. But think bigger. God not only sees our behavior in real time, he knows our thoughts and our hearts. He is before us and after us with no boundary of time. Wouldn't his "Siri" or "Alexa" comments be interesting to hear on your smart phone?

"You have 1 hour available with nothing else scheduled, during which you could pray or read your bible, or check on a loved one, but you will instead flip through sports scores and news while wishing you had more time to relax."

Ouch.  Or,

"You have just received a bonus check, you will struggle with your decision to tithe 10% off the gross or after-tax amount."

Hey!  How did he know that?!

I smiled and thought of other combinations God could share which I most certainly would not want blurted out over a phone. And I realized, as we all do, that God doesn't need a phone app to pull the "drive time to church" magic trick.  We have something with much greater nuance, subtlety, depth and breadth.
You're probably way ahead of me on this one, it's...your conscience.

God knows right and wrong and so do we. We are made in his image.

Romans 2:15
"They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them."

What does your Siri say?

My Boss Left the Company - We Got Empowered

John 15:26-27
"When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me.  And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning."

I work for a large corporation and we have a lot of management "layers."  Sometimes we gripe amongst ourselves about "micro-managing" done by unnecessary middle managers. On the other hand, some team members adapt. They start waiting for the manager to decide everything for them, its easier. They may even lose confidence in their own ability to get things done.

18 months ago, my team's immediate manager left the company. I really liked her even though her role sometimes represented that extra "layer" of oversight. Still, I got the resources I needed to get my projects done and I knew she had my back. So I was disappointed to see her go and we waited for her replacement. None came. Further up the chain, management announced they had eliminated her "layer." 

Our new, higher level manager had many people and much broader responsibility. He simply didn't have time or capacity to consider each of our day-to-day decisions. In the short term we floundered a bit as a team. We are all highly driven, seasoned marketers, but we had adapted to the team dynamic of another person calling the most significant plays on our behalf. 

Then, without saying so, we each started filling in those manager "gaps" for our team. We made more influential, higher risk decisions. We consulted each other for support. Things got done. Nobody "up the chain" second guessed our work. And now 18 months later, we are a well oiled machine - still consulting our business leader at times, but strongly independent and encouraged to function on our own.  We know the boss' overall message and goals, so we often incorporate that saying, "I think this aligns with his plan," or similar. We're empowered, but we do recognize and respect a higher purpose and road map.

If our previous leader had not left and gone away, we might not have stepped up like that - why would we? But this way, and to our senior manager's credit -  the company has unleashed so much more energy and creativity and entrepreneurship. We are busier than ever, but it is much more satisfying and purposeful.  Much more has been accomplished.

John 16:7-11

"But truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment."

This recent business experience reminded me once again why Jesus' ministry may have been so brief.
I got a tiny glimpse of what Peter and his teammates might have felt.  "What do we do now that we're on our own?"
Jesus had already taught them - they knew the fundamentals of his message.  Prayer gave them access to upper management - their Father in heaven. And the Holy Spirit was present to inspire and guide and affirm them.
The apostles could have shut down after the crucifixion and waited for the next "replacement leader."  But they knew. Jesus had told them. It was with them and through them that he intended to get the work done.  No comfort zone ahead.

We are all of us empowered with the redemptive message of Jesus and the cross. His Father in heaven. The guidance of the Holy Spirit.   We are the people with whom God intends to accomplish His purpose. 


2 Corinthians 1:24

"But that does not mean we want to dominate you by telling you how to put your faith into practice. We want to work together with you so you will be full of joy, for it is by your own faith that you stand firm."

What do you believe?

Down Syndrome and God-Syndrome

[Update: as of June 26, 2022, Roe v. Wade was overturned for its faulty logic and lazy jurisprudence. Looking back now on this 50 year span of my life where our country promoted abortion - 60 million lives lost - it's heartbreaking to wonder how many millions of wonderful families and societal contributions are forever lost because of poor decisions. Ideas have consequences, bad ideas have victims.]

Original blog text 3/30/18

 

I was one of them.
One of the pragmatic people who logically concluded that some babies (or their families) might be better off "not being born" for reasons that included the "health of the mother." 

Pragmatic and logical - that's how I saw it. Sincerely so.  Looking back, looking in the mirror, it's better to say I was self-absorbed and breathtakingly uninformed - on many levels.  I take full responsibility. 

We got what we advocated, all us pragmatic, open minded people - the ability to choose. It's proved a devastatingly slippery slope. Choosing for the "health of the mother," quickly became choosing "for the convenience of the mother or other involved parties," and eventually "for any reason, at any time."  
And now 54 million babies have been "pragmatized" in this fashion.  In the USA. 
My heart breaks for any mother or father who now regrets or was coerced or mislead into their decision - and Christians owe them love and support to recover, through Jesus' mercy and Grace. I offer my prayers up for anyone hurting as they read this now. 

Personally, I woke up to the disturbing truth about 10 million babies after Roe v. Wade.  I was an adult "cultural" Christian. A God believing church-attender who had begun writing gospel music. Searching for material,  I started reading the bible more earnestly. Soon I was no longer uninformed, having read Jeremiah 1:5      
In fact, I was without excuse, having read Romans 1:20    (As any Christian is...without excuse..if they counsel others against God's plan for life.  Luke 17:1-2)

Not long after I got that biblical wake up call, I saw the ultrasound of our own daughter. It was a transcendent, electrifying movie moment when all my past college debates and snarky "pro-lifer" jibes went rocketing in front of my eyes. I blurted out to my wife on the drive back home..."how could anyone see these images and not believe it's a baby?"  How indeed.  At the local pregnancy center we now fund and support, there is an almost 100% decision for birth after seeing an ultrasound. Any surprise that Planned Parenthood doesn't invest tax dollars in ultrasounds?  They are without excuse...

Just a ways down the slippery slope is Down Syndrome.  Pragmatic, logical people - governments - are now advocating a no-survivor policy. They will then be "Down's-free" zones. This has been reported as a "courageous" stance.

My buddy Jake is a black belt. He loves orange soda, prefers a hug over a handshake, has a mischievous sense of humor and is just one of the guys when we all hang out together on league night.  I enjoy spending time with him and his loving, supportive family. He has Down Syndrome. 
(Iceland has thus become a no-Jake-or-his-family zone. Somebody explain this to Icelanders, for Christ's sake.)    In this current cultural debate - I find myself labeled as unconscionably intolerant - because I have matured past cold-blooded pragmatist to become chromosome-blind to Jake and his family.  

One statistic I read suggests that more than100  million adult women are "missing" in other countries, because they got gender selected out of the womb in hopes of a boy baby on the next round. This is heartbreaking for everyone involved - including coerced, mislead and victimized parents who fight against it and are overpowered by others.

The other shoe has also dropped...now some countries who had "assisted suicide" laws have begun to advocate "proactive euthanasia" -- since it can be both "humane" and pragmatically expedient in economically troubling times.  

That's made the slope slippery on BOTH sides of the womb. 

The same cold logic that converted Roe v Wade to 1 million deaths per year (more than cancer, more than heart disease) for the "health of the mother" will soon be trained on "what's best for the health of 80-somethings."   We know how that math will progress, thanks to abortion's test case. Ironically, it's just in time for the 20-something activists of the Roe v. Wade era to come under similar scrutiny for their own aging process and euthanasia. 

None of it seems as complicated to me as it used to - I simply go with God on this topic. And it leaves me somewhat embarrassed for how intolerant I was of the early "pro-lifers" who had simply articulated an objectively informed, biblical worldview:  "Let the babies live."

"And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." 1 Cor 6:10

Every life is precious. Let's let God determine the outcomes. We've proved ourselves unworthy to take his place.

What do you believe?