EthanBryan.com

#006

Dear Christian,

"I AM WHO I AM" is the name that God has chosen to reveal himself for generation after generation.

It may sound like something Popeye would say, or something a 4-year-old struggling with the crazy rules of English grammar would through together.

God determines how, when, and where he will reveal himself to whomever he chooses.

There was only one burning bush.

There was only one man-vomiting whale.

There was only one guy getting knocked off a donkey by a heavenly light.

"I AM WHO I AM."

God is not defined or limited by my feelings or minimal perceptive abilities.

God is not defined by the thousands of preachers across this country who are more interested in pleasing people in hopes of a generous donation than in preaching a kingdom of radical love and self-sacrificial service to all.

And God is not defined by white men who sit behind computers all day and think thoughts about God. 

#005

Dear Christian, 

#004

Dear Christian, 

#003

Dear Christian,

Jesus prayed for the unity of those who would follow in his footsteps, that as we love one another, the world would know the Father’s love.

And, accordingly, we have divided ourselves. 

By race and by denomination.  By income level and by education.  By nation and by age.  By guitars and by organs.  By sprinkling and by dunking.  By fair-trade coffee and by sexuality. 

The ever-increasing gap between the poor and the rich is a telling statistic when it comes to the unity of those who pursue living in the Way of Jesus. 

Is it possible for one of Jesus’ prayers to go unanswered?  

#002

Dear Christian,

There are two parts to the Scriptures--the Old Testament and the New Testament.  Testament is best defined as "covenant" or "agreement."

"Testamints" are cheesy little breath mints sold at Christian bookstores with Scripture verses on the wrapper.

When we get new tennis shoes or school supplies or cars, most of the time, we don't continue using the old ones.  (My old tennis shoes become my new lawn shoes).  The new replaces the old.

The Old Testament tells the stories of the beginning of the life of faith, of following and obeying a single God.  In the Old Testament, there were over 600 commandments to help people live in better relationship with God and each other.  People broke commandments all the time, so a sacrificial system was developed to help people deal with their guilty feelings--much like going to a counselor or going to confession.  The guilt was never really taken away, but people felt better after killing a helpless animal.  Kinda like cathartic deer hunting.

The New Testament tells the stories of Jesus and is the working out of communities of followers of the Way of Jesus and his teachings.

When Jesus was crucified, his sacrifice initiated the New Covenant, fulfilling the Old Covenant completely and laying it aside.

The New replaces the Old.

The 600+ commandments have been replaced by 2.

Love God with everything you've got.

Love your neighbor as yourself.

So, don't worry where the famous 10 commandments are or are not posted.  We don't live by those rules any more.

Work at loving your neighbor, co-worker, President, teacher, bus driver, person honking at you, check-out clerk, meteorologist, spouse, children.

It's a whole new ball game.

Dear Christian #001

Dear Christian,

  Not everyone believes in God exactly like you do.  In fact, no one believes in God exactly like you do. 

  This is a good thing.

  God cannot be reduced to our finite minds, theories or doctrines.  We love to control and understand completely (like passing a math test). 

  God cannot be controlled or understood. 

  At the moment of this writing, there are 6,862,308,809 people on this planet--all of them made in the image of God.
 
This means that there are at least 6,862,308,809 ways for you to know God. 
 
Spend less time worrying about making everyone believe exactly like you do and more time loving all people.

Something Bit Me...

I was playing Frisbee with some friends last week when it happened. Trying to chase down a long toss, I was running full-tilt when, in the words of Forrest Gump, “Something bit me.”

I tried to run it off, but it wasn't going to happen. My right hamstring simply said, “No.” It wasn't a severe injury, but enough of one to make me walk with a slight limp for a few days.

Paul, who wrote half of the New Testament, compares the life of following Jesus to that of an athlete on a couple of occasions. In the book of 1 Corinthians, he writes:

You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally.

I don't know about you, but I'm running hard for the finish line. I'm giving it everything I've got. No sloppy living for me! I'm staying alert and in top condition. I'm not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.

This passage sounds wonderfully challenging and encouraging to the athlete in top condition, but what about to the athlete who is injured?

Derek Redmond was one of the best 400 meter sprinters in Britain. Redmond first broke the British record for the 400 in 1985 with a run of 44.82 seconds. This record was subsequently broken by Roger Black, but Redmond reclaimed the record in 1987 with a run of 44.5 seconds. The record lasted until 1992.

In 1986, Redmond was a member of teams which won the 4x400 relay gold medal at both the European Championships and Commonwealth Games. The following year, he was on the team which won the 4x400 relay silver medal at the World Championships.

At the 1991 World Championships, Redmond was a member of the British team which shocked the athletics world by beating the much-favored American team into second place to claim the gold medal in the 4x400 relay. Redmond ran the second leg in the final and together with team-mates ran what was then the second-fastest 4x400 relay in history.

Injuries consistently interrupted Redmond's career. At the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, he pulled out of the opening round of the 400 meters 90 seconds before his heat was due because of an injury to his achilles tendon. Prior to the 1992 Olympics, he had undergone eight operations due to injuries. However, he seemed to be in great shape heading into the Olympics in Barcelona. He posted the fastest time of the first round, and went on to win his quarter-final.

In the semi-final, Redmond started well, but in the back straight about 250 meters from the finish, his right hamstring snapped. He hobbled to a halt, and then fell to the ground in pain. Stretcher bearers made their way over to him, but Redmond decided he wanted to finish the race. He began to hobble along the track, with pain etched upon his face.

Then dad came.

Jim Redmond pushed through security, shouting, “He's my son!” His dad reached around his shoulder and held his hand for strength as Derek wept openly on his shoulder. Together, the two completed the lap, crossing the finish line to the thunderous applause of the 65,000 spectators.
Sometimes, we run a million miles in a million different directions, none of them exactly the path that we should be on. And then, at the worst possible time, we get hamstrung.
Thank goodness, we have a Dad who will run to us and lead us on the way home.

http:www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nifq3Ke2Q30&feature=related

Frank White

Sometimes, dreams come true.

Missouri Scholar's Academy 2010

Earlier this spring I spoke at the annual Career Day hosted at Lee's Summit West High School.  It was my fourth or fifth year sharing at this venue, so I had a pretty good idea what would take place.  There would be four sessions, 25 minutes each, where I would talk about my profession and answer questions about how one does my job and the education necessary to do my job.  Because my job is typically listed as "Clergy" in the program, only six to eight students per session have shown up in the past.  (Even I would not have attended a session labeled "Clergy" when I was in high school.  I would've gone to the one that said "ESPN Baseball Analyst.")  This year the program said "Youth Minister."

My first session was packed. 

Twenty-five students asking me every possible question about what it means to be a youth minister.  In my first session was one attentive young man.  His name was Charlie.  The questions he asked were well thought out and much harder to answer.  No one else asked Charlie's questions in the other three sessions.  

When I got back to church, I sent an email of appreciation to LSW and tried to get in touch with Charlie through the Career Day representative.  I wanted to encourage Charlie to keep asking the tough questions.  I never got a response. 
 
* * * * *
 
Late in the last century, in 1991, I attended Missouri Scholar's Academy at the University of Missouri in Columbia.  With a carefully selected faculty and staff, a specially designed curriculum that focuses on the liberal arts, and a variety of stimulating extracurricular activities, MSA enables and engages students to be part of a unique learning community.  The academy provides a model that all schools can use in building or expanding their own programs for gifted students.  MSA was an important and life-defining three weeks in my high school career.  I was a member of the house of Deitel's Superb Scholars, also known as Dead Squirrel's Society.  I studied writing for my major and played frisbee on the quad almost every afternoon.  In the final week of the academy, my major professor, Don Miller, told me, "Don't ever stop writing."  I'm just now taking him at his word. 
 
* * * * *
 
I am a storyteller.  I tell stories so I can sing my songs.  I sing my songs so I can engage people's imaginations in how they live.  In short, I tell stories and sing songs to make new friends. 

Tonight, thanks to Ted Tarkow and Lou Jobst, I had the opportunity to tell stories and sing songs to a Mark Twain Lounge full of students.  I have "written" a concert with an emphasis in social justice aimed at engaging inquisitive and passionate high school students.  The stories, songs, and audience were perfect together.  The students listened to my stories, applauded my songs, and visited with me for an hour after I had finished singing. 

I made friends from Joplin and Kirkwood and St. Louis and all over Missouri. 

And then I saw Charlie. 

I spent a few minutes visiting with Charlie, telling him that I remembered his hard questions, and was grateful for the serendipitous journey that allowed us to meet again.  I gave him a copy of my CD and told him that I hoped we could get together for coffee when MSA concludes. 

 
I visited with dozens of students throughout the evening.  They are all learning so much in an environment that challenges and creatively broadens their horizons.  Not one single student wanted to go home. 
 
* * * * *
 
I understand that financing for MSA 2011 is precarious at best.  Now, I am not a financial wizard.  I recently "took the leap and quit my day job (so to speak) without much of a security net."  But this does not make cents...sense, that is.  Providing a forum and community experience where 330 of Missouri's brightest young minds can gather and explore the world, learn about themselves, and dream about the impossible is not a financial decision. 

There are students that I work with in Lee's Summit that I want to attend MSA. 

And in 2017 and 2021, I know of two young girls who would love the chance to spend three weeks at Mizzou, meeting friends like Charlie, asking hard questions, and hearing new stories from the adventurous lives of MSA Alumni. 
 
For more information about MSA, visit here: http://www.moscholars.org/. 

The First First Tee

Kaylea’s first golf club was also my first golf club: a flat-blade chromed putter, cut down to about 24 inches.  I remember playing with the putter while riding in a cart with my grandpa in southeast Missouri.  The first time Kaylea putted with it was on a course in Kansas City, riding with her grandpa and grandma.

Today, Kaylea participated in Kansas City’s “The First Tee” program at Drumm Farm Golf Course.  She walked up to the group, carrying neither bag nor clubs.  There were other boys and girls present, some with clubs, some without.  Coach Keith and Coach Bart did a marvelous job of welcoming and accepting kids.  After a brief informational meeting for parents, the coaches took the kids and immediately started teaching.  I headed to the putting green to watch from a distance.

They learned the correct stance and postures.  They played a game that taught putting.  They played a game that taught the concept of the game of golf as a whole.  They learned about honesty and respect and courtesy.  The time passed quickly.

After her first “lesson,” Kaylea’s excited about playing golf.  “Dad, I want a hat so I can see better.  And I would like my own bag and my own clubs so I can practice on my own.  And I want to play with my friends and family that play golf because it’s not really how you play that matters but who you play with.” 

I couldn’t have said it better myself.