Joe. [and i only wish i had a picture]

joe passed out on the front porch one day this week.
i came home and, upon passing through the front door, found him sprawled over the living room floor.
it fazed me only for a second, then i stepped over him where i found jordan making himself some lunch/dinner in the kitchen.
"Tam! Check this out!" he says
and proceeds to show me on his phone pictures of Joe with a viking cap on and a "bloody" (ketchupy) knife in one raised hand.

it appears that danmike found joe passed out on the front porch where it is cold and windy and wet and unprotected.
so dm, being the friend that he is in this neighborhood, dragged joe into the living room where its warm and dry and safe.
and the rest is history.
joe, the murderous viking.
i guess that's what you just might have to expect.
for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
does this apply?

westside taxi

kevin has taken a ride 5 times in the last 7 days.
too drunk to walk, passing out, fighting, yelling, slurring, stumbling.
kevin, joe, robi, kenny, billy bob, joe black, steve, and another steve.
beautiful thing in all of it is that they travel in groups,
a sense of community,
a rather twisted community,
but togetherness nonetheless.
[dave prefers isolation; i think this is worse, especially since i've been experiencing firsthand the power of living in community]
they just live in a constant state of winter
and hopelessness
and substance abuse.
i hate it
but God has asked us, me, to be a part of the redeeming work He is doing.
so we do,
as best we can.
and today j welcomed eight cold friends for coffee
and the firemen, police officers, and paramedics think she's crazy
but they don't know these people like she does.
they don't love these people like she does.

and indeed,

18...the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written:
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."

20Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

1 corinthians 1

can't depend on what we think or what we feel like or what we're comfortable with... but what He asks of us because He sees the story in its entirety.

[God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe]
and this is what we "waste our time" praying for-

thanks j.

about due for a new post.
i know.

its coming.
this morning was interesting...

Voice

today pastor shawn craig was talking about revelation 1
verses 9-18
he spoke so confidently about the person of Jesus
and about what that means for man
that Jesus died and is alive forever and ever
and that He holds the keys to death and hell.
if we want life,
[and i remember larissa saying this too]
we need to live out of real encounters with Jesus
like john did on patmos
because if we're regularly encountering Him,
we'll have a sense of wonder at God's greatness,
we'll begin to see recognize His voice
we'll experience a shift in vision, viewpoint
we'll experience power to change

what you encounter often will transform you
[for emphasis, note that "often" in this sentence modifies "encounter"]

and the point that he made that really grabbed my attention
was under the topic of learning to recognize His voice
"and his sheep follow him because they know his voice." john 10.4b
and He echoes this further
"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father" john 10.14,15a
shawn pointed out that the emphasis is on the relationship and the trust and the "knowing"
and i've discovered
that the word "know" in the greek, ginosko,
is the same word (Strong's 1097)
that paul uses in philippians 3
"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection..."
and that is used in matthew
"When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son." matthew 1.24-25 (esv)

so this word, ginosko, carries with it this understanding that
this relationship between us and our Savior
is rich with intimacy.

to know Him,
to really, genuinely know Him-
knowing about Him is not sufficient
memorizing every word in His Word will prove inadequate-
He didn't say that His sheep know His doctrine,
but His V O I C E.
but until we ginosko Him, like a husband and a wife know each other
we'll never fully grasp what He's holding out to us
relationship
strength in weakness
unconditional love that has no expectations for us except for steadfastness
all power, wisdom, peace, maturity, love, faithfulness, wholeness, rest...

so please, dear friend,
live in the fullness of really knowing Him,
rather than seeking the doctrine and the academic knowledge,
ask Him
(i've been pleading for this for you too)
to open your heart,
to give you the strength to trust Him
so that you can possess experiential knowledge of Him.
this alone will change you,
your family,
your future.
it will heal your past,
make sense of your failures,
and place you in safety and peace at the feet of
your Good Shepherd.