Remembering

It's funny how holidays come & go...and we often don't pause to consider their significance. I suppose we do that in many areas of life, it seems we're so busy getting "there" we don't take the time to notice where we "are" or where we "were". We have holidays or times of celebration all the time: birthdays, anniversaries, federal or state holidays, religious "holy" days etc... We just passed Memorial Day, which is a day all about "remembering"...which is ironic since we seem to lack the focus & where-with-all to do so (most of the time). In short, in the United States, Memorial Day is a day we take to 'remember' those that have given their life to provide us our freedoms. It marks a time when we as a nation remember the sacrifice of so many over our history who have fought all types of wars to protect, preserve & defend our nation. In this we remember and honor those that have given the greatest sacrifice. The bible says that "there is no greater love than this, that a man lay down His life for another." In proper context, it is speaking of Jesus, who was about to do that very thing...but the principle of self-sacrifice...even unto death...is the ultimate expression of love. In Christian circles we remember Jesus death of love on Good Friday...in a sense, its the Jesus followers "Memorial Day". What is interesting is that so much of this event is tied to another time of remembrance...Passover. Passover is a holiday...or holy day...for the Jewish people. It marks a very special day when God did something worth remembering for them. God protected, preserved & defended the Jewish people quite literally, at this time. It was kinda like the old movie, most of us have seen with Charlton Heston, but with less of the cheesy special effects. In short, the Jews were slaves under the Egyptians at this time...and Moses was asked by God to ask Pharaoh (the ruler of Egypt) to release his people. Well after several miraculous events to "warn" Pharaoh...he still refused. Finally, in a final warning, God through Moses warned Pharaoh that all first born males would die that night, unless the Jews were released. A warning, most would have heeded with so much at stake (and evidence of several other "warnings" coming to pass), yet Pharaoh refused. God had the Jewish people prepare to leave, and in preparation they were told to have a meal, that would include a "lamb". They were instructed to take the lamb's blood, and mark their doorposts with it. This would serve as an indication that this home was occupied by Jewish folks, and God promised that all homes marked with the blood of the lamb would be spared the death of their first born son. Horribly, that night, the only homes unmarked were the Egyptians, and their first born sons died...including Pharaoh's own son...that very evening. Pharaoh finally cracked and released the Jewish people from captivity. OK, now you ask, why the little bible lesson dude? It all seems kind of morbid and creepy? Well, I say this brief depiction so that you may know "why" Passover is such a big deal to Jewish folks...even today! It is a huge time of "remembering" an incredibly significant time when God showed up "big time" for the Jewish people, to protect them...preserve their nation...and defend them from cruel bondage. What is amazing, is that this parallels so many elements of the "Christian Memorial Day"...Good Friday. Jesus' Last Supper...was actually the Passover meal. Jesus said "He was the Lamb of God". Jesus was about to die to destroy the bondage of sin & death over His people...to set people free for all eternity! His blood (as creepy as this sounds) actually marks the doorposts of the hearts of those that are His...and protects them from the consequence of sin. In a nutshell, this is the "good news" the bible speaks of. That because of God's great love for us...He allowed Jesus to give the ultimate...His very life...so that we all may have the opportunity to have relationship with Him for all eternity! In a sense, the penalty of sin "passes over" us...because of what Jesus has done. That, my friend, is worth remembering. At a time when we honor those that gave the ultimate sacrifice...may we remember what Jesus said just prior to His death for you & me..."there is no greater love than this, that a man would lay down His life for another."

.

be God's!

Brian O

ECHO, Lead Pastor dude

Dimensional Living

As an Art major, in two-dimensional design, I found myself, the other day, thinking "dimensional". Actually, it was after I took my kids to see "Monsters vs. Aliens" in 3-D. We had already seen the movie in 2-D, and it was OK...but the word we heard was that the 3-D was awesome! So we ponied up the extra cash to go again and buy the cool 3-D glasses and check it out. Ya know, it was really good animation from an artistic perspective, but what caught my eye was the difference of the 2-D versus the 3-D...wow, what a difference! An added "dimension" (I'm inserting the obvious word choice here, though clearly its redundant) if you will...and it was noticeably a much better experience. As I was driving the other day to Portland to visit, The Well, a church downtown, I pondered the dimensional reality I had just experienced the day before with my kids at the movies. I began to think artistically...and spiritually about dimension...and what a difference it makes. Traditionally their are 3 dimensions in art... height...width...and depth. 2-D, or flat art, like paintings or drawings, are just depicted in width and height. 3-D art, like sculptures or 3-D films, depict height, width and depth. Now, technically they say the fourth dimension is "time"... and depending on who you speak with, whether mathematical scientist people or philosopher types, there is "theoretically" anywhere from 8 to 10 dimensions, some even suggest 11 or more dimensions. Who knows? I'm not gonna delve into all that cool theory stuff...but instead I'll dive into my dimensional ponderings, as I drove to Portland and back. I was considering life...dimensions...and spiritual things...and it all collided. What came out is rather random...yet maybe thought provoking. Many people, choose to live life 1-dimensionally, just one perspective, theirs. Unfortunately, we have been deceived into believing that is all life has to offer, our will...our perspective...our opinions...our desires...and our thoughts. It is really quite limiting, if you think about it...yet most live in this 1-dimension. The second dimension in my thoughts, was scripture. 2-dimensional living is living in our perspective and the knowledge of scripture as well, thus broadening our life experience. In the 2-D experience, we broaden our perspective beyond just our own, and gain a fuller understanding and balance to life. Now, 3-dimensional living takes it a step further, where it is not just our life and our knowledge derived from scripture, but an actual trusting of what "the book" says, to the point of living it out...even allowing "the book" to supersede our will and our natural perspectives. This 3rd dimension is where the flat words on the page, come to life, within and through us. It is such a more vibrant way of living, than just a rational acquiring of biblical info. Now the 4th dimensional is where I believe God desires us to live..."abundant life" as God intended...it is not just our will in line with God's words...and not just a living out of God's word's...but an active guidance by the Holy Spirit. The bible says that to those that believe, "Jesus lives within us"...and that the "Holy Spirit empowers us...guides us...counsels us". This is, where I believe, God's word, the scriptures, comes alive! Alive within us...as God's presence in us, enables us to live out the wisdom of scripture under the guidance of God Himself & His Spirit. Wow, now that is a dynamic life experience don't ya think? What a privilege, to have God's Spirit in us, so it is not "us" trying to "do it" (whatever "it" is), but it is our cooperation with God's Spirit in us that produces an amazing life experience, as God has designed us to...and helps us to! At ECHO, we recognize in church circles, that too often we act as if 2-D living is all their is...rational information about God...and unfortunately that adds "some" to a 1-dimensional life...but it is far short of what God has designed us for. At ECHO, we believe, that God's abundant life is experienced in 4-D, and we do not want to short sell the "good news" Jesus brought to each of us. Life is an adventure of learning to cooperate with not just God's "words" but also His "Spirit"...and together amazing things can happen in us and through us. And that is Good News...God's presence alive in us...available to us and to those around us! For those frustrated and tired of 1-dimensional or even 2-dimensional living, ECHO wants to journey with you towards what your Creator has designed you for...a journey for both those who know God and those who are still spiritually searching. Wow, what a fantastic opportunity God has invited us into...a 4-Dimensional life of abundance! At ECHO, we want to grow into living this way...so join us in this adventure, won't you...as we learn to live in 4-D...

be God's!
Brian O
Lead Pastor dude, ECHO

You Betta...You Gotta...You Wanna

It's fascinating to see how we in church circles have presented the "good news" of Jesus to the masses. Some have chosen to present the "You Betta" gospel...where the listener better accept Jesus or he or she will burn in hell for all eternity in torment. This is the commonly referred to "Turn or Burn" methodology that has caused so many churches to "flourish" (insert sarcasm here). With the "You Betta" gospel, people are "scared into a relationship" with Jesus. One has to wonder, how many of these "converts" were actually drawn by a transforming work of God's Spirit...or simply signed up for "fire insurance"? Now, fortunately, this methodology is not as common...(nor is the mafia technique of "so you want me to send Vinnie over to convince you's"). Hmmm, but I digress. The second presentation of "good news" is far more common, and too easy to fall prey to...it's the "You Gotta" gospel...where the listener had better "do what God wants"...after all, look at all Jesus did for you. This sense of obligation is a great tool in guilt tripping people into giving more time...more money...more church attendance...more bible reading... more meetings...more service etc...you gotta step it up...or you may not be a Jesus follower? You may not really be committed? You may not really be in line for God's blessings? Why, cause you haven't done enough. The "You Gotta" gospel taps into that common human desire to try and earn God's favor by "doing". The trap is, we somehow believe God loves me when I do right. The more I do, the more He loves me. The more I give, the more He blesses me. This vicious cycle has a flip side. When I am too tired to read my bible today...I somehow feel God is disappointed with me...or even that my day may "go bad" because of it, because I am out of His favor. When I skip church, I feel that somehow, my relationship with God is now in "critical condition" all of a sudden. If I don't give when the pastor asks for money...I won't be blessed by God and I am inviting disaster or financial ruin. The "You Gotta" gospel, is guilt ridden relationship with Jesus centered in obligation. This "gospel" is the most prevalent...and keeps many away from church and has wounded many a Jesus seeker...as it has weighed down too many with these heavy burden obligations to God. I would question both of these presentations as being unbiblical. Oh they have elements of truth woven in, but the context is all wrong. Will a person with no relationship with Jesus face hell...well, Jesus warned a lot about hell...so it must be a real concern, hello! Will God bless those who are faithful in their serving & giving...oh ya, Jesus makes it clear, time and time again, that those who are faithful with little, will be noticed and given more (in various ways). Think of it this way...I can scare someone into a "relationship" perhaps, but never really have their heart...or I can constantly measure if someone is doing enough in our relationship to be worthy and keep them on "egg shells"...but a real relationship is where my love is revealed, learned, and experienced over time and the other wants to love me back, and wants to please me, born out of an authentic heart of love. And guess what? The feeling is mutual. I would suggest, this is closer to the proper context that is found in scriptures. This is, what I call the "You Wanna" gospel...and I believe it is far more accurate biblically than the other 2 options, which are distortions of the "good news" as Jesus taught it. The "You Wanna" gospel is centered in desire. It is a desire that grows out of healthy relationship with the God, Who is Love. It is an ever growing love relationship with the God of the Universe...and as the listener comes to understand the heart of God towards them...they grow in love & understanding of Him. As one is transformed by God's Spirit revealing Himself to them in Love...they grow in a heart of love for God...and for other people. Jesus said, all the bible was summed up in this..."Love God with all you got...and love others as you love yourself." Wow, that's it? No love God or burn in hell scare tactics? No love God and do "churchey things" or miss out? No it's a journey of discovery and experience, where one grows into a deeper love of God, as they discover how incredible His love is for them. Out of that love...God's very character...Who He is...grows in us...and we too, learn to love others as He does. We don't do "stuff" cause we got to...we do it cause we "want to". We are compelled by God's love to please Him and let others know of this incredible gift. That is the "good news" Jesus proclaimed. At ECHO, we hope to be a bunch of folks that "echo" this good news of love to those within our sphere of relationship and beyond. It is a love story, far too many have not heard. Sadly, too many have been scared into "relationship"...or sold a "relationship" of obligation & duty...when in reality God presents something very different. Only love can heal those scars...genuine love...from God Himself...through us...to the wounded. May we re-present Jesus well...

be God's!
Brian O
Lead Pastor dude, ECHO

Meditations That Medicate

"You can spend your time, waste your time, or invest your time. It's your choice." -anonymous

"This is the thing that smelled so rotten all these years. I used love like money. The church used love like money. With love, we withheld affirmation from the people who did not agree with us...but we lavishly financed the ones who did." -Donald Miller

"Too long have we, evangelistically minded believers, focused on 'being right', instead of on 'loving greatly'. " -Jack Hayford

"The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and then walk out the door and deny Him with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable." -Brennan Manning

.

"You didn't get to heaven, but you made it close." -Coldplay

.

"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who matter, won't mind, and those that mind, don't matter." -Dr. Suess

"To the little ones who bring nothing, Jesus says, 'Come to Me as you are.' To the adult arriving with everything, Jesus says, 'First drop all that. Then come." -Rick McKinley

"I've noticed an interesting quality in leaders...that is, they are absolutely, completely, willing to fail... They're willing to try things that others have never tried." -Craig Groeschel

"We've pimped the Great Commandment. We define 'neighbor' as 'someone like us'...when Jesus said to love your neighbor, He wasn't saying to love someone just like you." -Dave Gibbons

"The best measure of Christian community is whether people experience what Jesus is like through our skin." -John Burke

"If we continue to do what we've always done, we will never get what we've never had." -John Jenkins

"Tension is to be loved...when it is like a passing note...to a beautiful, beautiful chord." -Sixpence None the Richer

.

be God's!

Brian O

Lead pastor dude, ECHO