Euphrony and Elvis

Seth demanded a blog, and so here it is. I'll be brief this time but, in the next day or two, will talk more about the Portland trip and other things. (The picture on the right is one I took of the Portland Head Light; it is the second oldest lighthouse in the United States of America, behind the Boston Light. It was commissioned by George Washington and built in 1791.)

I noticed something while in Portland about myself. I am a nice Southern boy, raised to have manners, say "please" and "thank you". I will sometimes even extend that to a "thank you very much". When I do that, I find that I tend to speak a little faster.

Cue the Elvis impersonation: "Thank you, thank you very much" (picture for yourself the curled lip).

Do I make all Southerners sound like a stereotypical Elvis? The funny thing is that, while in Portland, I was actually told that I do not have much of a Texas accent, so the whole Elvis thing seems to contradict that.

Tags: Portland, Maine, Accents, Elvis

Whither Euphrony?

Some of you may have noticed that I have been mostly absent from the blogging scene the last few days. Okay, maybe one person noticed? Well, there has been a reason for this. In recent weeks, I have been rather busy at work, with a few projects at major junctures and trying to prepare a paper to present of the Society of Rheology Annual Conference. (What-ology? "rheology noun: a science dealing with the deformation and flow of matter" We answer the question of why silly putty will bounce when you drop it but flow into a puddle when you leave it on the table for a few minutes.) So, last Friday I flew up to Portland, Maine for the start of a long week of learning.

I actually started the conference off with a short course (all day Saturday and Sunday) and the formal conference runs from 8-6 Monday through Thursday, with events every evening. I presented my paper Tuesday afternoon, so it's all downhill from there. You can equate this experience to cramming a full course load of advanced graduate classes for one semester into one fast-paced week. My head is swollen (not from ego) and may explode at any time now.

Portland, itself, is very nice. The weather is about what we get in the dead of winter in Houston (high of 60, low of 40) with the exception that every day has been clear and sunny (so far). You might be interested to know that Portland is the home of Rear Admiral John Martin Feeney, who served in World War II. But, he is much better know for his career after the Navy, where he took the name John Ford and won six little statuettes called "Oscars". The picture to the left is a statue erected in his honor in Portland.

The conference is over tomorrow, and Mrs. Euphrony is (trying) to fly up tonight to meet me here. After several last-minute flight changes, she should get here around 11 pm and we will have a four-day weekend here in lovely Maine to enjoy the leaves, the apples, the chowder, the lobster, and Little Euphrony being with the grandparents.

Sometime soon, I'll be a regular blogger again. No hurry, though.

Tags: Portland, Maine, John Ford, Rheology, Houston, Euphrony, Conference

Cos on childbirth

Mrs. Euphrony, this is for you. I know you've seen it before, but while I'm not home we can joke about our plans and Baby Euohrony. Laugh it up - you've been there before. Kat, Mrs. Brody, and all the others out there wanting kids, who've had kids, or are pregnant - watch, laugh, and learn.


Tags: Bill Cosby, YouTube, Comedy

Lighter still . . .

Well, Mrs Euphrony was only somewhat amused by yesterday's offerings. Then I left town on her, to Maine on business. To try to cheer her up, I offer this from Bill Cosby. A man making breakfast for his kids. Feel free to do the same while I'm gone, honey!


Tags: Bill Cosby, YouTube, Comedy

On the lighter side . . .

Mrs. Euphrony has informed me that I have been way too serious in my blogging the last few days. So, I had a long series to put out. But, now that I have finished the fourth and final installment, time allows for a little goofing off.

Also, in honor of my 50^th posting, it would seem appropriate to both revisit an old favorite and include a new one. Below are two videos from YouTube (if you want something funny, go to YouTube). First we will revisit the great Mentos and Diet Coke experiment. Frankly, I could watch this guy take it in the face all day.

Next, we'll look up an old friend from the 80's. This is Tom Wilson, but you know him better as Biff, tormentor of Marty McFly in the Back to the Future series of movies. He works stand-up comedy (as he did before the BttF movies) and this is a video of answers to anything you might want to ask Biff if you met him on the street. I saw him on Carson once, doing his routine, only then he was using a tuba in his act. He did a bit about taking the tuba when he goes to the beach, and starts playing the Jaws theme - hillarious.

Tags: Diet Coke, Mentos, YouTube, Back to the Future, Tom Wilson, Biff

"I" and "We" - Conclusion

(read Parts 1, 2, and 3)

John Donne wrote:

PERCHANCE he for whom this bell tolls may be so ill, as that he knows not it tolls for him; and perchance I may think myself so much better than I am, as that they who are about me, and see my state, may have caused it to toll for me, and I know not that. The church is Catholic, universal, so are all her actions; all that she does belongs to all. When she baptizes a child, that action concerns me; for that child is thereby connected to that body which is my head too, and ingrafted into that body whereof I am a member. And when she buries a man, that action concerns me: all mankind is of one author, and is one volume;
. . . .
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee. Neither can we call this a begging of misery, or a borrowing of misery, as though we were not miserable enough of ourselves, but must fetch in more from the next house, in taking upon us the misery of our neighbours. Truly it were an excusable covetousness if we did, for affliction is a treasure, and scarce any man hath enough of it.

from Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, Meditation XVII (read the whole meditation here, or download a text file of the whole of Devotions here)

We have all heard this quote from John Donne (poet and preacher), but do we know its biblical basis? Donne, in this meditation, emphasizes the interconnectedness of all man. As he writes, we do not take on the grief and toils and joys and hopes of others; they are ours to begin with, as surely as we are bound together as creation, as children of the Lord and brothers and sisters of the Christ. Jehovah never intended for a man to seek Him alone, but in the company of fellow worshipers. He called Adam and Eve to “be fruitful and multiply”; He made Abraham into a nation; He called to Himself 12 men, to touch their lives and fellowship with them; He sent the disciples out in twos; Paul never journeyed alone, but in the company of Barnabas, Mark, Silas, Luke, and others.

We, today, are under the same calling. We do not seek merely our own salvation, but that of the world (Matthew 28:19). So then, why do we act as individuals? Why do we neglect our brothers; not simply those who are in another land on another continent, but those next to us? We neglect them when we say "be well fed" but offer no food. We neglect them when we hear their plea but offer no prayer on their behalf. We fail them when we are so caught up in our own lives that we do not see the sin they sink into. We fail them when we do not step out of ourselves to actually look into their lives, past the facade we all erect and into the hurt and pain and sin and despair they hide. As Donne writes, if my brother is torn asunder by the Enemy, am I not torn as surely as he?

We are called to be accountable to each other, fighting for each other’s salvation and encouraging one another to live in holiness. Nehemiah placed the people rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem together in families, telling them to fight for each other (Nehemiah 4:11-14). Christ tells us that we should love as He loves, giving our lives for our brother (John 15:12-13). He also tells us that we should first seek reconciliation with our brothers before continuing in our worship of God (Matthew 5:23-24). "We" are entwined as one creation, under one Creator, one body with one Head. "We" are created to bring glory to Jehovah, not in isolated worship but in community.

Consider the story of Achan (read Joshua 7-8). Recall that after the battle of Jericho, Achan sinned by taking what had been devoted to God for himself. When Israel then attacked Ai, they were routed because of his sin; for God had stated that the whole camp of Israel would be liable if one person broke this command (Joshua 6:18). The reaction of Joshua to defeat by Ai is immediate; he falls on his face before the ark, pleading with God and asking why God had abandoned Israel now that they were in the Promised Land – disgracing them before the Canaanites and embarrassing the name of the Lord (Joshua 7:6-9). God’s reaction, though, is not what you might think at first. Instead of comforting Joshua, renewing His promise to uphold Israel, he basically tells Joshua to quit whining – if you want to blame someone, blame yourselves, for the sin is with unfaithful Israel turning against the faithful Lord. Jehovah does not single out Achan for his sin, but instead proclaims that it is all of Israel that has sinned!

Why was all of Israel punished for Achan’s sin? Why were his sons and daughters stoned along with him, and why was the army of Israel routed by Ai? We are told explicitly in Ezekiel that God does not visit the sins of the father on the children, if the children are faithful to the Lord (Ezekiel 18:1-4, 14-18), so why is the nation punished? Is it possible that it is because no one in the camp of Israel upheld God’s command by helping their brother avoid sin! This was not explicit in God’s command, but they knew that if one failed, they would all suffer and so should have been looking out to help each other. Did no one see Achan take and keep the devoted items? Possibly. Did none of his family see him with the devoted items, or see him bury them in his tent? Maybe. But the fact is that God was trying to teach them early on that we are not in this alone. We can lift up our associates; encourage them, pray for them, and help them in their fight, working to bring us all to glory. Or we can let our associates go it alone spiritually, and suffer from the times they and we stumble; relying on our own strength and not in the strength of the unified body of Christ that comes from God.

As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you.
1 Samuel 12:23 (NIV)

Author's Note:

I have been writing this series on "I" and "We" because it has been on my heart lately, more so than usual. Some of it is taken from things I wrote previously, in my personal journal or to friends, and some is crafted just for this series. I get so sick of the faces we wear as Christians, painting on the outward perfection we feel we must wear to fit into the body of Christ; like whitewashed tombs. I'm sick to death of hearing too late of a marriage that is failing when, for all the world, you would have sworn their love would last forever. I'm saddened by the brothers and sisters who wrestle with temptation in silence when there are a dozen people around them who have been their and, through grace and strength in Christ, found victory. We are not alone in this: as we have a high priest who can understand us because He, too, wore this frail flesh, we also have a community that has suffered and endured and overcome. Neither should we place the blame on those who hide their struggles, as we should be seeking the lost and not waiting for them to come to us. John Donne's words strike me every time I read them; how can I consider myself on a personal journey toward salvation when faced with way God has made us as a people, a body of parts, and not as mere individuals. I hope they have challenged and encouraged you.


Tags: John Donne, Meditation XVII, Community, Individual, Christian Living

"I" and "We" - Part 3

Here is an example of the power of "we" from my own experience. (Read Part 1 and Part 2)

A group of friends and I had been meeting for a while weekly at a local coffee shop to share a time of confession, prayer, and encouragement. This has been, in some ways, our retreat from the battle that rages with the Enemy to the shelter and healing of our Lord. However, just because this time is dedicated to encouragement and building up of the body does not mean that the battle is not enjoined with the world around us. Consider this series of events that occurred over a period of a few months; look at the circle of blessings that is realized by making our retreat from the battle a time of focus on Jehovah and on His childern (our brothers and sisters) rather than a retreat from all things spiritual.

• One night, as we stood "circled-up" at about 11:00 p.m. closing our time together in prayer, a man drove up to us, got out, and told us the he recognized we were praying. He told us that he needed prayer and that his life was a shambles and he recognized his need for God. A few months later, he gave his life to Christ and was baptized. This was the culmination of one journey that began when Jehovah showed him where he needed to be in order to grow and heal and the beginning of a new journey of wonder and amazement in living a life for God alone.


• A week after this happened, another man who had been joining us with his son was also baptized and gave his life to Christ. This was the result of a calling from Jehovah through his son, then through a few other men, and finally in seeing the joy and blessing of the first man’s commitment a few days before.


• The very next night, as we confess and pray, one of our faithful, long-time Christians, is moved by God through the struggles of his brothers to finally release the hold he has on his own live and give it over to Jehovah, seeking His will and His work and asking that God bless him as he fights for a better relationship with his Father.


• The first friend I mentioned asked a coworker to come out with him one night, not long after his own baptism. Logistically, this was a bad night: a transformer just outside the coffee shop had blown, leaving us with (gasp!) no coffee and no light but the stars and moon. Spiritually, it was a powerful night. This coworker was moved by what he witnessed. Even though various things prevented him from returning for the next three months, he began on his own to immerse himself in God’s word. When he returned, that very night he chose to commit to Jehovah and was baptized.

These events are by no means coincidental! It is so apparent how God works in our lives, using one brother and his struggles and triumphs to lift up another. "I" cannot do this. "I" is left by himself. "We" are working for good. "We" are looking out for one another. "We" are lifting our brothers and sisters up. This is Jehovah’s intended plan. Are we not told:

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
James 5:16 (NIV)

This is not just a personal healing but a healing of everyone involved – both the confessor and those to whom he confesses. All are blessed when one humbles himself before God and man, seeking to build up the body. One may start it, but that one is never an "I", only a part of the "We". And, oddly enough, the one person knows this.

Consider the example of Ezra. When Ezra comes out of captivity to the newly rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, he soon discovers that the returned exiles have been sinning by intermarrying with the other peoples in the land – the same sin that contributed to their straying from Jehovah in the first place. What does he do? Does he rail against them, condemning them of their sin? Does he preach an eloquent lesson describing how small steps in the wrong direction will eventually lead to being completely lost? No! He tears his clothes, pulls hair from his head and beard, weeps, fasts, and prays for forgiveness for our sins (not their sins, ours) of turning away from Jehovah. To this action by Ezra, the people respond with this commitment:

¹Now while Ezra was praying and making confession, weeping and prostrating himself before the house of God, a very large assembly, men, women and children, gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept bitterly,. ²Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, said to Ezra, "We have been unfaithful to our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope for Israel in spite of this. ³So now let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law. ⁴"Arise! For this matter is your responsibility, but we will be with you; be courageous and act."
Ezra 10:1-4 (NASB)

Ezra’s obvious sorrow, repentance for his own sin, as well as that of the people – basically his good example, not lived in secret but there for all to see without question – lead the entire remnant of Israel to not only repent of their sin but to remove that sin from their lives. The price that they paid for their sin was high - sending away the women and children of mixed marriages must have been painful indeed - but the pain of separation form Jehovah is infinitely greater. They recognized that their sin had its consequence and the example of Ezra helped convince them that a relationship with the God of Creation is worth any price, and so they were blessed with a revival in the land.

(Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion to the "I" and "WE" series. Coming soon!)

Part 1
Part 2
Part 4


Tags: Prayer, Christian Living, Community, Individual, Blessing, Jehovah, Ezra

"I" and "We" - Part 2

Here is an example of a song from the early days of the Jesus movement, like what Matthew Ward was talking about in the excerpt in Part 1. This is Asleep in the Light, by Keith Green.

Do you see, do you see, all the people sinking down,
Don't you care, don't you care, are you gonna let them drown,
How can you be so numb, not to care if they come,
You close your eyes and pretend the job's done.

Oh Bless me Lord, bless me Lord, you know it's all I ever hear,
No one aches, no one hurts, no one even sheds one tear,
But He cries, He weeps, He bleeds, and He cares for your needs,
And you just lay back and keep soaking it in, oh, can't you see it's such sin?

Cause He brings people to your door,
And you turn them away, as you smile and say,
God bless you, be at peace, and all Heaven just weeps,
Cause Jesus came to your door, you've left Him out on the streets.

Open up, open up, and give yourself away,
You've seen the need, you hear the cry, so how can you delay,
God's calling and you're the one, but like Jonah you run,
He's told you to speak, but you keep holding it in,
Oh, can't you see it's such sin?

The world is sleeping in the dark,
That the church can't fight, cause it's asleep in the light,
How can you be so dead, when you've been so well fed,
Jesus rose from the grave, and you, you can't even get out of bed,
Oh, Jesus rose from the dead, come on, get out of your bed.

How can you be so numb, not to care if they come,
You close your eyes and pretend the job's done,
You close your eyes and pretend the job's done,
Don't close your eyes, don't pretend the job's done.
Come away, come away, come away with Me, My love,
Come away, from this mess, come away with Me, My love.

I read that, when Keith wrote this, he had friends and his wife advising him to tone down the lyrics; it was too harsh, too hard on believers they said. Keith refused to budge, insisting that the frustration he felt with the comfortable Christians be addressed. Honestly, this song hits me like a slap in the face; one that I desperately need to bring me out of the reverie I too often find myself in. What I guess saddens me is that, some 28 years after Keith Green released this song, it seems little has really changed. Are we "looking out for Number One" in the world's sense, or in the sense that Wayne Watson sang about? Do we care for our brothers and sisters, evidenced by our actions and not our lips?

(Amusing anecdote: I have a very distinct memory associated with this song. I was hitting the snooze alarm repeatedly on a Sunday morning, being lazy and trying not to get up and get ready to go to worship. The alarm went off one more time, with Asleep in the Light playing. It happened to be at the lines where Keith Green is crying out "How can you be so dead, when you've been so well fed, Jesus rose from the grave, and you, you can't even get out of bed." I literally jumped out of bed, adrenaline pumping, my mind racing thinking "I'm awake! I'm awake!". I made it to worship on time, and have not had problems waking up on Sunday's ever since.)

Part 1
Part 3
Part 4


Tags: Keith Green, Worship, Worship Music, Individual, Community, Jesus Music, Christian Living, Compassion

"I" and "We"

What are your thoughts on this?

The business of worship music has become such a huge moneymaker that we've even had worship songs that address the issue of what worship has become for some of the writers: "I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it, when it's all about You." [from Matt Redman's "The Heart of Worship"]

Though it's is a good song, I have a difficult time singing it in church. To me, it sounds less like a congregational worship tune than a personal confession. I've never made worship anything other than what it is, so I have a hard time saying that I have.
. . . . .
In almost every case, the songs that touch me the deepest, whether they are old hymns or newer songs, were written by someone who had suffered great loss or who had been through a spiritual or emotional trauma. I sense the heart of the writer when songs come from that perspective. But I sense this kind of authenticity all too rarely in the worship music of today.
. . . . .
One morning as we sat around our table, a guy from Australia by the name of John Smith and I got into a discussion about modern worship music. John said, "As much as I love your country, I think you're really missing it when it comes to worship music."

At first I couldn't decide whether I should be offended or not, so I said, "Go on."

John continued, "Look at the early Jesus-movement years. The songs back then were largely written with the idea of 'we' instead of 'I.' They were much more focused on the collective community aspects of worship and not so focused on making it an individual endeavor."

John was onto something. Back in the Jesus-movement period, we had a strong sense that we were in this Christian thing together, brothers and sisters. We worshiped and learned together. The songs of that time reflected the community quality of our faith. Was this something we were losing?

That night, at the evening session, I took note of what types of worship songs we sang. Several groups from different parts of Europe led worship, singing their songs in their native tongues, with English translations projected on a screen. The vast majority of the songs European Christians had written were "we" and "us" songs. But the groups also threw in some songs from the United States—and I was surprised to discover that the majority contained lyrics centered on "I" or "me."

Maybe the prominent use of "I" in American worship songs is nothing more than an attempt on the songwriters' part to make people feel a personal connection with worship and with God. Still, I couldn't help reflecting on the many times that worship has exposed things I'm doing wrong, not just in my personal relationship with God, but with other people. The Christian life in general and worship, particularly, is for the most part a group activity for the family of Christ. If worship is all about me and God, then I've got blinders on.
. . . . .
As churches grow and become centers for what some would call huge clubs, the tendency is for us to allow ourselves to view worship as a sort of spectator sport. We gather on Sunday morning and find ourselves caught up in a slick, professional kind of experience. We look on as the band and singers present a version of worship songs that is most enjoyable and acceptable. We appreciate the level of professionalism while allowing ourselves the liberty not to become involved personally in the worship experience. In essence, we go along for the ride.

I'm not just criticizing others. I have been guilty of the same thing myself. Over the years, I've found that as a worship band is doing its thing, one of two problems can occur for me: either the band is so good that I sit and listen without entering into worship (my producer brain takes over), or the band is so horrible that I'm distracted from worship. But I have found something that can cut through every issue of musical performance, and that is the attitude of the people who are leading worship

Taken from Matthew Ward's new book, My Second Chapter: The Matthew Ward Story. Read more of an excerpt here.

P.S. There is more to come on this topic.

Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Tags: Matthew Ward, Book, Worship, Worship Music, Individual, Community

Let's let Russia have it!

A few weeks ago, Eastern European Missions held a nation-wide fund raising event, Million Dollar Sunday, to raise funds to place the Bible in public schools in Russia. They have had Bible programs, sponsored and invited by the government, in three regions of Russia, teaching 1,000,000 children the Bible. With this campaign, which actually raised $1.5 Million and counting, they will be placing the Bible in another region, to an additional 400,000 students. That will be nearly 7,000 schools in Russia that have requested and are being provided materials to teach the Bible to children.

Amazing.

The video above begins with an interview with the former Minister of Education of Russia, encouraging this. The same thing is going on in Ukraine, where EEM is working with the government to draw up a Bible curriculum for all public schools in Ukraine. It's amazing to see what these people are beginning to realize they need; in fact, what they crave. One librarian tells of how, several years ago, when the first box of children's Bibles arrived for their library there was a group of children waiting to check them out. These Bibles, she shares, have never hit the shelf because their has been a long waiting list of people wanting to check them out. When a person in Siberia recently tried to create a public uproar against the work EEM is doing, he was silenced by parents and teachers whose told of how the teaching of the Bible in schools had made their children more respectful, more kind and gentle: nothing but good had come of it and they wanted more.

Check out EEM and the work they are doing. Pray for them, that God continues to impact the world through them.

Tags: Russia, Bible, EEM, Missions, Ukraine