Culture Shock

“I’m going to lose my goggles so I can find them!” We were taking a three day family vacation at an indoor pool complex in Slovenia when my oldest son Enoh unknowingly contextualized one of Jesus’ sayings. I thought about following up his remark with a conversation about Jesus but as soon as I saw him throw his goggles in the air and turn around with his eyes closed, I realized I was the one receiving the lesson.  Usually we talk about the act of losing something as a mistake. When we lose our keys, phone, or glasses it’s always a matter of misplacing something or forgetting where we put them. But here Enoh was making a conscious effort to lose his goggles. And not only that, he was trying to lose the one thing that would normally be most helpful in finding something lost at the bottom of a pool.  Did my seven year old just help me understand the Bible?  Jesus’ words as recorded in Matthew 16 are about making an effort to lose something - namely one’s l...

I’m as satisfied as could be. Warm, well-fed and rested, surrounded by friends and settled knowing that my family is safe, secure and waiting for me when I return, I couldn’t, in good conscience, desire more. Added to that is the fact that I’m enjoying a new book by an established spiritual mentor. The Nebraska state sign I read as a child passes through my mind; The Good Life. “…Jesus withdrew from that place” (Matt 12:15) Earlier today, we engaged in a mandatory time of silence. I had looked forward to this two hour block of time for months. St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was the source of my input while my MacBook mediated my output. I was determined to do more reading, writing and processing in the first hour than I had done in the previous week. I spent the second hour in prayer while exploring one of the northern Hungarian hills. “When Jesus heard what happened, he withdrew…” (Matt 14:13) Intentional silence allowed me to meditate. As I read Scripture, pray...

The fish my son received for his birthday is only free if it's in water, if it has food to eat, and if it eats the food it's given. "Greenlighty", the name our oldest son gave his new fish, died three days after it arrived to our house. Enoh wasn't devastated though. The fact that Greenlighty wasn't eating gave him a few days to prepare for his death. _________________________________________________________________________________ Last week, I spent a couple days up in the northern part of Hungary with some guys from America, Hungary, Serbia and Croatia. For the second time in three years, we were gathered with the intent of being renewed. Our conversations were centered around the New Testament book of First Peter. In the second chapter of this letter, Peter calls the Church to live as free people. I wonder how foreign that must have sounded to this persecuted group of exiles. Yet as we continue reading, we find that the freedom they are to live ou...

"Americans just buy new computers whenever their old one has a problem, but here in the Balkans we take pride in renewing old things." My friend's response came in perfect Croatian form; blunt honesty towards a general group of people, directed straight at me. I can understand. My question probably sounded disrespectful to the one who had put hours into diagnosing and partially fixing my 5 year old computer. But I was merely trying to keep him from having to invest more time into my machine. Plus, if you can save some money, isn't it worth it to just buy a new computer rather than bother with the old one? He's right though, many people in this part of the world value restoration. After all, they have been at it for much longer than we (Americans) have been.  Investing time and hard work into an old something - be it a car or house or computer - provides more satisfaction than simply buying a new one. He put his money where his mouth was too, offering to b...