The Academy is Dead

The Academy is Dead
by DM WHITE 

 

When once you tread upon the stone
Of man-made paths of thought alone
When you find you walk hollow halls
Of cognitive craft and curiosity falls

When you pass the world of living green
And the robin, her eggs go unseen
As you gaze upon vacant memories
Caught in lifeless theories

Without a pang for what is lost
From summer nights and yearly frost
To leave all wonder with tears unshed
Then the academy is dead

To think along the logic lines
While heart inside unheeded pines
And march toward the teacher’s mark
Oblivious to the path you embark

And chase the rays of lofty words
The world, her hurts go uncured
Even solving weighty postulates
As the orphan wants for advocates

Without a pang for what is lost
From summer nights and yearly frost
To leave all wonder with tears unshed
Then the academy is dead

The brush, the quill grow quickly dim
As causes sink beyond the brim
The reasons for deepest learning
Spark not the pen, ignite no burning

While the world, her hovels and homes
Are left behind and appetite roams
The young are dying with answers
Unable to shoulder life’s cancers

Without a pang for what is lost
From summer nights and yearly frost
To leave all wonder with tears unshed
Then the academy truly is dead

The Stirring

There is something in a gentle spring breeze that awakens a dormant part of me.  I am internally stirred by those first warm heralds of the season. These stirrings are profoundly moving and refreshing. I breath them in deeply and a smile comes easily to my face.

It reminds me of something that God does in my heart from time to time. He brings a warm breeze that awakens my soul. Sometimes its during an insignificant event like taking out the trash that I  glance up at the sky and I am moved. Other times it comes through an honest conversation, a simple song or complex composition; many times I am moved by a Scripture or a memory. Often it is through a beautiful picture or well told story. These moments give me a glimpse into a world that is richer, deeper and truer than the everyday grind. We can experience them with a glance at the open sea, through a great meal with great company, a romantic evening of deep connection or a thousand other places.

We all have them. I think its the Spirit nudging us, waking us up to a world we are missing. What do we do when we realize that there is a world beyond our common experience? I'm no expert but I've attempted a few things so far.

Savor the moment. I try to linger in the moment with God and ask Him what He's doing. Then I try to write it down to remember, to revisit and to relive those moments of clarity because they help me navigate life on a deeper level.

Share the moment. Like a composer laboring to bring haunting notes from within into the light of day I attempt to fold those moments into the things I create. At other times I share it in a note, a quick hug or a passing smile. I share it in a deep conversation or a story.

Seek the moment's meaning. I try to let it fuel my pursuit of deeper things and let it lead me on a path of deeper discovery. What is God saying? Sometimes I'll just pray: God I can't awaken myself, only you raise the dead and numb, open my eyes to see what I cannot see. And I leave it at that.

 

    

  “Awake, you who sleep,
      Arise from the dead,
      And Christ will give you light.”

 

- EPHESIANS 5.14

5 Reasons I Read

If you know me you know I love to devour books. I love to read from the whole gamut of the buffet. I enjoy it all: nonfiction, Christian lit, fantasy, science fiction, historical biographies, epic poetry, how-to's, allegories, journals, and more. I love a sharp story, profound prose, and excellent enigmatic plots in action. Books are so much more than words on page just like a smile is far more significant than the moving of the muscles it takes to grin.

So without further ado, here are the top 5 Reasons I Read: 

1. I'm changed when I read. What we read has the power to shape us. Reading takes us on a journey of self discovery. Reading has the power to take the discerning reader into the thoughts, attitudes or ideas of another. In essence, good writing allows you to see what someone else sees. And I've found that even though there are other factors contributing to my personal growth, reading is one of the biggest: if I'm not reading I'm not growing.

2. Ideas have power and Truth has the most power of all. It's not that every book sets out to creatively present truth, but there are nuggets of wisdom to be gathered everywhere; from a blog post to an expansive novel. And those ideas--that I sometimes mine, other times glean and are often surprised by--have an influence on the way I view the world, decipher life and make decisions.

3. Reading makes me a better communicator. When I see how someone clearly communicates a sticky subject it helps me do the same. When I see a complex concept broken down into a simple children's story or succinct sentence it propels me forward in my craft as well. I want to communicate well: with my wife, with my son, with my youth group, my friends . . . I want to contribute not dilute the conversations I am in and reading helps me do that.

4. Reading makes my mind sharp. I believe that a lot of problems we fail to overcome are the result of fuzzy thinking. Sloppy reasoning. Silly oversimplification or a lack of examination. And reading exercises my mind to think critically, discerningly and effectively in my own life.

5. Discipleship happens as I read. I'll be the first to tell you I can't do it alone. I don't have the time, capacity or drive necessary to figure out life while I still breathe. And the cool thing is: I don't have to. Paul said, "Follow me as I follow Christ". That's discipleship: someone showing you how to grow so you don't have to spend all your time figuring it out . . . you can spend it living it out. That happens to me while I read. Men and women further along on the journey lead me.

I'm always looking for a good read. What have you read in the past year that you would recommend?

The Problem with the Plank

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.  - Jesus, Matthew 7.3-5

Jesus is brilliant. The picture is perfect, the irony is cutting. It's even funny. And it's very real. I remember getting sawdust in my eye when I was out in the shop with my dad. That minuscule little object would not be tolerated for an instant. It was too uncomfortable, it had no place in my eye and it drove me nuts. I couldn't do anything until I got rid of that speck. Too bad that same tenacity doesn't show up with my spiritual shortcomings.

But the problem with the planks of life is that they go unnoticed, uncontested, and unfixed.

The problem with the plank is that its in my eye. And because of pride it can stay there for a long time. I can spot the flaws in someone's worldview from a mile away. I have the eyes of a hawk for the sins of so many. But I can be blind when it comes to my own glaring deficiencies. In fact, I was about to launch into another critique of a friend until I remembered this passage. And the planks were finally in view.

I think you would agree that its easier to examine the speck instead of pull the plank. It is always easier to face another's sin instead of our own. Who wants to own up to that rampant selfishness that comes out with the kids? Or that obvious impatience that explodes in traffic. And what about the all important urge we have for life to be easy--and we don't always respond well when we don't get it.

I think we are going to study their specks over looking at our logs any day.

Unless you have Jesus. 

And then it can be a whole different story. With Jesus I have the confidence to face my flaws, the planks and the specks, based on the forgiveness purchased by His blood at the Cross and the powerful new life that comes from the resurrection.

And right now? It looks like I have some heavy lifting to do.

Christ Alone

"But remember, sinner, it is not thy hold of Christ that saves thee-it is Christ; it is not thy joy in Christ that saves thee-it is Christ; it is not even faith in Christ, though that is the instrument-it is Christ's blood and merits; therefore, look not so much to thy hand with which thou art grasping Christ, as to Christ; look not to thy hope, but to Christ, the source of thy hope; look not to thy faith, but to Christ, the author and finisher of they faith; and if thou dost that, ten thousand devils cannot throw thee down, but as long as thou lookest at thyself, the meanest of those evil spirits may tread thee beneath his feet . . . it is not faith, it is not our doings, it is not our feelings upon which we must rest, but upon Christ and on Christ alone." 

- Charles Spurgeon, 24 August 1856, New Park Street Chapel, Southwark, England 

Check out this awesome song to help this awesome truth sink in:  

Not What My Hands by Aaron Keyes

All Truth is God's Truth

All truth is God's truth, no matter where we find it. And we do find it in unsuspecting places. Notice these nuggets culled from the writings of Victor Hugo over at Desiring God. 

This one is my favorite:

"The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves—say rather, loved in spite of ourselves."

Head over to Desiring God for the full post: The Gift of Victor Hugo.  

Reflection

When things get tough my tendency is to get critical. 

That might be a good thing, if I was looking at myself and not other things. Its easy to blame the circumstances, the times, the other person. Looking in the mirror is harder. Its also healthier. 

When you're aggravated at life let me encourage you to try some godly reflection. Get some time alone or with someone you trust and work through some questions like:

• Why does this make me so mad, so fast? 
• What is it that I want most out of this situation?
• Why do I dwell so much on these things? (A good follow-up to this one: Is it a "God thing" or a "me thing" that keeps me coming back to this issue?) 
• What unhealthy ways have I learned to deal with this that need to change before it can get better?
• What passages of Scripture do I know that relate to this issue?
• What promises does God give me about this area? 

It's true that looking in the mirror is tough. In fact, as I wrestle through certain seasons of my life Paul's frustration resonates with me: "Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me." (Romans 7.21). But infinitely more encouraging is the reality that though we struggle we are not dependent on sheer will power alone for success, "for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose." (Philippians 2.13).

Sometimes looking at our reflection reveals mountains of motives, emotions and even revealing revelations about what's going on inside, under the surface.

And thanks to Don Wolgemuth for the refreshing reminder: "The first obstacle in working with young people is you" You can check out the full post at The Resurgence.