"The Bible as Improv", by Ron Martoia, An itch worth scratching

The nagging feeling of an itch, it just doesn't go away until you give into its urge. It demands our attention and response on a timely manner. But what if you are unable to locate this itch, let alone define it? You may be very aware that it is there, but what if you couldn't pin point it's exact location? Perhaps you can find it, but the scratching itself is not helping, but in fact, it is making it worse.

This is the best way I can describe the ways in which I engage the Bible. Hermeneutics (The way we apply the Bible) has always left me with a shallow feeling, an itch that has not been satisfied. I could never pin point the problem. Instead I was left scratching all over in hope for some relief. I was struggling to even identify the problem let alone work toward anything that resembled any solutions.

I received "The Bible as Improv; Seeing and Living the Script in New Ways", by Ron Martoia from Zondervan to review. I had high expectations after reading Martoia's last book Transformational Architecture. Not to long after beginning the book, I knew I was on to something special.

What Martoia does so well here is that he identifies the "itch". He sheds light on some of the ways that we have tried to engage the Bible, while also illuminating new ways to apply it. Martoia appreciates the grand narrative of God and his creation. He points to the problematic attempts to pull truths out of context only to really mess things up when we try to apply it to our lives. He reminds us that the Bible is a collection of a specific people within a specific history trying to make sense of what it means to be children of God. For us to neglect this when we read the Bible is tragic.

Luckily, Ron Martoia also points us in the direction for authentic engagement with the Bible. If the Bible points us to God's sweeping narrative, then Martoia proposes that we need to immerse ourselves with in "script-ure" and improv with in our own context what it means to follow Christ. Martoia makes some fantastic metaphors using the idea of musical and theatre improv. In both situations you must attempt to stay true to the structure of the musical piece or play, but still faithfully improv so that you are moving the song or story forward.

If you find yourselves with an "itch" when you engage the Bible, I would highly recommend this book. I have truly found hope within the possibility of faithful improv of "script-ure" within my community and in my context. My hope is that many more will read this book, embrace this new hope. "The Bible as Improv" is truly an itch worth scratching.

- Dan Jones

Bringing New Meaning to "Boiling Frogs"; Kingdom Living

I must admit that I have never boiled frogs nor have I ever really wanted to either. The process does not have much appeal to me to even try. I do know that supposedly there is a method in which to boil frogs successfully, at least so it has been told. For as long as I can recall, this successful method of boiling frogs has important truths to tell us as Christ followers, specifically in the world of sin. Perhaps you may have heard this story before, perhaps not. Let me recount the story as I have heard;

If you want to boil frogs it may be important to explain the best way to do so. There really are two options you may consider to attempt to boil frogs successfully. The first is to boil the water in a pan, then to drop frogs in. Sounds good and all until you consider the fact that the frogs have jumping legs, and as soon as you drop them in the boiling water, they will leap out of the pan. Not many of us would probably consider this successful. Perhaps a better option is available. What if you placed the frogs comfortably in a pan with room temperature water, then slowly turn the flame until the water reaches the boil. The frogs will not even notice the rise in temperature. Because of this there will not be any noticeable danger until its too late, therefore you will not have any jumping frogs.

(Then the story continues to the application to sin, and it goes something like this;)

To successfully boil frogs using the slow boil method is a lot like how sin successfully creeps in to our life stories and slowly takes over us. We may not feel the heat of our sin decisions right away. It is not like one day you are on the right path and the next day the wrong path slaps you in the face. With each sin decision we make we are slowly allowing the water in which we are in to slowly rise. Before you know it, sin has crept in so far within us, it leads us to death and destruction, much like the boiling frogs.

This illustration is one that I have grown up with. It is one that still is very much embedded within my approach to sin. Perhaps this is an appropriate metaphor and this post is not an attempt to take away from this. But I would like to break up any embedded meaning that I have carried with me to see if there is any room left for any other insights.

A story line that emerges from "boiling frogs" could be a story titled, Slow Transformation May Be the Most Successful Transformation. Previously, "boiling frogs" taught us that sin can creep in over time and slowly transform our identity in one that is entrenched in "death." This previous illustration shows there is power in patience. In this old story sin has to serve in form of a relationship to someone so that the water feels right at first. Sin, in this story slowly, warms the waters of someone so not to cause alarm in this relationship. Perhaps this story line can be used as a base line for further exploration into new insights.

When I think of patient transformation I can't help but think of the power of Kingdom living, in the way of the teaching of Jesus. The irony of the power of kingdom living is that when we realize our true stature in context of God's stature, we are left with very little to carry forth with any sort of confidence in ourselves to be successful. This is where exactly where the Gospel picks us up and slowly transforms us into God's kingdom. The Gospel is not something that should slap somebody in the face. Kingdom living is not learned or earned overnight. Kingdom power begins with our powerlessness. God's new creation, beginning with Jesus, draws us into a new reality when we accept that we have no power to bring forth that reality ourselves. Much like how you boil frogs, we have to extend the invitation of Kingdom living to others with this slow transformation in mind.

In our previous illustration sin creates a trusting relationship in the context of "room-temperature" water to introduce the frogs . There is a major difference between this illustration and the old one that should be noted. The relationship between the boiler and the frog is that this trust is based on deception. With our new illustration, a slow transformation into Kingdom Living, this trust relationship is based on love and humility. In our own humility, because of our condition, love is extended in such a divine way, we learn to trust in this special context. Perhaps this room temperature water that was previously used as a tool to not alarm the frogs of the "heat" can now stand for the divine love that we experience. God announces to us that he is with us and that he blesses us where ever we are no matter where that is.

With the "boiling frogs" traditional metaphor you slowly turn the heat on the water to not alarm the frog until you succeed in the boiling process. Perhaps with our new metaphor God meets us where we are and as we are to announce His love and blessings for us. As we experience more and more of this divine "warmth" we begin to overflow with these blessing to those around us. This is key to Kingdom living. This is a challenge to the church. It seems that there is a perception that outsiders have to earn religiosity rather the the church announcing blessings and a divine love to the world around us. This extension of the Kingdom does not start with expectation from the church for the world to be a certain way. This kingdom extension begins with an announcement of good news, blessing, and favor to the world in the condition that it currently is in. We need to be able to overflow God's blessing that He showed to us in our condition to the surrounding world in its current condition.

One last difference should be noted with our new metaphor. In the traditional metaphor the goal was to boil the frogs which leads to a certain death., which represented how sin can overtake us and creep in which can lead to a certain death. Replacing the "sin" lesson with a "Kingdom living" lesson can prove tricky here, Death is not our goal with the new metaphor, but to the contrary abundant life is. Perhaps the "boiling" point is where we learn to loose our life in order to find it. Kingdom living is not deception that leads to death by no means. Yet we find hope in our life that we have lost, because of our condition, in the midst of the life giving announcement of Gospel.

If were to sum up our new lesson from an old metaphor of the "Boiling Frogs" perhaps it may look like this.;

In the same way one has to display a certain patience when boiling frogs, may this patience propel us to share God's kingdom. Our goal is not to force this Gospel upon anyone. In doing so there is a danger that the recipients will experience to much heat in the same way a frog would when you drop them in the boiling water. In this case all you are left with is a mess for sure. Instead we must ease an announcement of grace and blessings to those around us to allow folks to slowly experience the warmth of God's divine love. We can do this only if we have experienced this same love within our own condition. This then will overflow from us to those around us. Boiling frogs this way leads to a certain death. Experiencing Gospel and sharing it leads to a certain abundant life. Ironically to experience this life, we must first learn to loose it in the process of being immersed with in this "warmth" that leads to a full divine boil. May we seek better ways to "boil frogs".

Bringing New Meaning to Traditional Metaphors

The attempt of bringing new meaning to tried and perhaps true metaphors that Christian religiosity has used in that past, is a process that very much intrigues me. Any time we are able to use something that is very familiar to propel new and fresh meaning should prove to be useful as we attempt to engage the scriptures and our world with fresh eyes. With this in mind I want to dedicate some blog time in exploring this very theme. In a world full of disclosures it is appropriate that I mention that these traditional allegories are imperfect at times, let alone when we try to use these allegories to shed new light on our understanding.

I do have 3 traditional Christian metaphors in mind. I will explore each with a separate post. And depending on how this will go, perhaps it will open doors for further exploration down the road. Here are the 3 traditional Christian metaphors;

1. Boiling Frogs

2. Eat the Fish Spit out the Bone

3. Garbage in Garbage Out

Hopefully there will be some recognition of the subject matter based on the 3 titles of each metaphor, and if not, I do admit these may be just metaphors that have been passed around embedded within my context alone. Either way this should be fun for at least one of us. ;) You will be able to look forward to the first post here shortly.

- Dan Jones

Drops Like Stars; Review of Rob Bell's New Book

I received my copy of Drops Like Stars by Rob Bell recently and I have finally had some time to sit down and read it all the way through. The thing about this book is that you find yourself tempted just to thumb through it, in part because of the artistic layout in the way of a coffee table book. (Perhaps this can be my excuse in not reading it thoroughly the first time around even though I have had ample opportunity to do so.) My thoughts on this book are three-fold;

1) Layout - Rob Bell deserves props for the courage to author this sort of book. If you have read Bell's previous books Velvet Elvis or even Jesus Wants to Save Christians; A Manifesto for the Church in Exile, this is a departure of sorts from these types of books. The book itself is physically imposing (shaped like a high school year book) and it includes stunning photography. Some pages have minimal wording on them. The layout is in the way of Rob Bell's video series Nooma. If you were to translate a Nooma video into words and pictures, I believe this is what it would look like. The most important aspect of the layout is that it works!

2) Dialogue - Books that move from being just a monologue by the author into being a dialogue proves to be difficult to find. However, Drops Like Stars proves to accomplish dialogue in ways that I never felt that a book could accomplish. This is the case in part because of the unique layout, and in part because of the personal stories that Bell weaves in throughout the book. With the photography and personal stories married together throughout, the reading of Drops Like Stars proves to be a very interactive experience.

3) Substance - With what seemingly appears to be little said in Drop Like Stars because of the fact that there are many pictures and less words written, "Stars" may surprise because it is very deep in substance. Bell explores the relationship of suffering with creativity. The question that Bell explores is not "why we suffer?", rather the question he asks is "what now?". Rob Bell writes in a way that allows the reader to listen, to talk back, and to explore. I believe that this style leads to a deeper learning experience.

In many ways this book invites further exploration and further questions. Pat answers will not be found, and the ending does not provide any resolve with any modernistic satisfaction. If you are looking for a typical book experience, this may not be the type of reading for you. However, if you want to interact with something that invites a deeper learning experience this may be something to look at, if for no other reason that it does look very nice on a coffee table.

-Dan Jones

Twirling Umbrellas In Our Own Little World

Fall in central Ohio means rain and lots of it. I own an umbrella that gets rarely used. For at least a year, my umbrella rested under my desk collecting dust. Sure, there were times I could have benefited from using it, but I only realized this when I needed it the most. And by that time, I could do nothing about it. Often, I would be kicking myself when I was in the middle of a down-pour, because I realized that the possibility existed of a wet-free scamper to indoors. This was a snapshot of my relationship with my umbrella, that is until recently.

I was at work, and it had been raining all day. I was about to go on my lunch as I glanced at the weather outside. I was in no mood to fight the elements just for a bite to eat. As I peered down at the floor below my desk, I was reintroduced to my umbrella-friend that was still neatly housed in a plastic sleeve. Perhaps one of the reason I never utilized the umbrella is the 6 inch blade on the end. (It is actually just a metal point, but I can just envision a run in with security guards about the potential "danger", especially in these times.) Either way I made the decision to utilize the umbrella for the first time.

I grabbed the umbrella and took off down stairs. As I reached the bottom of my building, I just realized that I had forgotten my badge, which serves as a clearance to renter the building from outside. Reluctantly, I decided it to be a good idea to go back to my desk on the 7th floor to retrieve my badge. Instead of taking the stairs back up 7 flights, (it is a lot easier to go down, then going back up), I decided to take advantage of the open elevator. As I entered the elevator with two other individuals, I have to admit, I was in my own little world. (In all reality, I was way to excited to actually use my new friend the umbrella.) I was in the front of the elevator looking down at the pointed end of the umbrella and I just twirled the end against the floor. As I was doing this, for some unexplained reason, I decided that the plastic sleeve that housed the umbrella needed to come off. Still in my own little world, I slowly lifted the end point on the umbrella and I placed my hand around the plastic sleeve and pulled it off revealing the full glory of the umbrella. (Dangerous point and all.)

To my surprise and humor, the other two individuals had been watching me the entire time. Actually, as I pulled the umbrella from the plastic sleeve, I am positive that they may have been thinking that I was going to attack them with the metal point. Their eyes were as wide as can be, and of course looking back, I can see their concern. I pulled that umbrella out they way you pull a knife or gun out of the holster. I started laughing as I realized how this might of looked to the other two individuals. I reassured them that as ominous as my pointy umbrella looked, I had no plans for any attack on them. Once we arrived at the fourth floor, the two individuals jetted out of there without looking back. (I admit that this made me laugh out loud as I reached my stop at the 7th floor.) It is amazing how when we get caught up in our own little world, we become very unaware of what is going on around us.

If we are not careful, followers of Christ can get caught up in the sub-culture of Christian religiosity. This sub culture is much bigger then we sometimes realize. When you have Christan music, Christian apparel, Christian bumper stickers, Christian talk-radio, Christian television, Christian News, and even Christian magazines, we can get swallowed up by our own little Christian world. This isn't even considering the fact that we have built Christian buildings, Christian Schools, and even Christian sports leagues. Is it no wonder that we can loose sight of what our mission can and should be within this world.

I remember in my short stint in youth ministry, there was a point where I felt very convicted about the fact that I did not have one meaningful relationship outside of church, not one! How is it that I can connect with God's mission to be a blessing to the world (Light on the hill) when I didn't even have one relationship with anyone out side of the church building. How many of us that follow Christ can be convicted in the same way?

In the same way that I got caught up twirling my umbrella in my own little world in the elevator that one day, I believe that the danger exists as Christ followers that we too can get caught up within our own sub-culture, to the point where we are in danger of becoming irrelevant to the world around us. It can be possible to be swallowed up completely in our own world that we may not have any meaningful connections in a postmodern culture that values authenticity. Maybe we need to infuse this culture in which we exist with the kingdom living that is "not of this world" but very much within this world.

-Dan Jones

Football for Dummies

Football seems to be a simple sport. You have a ball that is carried, thrown, kicked, or defended. Based on varying success in these areas, you may or may not win. But what if we were approached by someone that had never watched a football game? What if they wanted you to explain each portion of the game so that they fully understood it, at least to the degree that they would understand the game as they watched it? When you really sit down to analyze the game, the complexity of it is overwhelming. Let's just look at football terminology alone,

blitz; touchdown; touchback; punt; field-goal; zone; cover 2; cover 1; prevent; fumble; interception; safety; kick off; kick return; shotgun; sack; holding; passing interference; facemask; 2 point conversion; line of scrimmage; first, second, third, and fourth down; turnover

This is just to name a few of course. This also doesn't even touch on position names and the numerous rules and regulations. When just touching on these different complexities of the game, one would be able to see the difficulty in explaining the game to someone that is first introduced to it.

In attempting to teach the game we may even be tempted to do so on a very high level as to not confuse this person. Keeping the complexities at bay, and attempting to walk through the game in the way of "football for dummies", this may not be a bad direction to go. Yet, two things have to happen in order to succeed at even this. First, the person that is presenting the "high level" view of football would have to have extensive knowledge of the game even with all of its complexity. Second, the person with this extensive knowledge of the game would have to 'translate' the game in such a way to be understandable. (On a side note, it would not be be a bad idea to avoid sounding patronizing while doing so.) So even teaching the game like this involves great diligence and knowledge.

Jesus can be simple. Following in the way of Jesus at its core is simple. You love God, and you love others. But can we not get caught in the complexities to those looking on with a curious or skeptical eye. As we did with football, let's look just look a the terminology that exists in Christendom,

theology; doctrine; atonement; eschatology; repentance; baptism; rapture; discipleship; fellowship; Trinity; apostle; epistle; Pharisee; Sadducee; zealot; herodian; gentile; Sabbath; communion; worship; praise; Greek; Hebrew; omnipotent; omnipresent

As with the football terminology this represents the tip of the iceberg. This isn't even concerning the fact that the book that those that follow Christ refer to mostly is the Bible which is authored by many different personalities with various backgrounds in many different times. Those that follow Christ have an important consideration when talking to others about why we do what we do. Do we dive with in the depths of the complexity that exists within Christendom? Or do we present the biblical narrative at a very high level? These are questions we must embrace as those that follow Christ in a world that is becoming increasingly "post-Christian". We must realize that Christianity is no longer the culture norm/expectation. Our lingo is no longer easily recognized. Are we willing to address the fact that what we say may no longer be easily understood? (Not that certain aspects of the Christian message is ever easily understood.) And what should we do about it?

I remember when I was a child I knew nothing about football. I went to an Oklahoma Sooner game where I froze my butt off, and still knew nothing about what was going on. Today, I can watch football, and follow along like anyone else. How does one move from confusion to clarity? I think it can only come from overall experience. I have watched numerous football games over the past 20 years. I cannot remember having one moment where everything clicked. It just happened. I understand where I came from, and I know where I am today. Somewhere in the experience of watching football throughout the years I now know the game with some clarity. So instead of presenting the deeper complexities to someone that may not know the game, maybe we just invite this person to watch the games with us.

Is it that simple? Instead of defining all aspects of Christendom, do we simply invite others to experience it with us? Instead of handing a track that details doctrinal bullet points, do we just share a meal with someone? Often, I have been tempted to push Jesus on to those around me without considering other alternatives. I do believe that I am not the only one that has struggled with this. I am realizing that Jesus does not come with a bunch of man-made baggage. (He expects a high price of His own, without any additions from His followers.) I believe if we present Jesus with a living breathing doctrine, (How we live, breathe and act) then the rest will take care of itself. Somewhere between the time we are willing to create meaningful relationships with those that are around us to the present, we may look back and realize that we do not have to participate in a full theological-doctrinal exposition in order to share why we do what we do.

- Dan Jones

Pulling Perfectly Good Grass

Fatherhood has changed me. I am learning so much from my son Jake, and it is truly amazing to watch him as he continues to develop. A trend that I have recently noticed as of late is Jake wants to be like me. He repeats everything I say and do. (which can be scary more times then not!)

The other day, the family and I were doing some yard work at our new place that we just recently moved into. My wife decided that it would be a good idea to pull some weeds that the lawn mower could not get to. So as I bent down to begin pulling the weeds and then rake them to the end of the lawn, my wife pointed out Jake to me. He began pulling the weeds and walking the same path as me. He wanted to help. As little as he is, it is crazy to see that he values being valued.

This was pretty neat to watch for at least a little while. However, something began to happen. Jake ran out of weeds to pull so he began to pull the perfectly good grass. This is a tough spot to be in as a parent. On one hand, all Jake was trying to do is help out. At the same time, we didn't want him pulling perfectly good grass. We tried explaining to him that we no longer needed his help with pulling the weeds, but there are only so many words that you can offer to a 2 year old before just saying that dreaded word "NO!".

I am happy that I am one of the many that follow Jesus in this world. It is exciting to think that I am able to "co-mingle" with God and in his work today. I wonder if God looks at me with the same enthusiasm that I have when Jake tries to help out. How cool is is that God may be looking at me like a proud parent knowing that I am "helping out" in the only way his creation can. In this, I resonate with my 2 year old son. I want to think my intentions are good in my attempts to work with God in this world. This also makes me think that sometimes I (or "we" as the church) may be pulling perfectly good grass. We make decisions on who is "in" and who is "out", with many times not thinking twice about it. We make sweeping judgements about political parties and those that are in them. It is incredibly tempting to believe that God takes "sides" in our political arenas. (Can any man made party truly embody what it means to follow Christ?) I wonder how often we have good intentions, but fail to pull the weeds rather then the grass.

The possibility of pulling perfectly good grass exists as we attempt a faithful dialogue in religion, politics, or even everyday topics. This must enter in consideration in our attempts to boldly proclaim the good news and team with God in His work in this world. Otherwise, good intentions or not, we may be doing more harm then good.

Dan Jones