Wednesday's Big Idea: Reflections on 2005

The last Wednesday of the year seems an appropriate time to look back and see everything that happened, evaluate what is happening now and look forward to what will happen in 2006. Personally, it was a fairly significant year. We sold our house and, after looking in a crazed housing market, decided to rent for a while and settle into the new thing. We've decided to buy a duplex with my mother-in-law, so 2006 has more changes in store.

As I look back I see significant changes that occurred, things left behind and other things which sprung up. There is a continual growth and transformation as God aligns my heart, mind, soul and body towards His purpose and glory. Part of that, I'm sure, has also been an evolution of what it means to be a father. The first year seems to be primarily devoted to survival and the physical needs of the child. Year two is a year of tremendous growth in cognitive and physical abilities. It's much more bidirectional and in some ways more fun. I look forward to year three and beyond as Avi continues to grow into the world around him.

I have great hopes and expectations for the year to come, as well. I really think it will be an incredible year of surprises, full of good things and the fruition of much which has been planted and cultivated in the past. My wife and I will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary (Woohoo!) at 9 and a half, it just keeps getting better. It really is a joy to be with the person who God has given me, to help shape me, teach me, grow with me and help me. Our spouses are truly gifts from God and deserve to be treasured. We often fail to give them their fair due, which is a crime against both them and God. Let's resolve to express more completely how important and wonderful our spouses are!

Finally, we are expecting another child in 2006. Wow! Great hopes and expectations, indeed. Yes, 2005 was a good year for us and I'm convinced that 2006 will be even better. In the remaining days, I will continue to reflect and evaluate these past 365 days and plan and hope for the next ones. It was a very good year.

Isaiah on Tuesday - Prophecy Against Babylon

There are sections of the Bible which are very difficult to read and even more difficult to reconcile with the image I want to have of God. I want to think of a kind and loving father who cares for his children and his children love him. It's an idyllic image and not altogether wrong. Yet, even as God IS a kind and loving father, He is also holy, just and righteous.

I have found in my readings of Isaiah, among others, that God does not tolerate injustice for long. Again and again we see a God who, though loving and kind, is unwavering in His justice. I can't really claim to understand it, but I accept it as true.

In Isaiah 13, the prophet foretells of the destruction of Babylon from the Medes. These were apparently a cruel and ruthless people in war and would completely raze Babylon, killing even infants and women as they attacked. It is the cruelty of man against man that makes passages like these difficult to stomach. That God would allow us in our falleness to be so cruel and merciless and use that sin as a tool in judgment is a quandary that I continue to ponder.

Yet, even today we continue in human cruelty. From torture and genocide to playground bullying, we remain a cruel and sinful people. My hope lies in the transformed heart and the promise of love, peace, hope, joy, faithfulness, goodness, kindness and self-control that is promised to arise from those who submit to God. It is my belief that God desires those things as well and that the judgment and destruction that comes to the likes of the Babylonians is grievous to Him. I can understand that. I have a hard time with even the mild discipline I apply to my son. Still, while I can begin to grasp the edges of these "judgment" passages, they remain troublesome reading for me. I think that is a good thing. If I weren't troubled by it, it may be time for a heart checkup.