Hardly Any Time for Churchy Things

My Dad’s voice brings me gently out of my dreams saying my name.  “Do you still want to come with me?” he asks.  The sun is not up but I’m able to reach over and find my phone. 5:50am.  Why didn’t my alarm wake me up half an hour ago?  Now it’s too late to shower!  Then I realize I forgot to turn up the volume loud enough to wake me.  “You’ve got ten minutes,” Dad says and slips down stairs.

            The bathroom mirror reveals the aftermath of my slumbering head in chaotic knots.  Even after drenching my hair in the faucet, one cowlick defiantly reaches for the ceiling as if it’s looking for the sun rise.  I meet the requirements of the seminary dress code with a collared shirt and kaki’s even though pajamas would be more fitting for my hair doo.  This is why I wanted to get a shower in.

            With five minutes to go, I scarf down a bowl of Quaker Oat Squares, throw on a hooded sweatshirt, and step out the door just as Dad grabs his leather book bag and heads out.  We are a couple minutes late and so we power walk down the hill.  The brisk, pre-dawn air makes me pull the sleeves of my sweatshirt over my balled fingers.  At the bottom of the hill we scurry across the intersections that are already busy with traffic.  We reach the corner just in time to catch our bus going to “Tren Suburbano”.  My foot hardly leaves the sidewalk before the bus starts rumbling down the road.  Dad hands the driver six pesos for the two of us and we weave through the packed bus to find places to stand (note: there were no places left to sit).  The passengers are silent as the engine roars, the shocks screech, the gears grind, the wind rushes through the open windows, and Michael Jackson blares out the raw sound system.  Heads bobble with every pothole and tope.

            We grip the bar suspended from the ceiling as the moving bus plays with our center of gravity.  A thin, young lady gets on and stretches her copper arm to reach the bar next to me.  Her soft hair makes me conscious of my greasy, cowlicked head.  As more people try to pack on the bus, her head is practically in my arm pit, her being the average height of a Mexican girl.  I think back and thank God that I remembered to put deodorant on.  I wonder where she’s going and if she’s well off in this dangerous city.  Perhaps she’s on her way to a restaurant where she makes just enough money to help her aging parents pay the bills for the millionth time.  A middle-aged guy to the left is dressed in a pinstriped suit with no tie and two shirt-buttons undone and is texting on his Blackberry.  He’s probably going to an office to sit in a cubicle or conference room to flirt with a fellow employee for the millionth time.  A kid about my age is sleeping in the seat next to us with ear buds and slick skinny-jeans and spiked up hair.  He’s probably headed across town to doze off in front of his professor for the millionth time.

            They probably have a lot of complaints since public transportation is not the most envied way to get from point A to point B.  Then again, maybe they’ve done it so long that they don’t even think about it.  Maybe the bus is a refreshing escape from family tensions in the home.  Maybe this is their place to relax and forget about all their financial and relational woes.  On the bus, nothing is expected of them and so they don’t interact with each other but stand in silence and let Michael Jackson flood their brains with English words that might not make sense to them.

            We finally get to the train station and wait by the tracks as the sun finally peaks over the mountain ranges that surround us, turning the sky into a mix of dark and light blues.  The noise has died down enough for me to say to Dad, “Do you ever wonder what it’s like to be a normal Mexican doing normal Mexican things and trying to survive in Mexico City?”

            Dad shakes his head. “No, not really.  I’ve been around long enough that it’s not much of a mystery to me.”  Normal Mexican life probably bogs him down a bit since he is a Biblical counselor.

            I answer, “Well, it fascinates me.  I don’t know why.  Maybe it’s all those Creative Writing classes where they teach us to value the every-day life.”  It’s true.  Purdue University did well at teaching me the wonders of an every-day life.  The imperfect quirks of normal people.  The unwanted moments of tension or surprising moments of genuine connection in relationships.  The conflicting desires and obsessions and the climactic clashes between them.  These are all elements that make the every-day short story a good read.  And so I visit Mexico and naturally gawk at the potentially fascinating stories of the average, every-day Mexican.  If only I could be their shadow for a while.

           

            My Dad is a Mexican in white skin with graying red hair that Mom buzzes.  He knows to hide money in your shoes when you take certain public transportations.  He also knows the bus and train and subway routes to get us across the city and to our destination.  There, he teaches a small seminary class of six to seven students.  They discuss a chapter in their text book on “The Call to Pastoral Ministry”.  Dad says something about how he liked the chapter except that he disagreed with using the word “call” which sparks a discussion on the Biblical meanings of the state of being “called” by God.

            “There’s this thing about life,” Dad says, back on the bus, on our way home, “that I’ve struggled with for a long time.”

            This time we are the only people on the bus.  Apparently, nobody heads home this early in the morning.

            Dad continues, “I’ve always wondered why God allows the every-day person to spend most of their time at work.”  He pauses to let that sink in.  Then he elaborates: “As a student of the Bible, I have always thought that to be productive in the Kingdom of God, our best bet is to do church-related activities. 

            “There’s this guy in church who was studying to be a pastor.  But his job takes all his time and drove him to flunk the program.  Since he has to provide for his wife and kids, he might never be a pastor!  If the church is so important, why does God allow; (or maybe not allow but require) why does God require the every-day man to spend so much time at work?  Shouldn’t he be doing more productive, spiritual things?”

            My Dad has just picked my brain.  And as I watch the concrete jungle out my window, I realize that I have wondered the same thing.  Shouldn’t everyone be a preacher?  Is there anything better than a missionary?  I say, “I’ve noticed that when I have a summer job, after work I’ll get home and be surprised with how fast bed time comes.  You’re right.  People do spend a ton of time at work.  Some of my closest friends are at work because I spend so much time there.  Same thing with school; during the school year we spend so much time in class and studying and homework.  And most people finish work or school only to go to home filled with a needy family, crying babies, rebellious teens, unhappy wives.  The work never ends!  There’s hardly any time to do churchy things!”

            Dad says, “Just recently I realized that the only answer must be that God uses things that take up our time like work.  He uses our every-day jobs as a tool to accomplish what really matters: our hearts.”

            I insert, “So God is interested in the every-day life, just like I am?”

            Dad says, “Even more so, because it is the normal, every-day events that cultivate our hearts.”

            My Dad has just rocked my worldview.  I think my natural mindset was exactly what he was talking about.  In my mind, church type ministry was the highest way for us to glorify God and always the best way for us to spend our time.  But that conviction was conflicting with a lot of my observations of life itself.

            Dad says, “See, us pastors want to make the ‘call to ministry’ something real special.  When my understanding of the Bible is that the call to a life in Christ is the special call that all Christ-followers get.” 

            Did my Dad just tie in the discussion held in class?  Yep, he did.  What a coincidence!  I try to understand it and say, “So most Christ-followers are not called to full-time ministry in the church because they are all called to full-time ministry at the work place, in school, and in the home.”

            “Exactly.”

            We have to sit in silence to let the overwhelming feeling of my changing worldview pass.  We get off the bus and start back up the hill toward our house as I think out loud.  “Dad, this is big.  This is like… changing my worldview.”

            But Dad doesn’t stop, “You will be miles ahead of most pastors in the world if you understand this concept.  But most pastors will never get it and slowly kill their own churches.  In their view, they need to get people doing church things more and more, consuming more and more of their time, leading them farther and farther away from their every-day calling.  They will get bent out of shape when people aren't attending all the church activities and will feel the need to confront them.  This mentality will eventually kill a church because we are no longer focusing on talking to people during work break nor having friends over for dessert nor rolling around with the kids on the floor nor cuddling up with the wife by the fireplace, but instead they will be consumed with checking off a church event list.”

            As we approach our house, I try to summarize what I just learned, “Maybe, even our definition of ‘ministry’ is wrong.  Maybe ‘real’ ministry is what we do at work and at school and at home and on the bus.  I used to think that full-time ministers get to have all the fun, studying the Bible and learning how to glorify God.  But now I think I was wrong.  The job of full-time minister is to teach the lay people how to have all the fun, trying to love God better in their every-day life.” 

            That’s our calling: Not to pour all our time into church activities, but to love God in our every-day short story.  Look it up for yourself and see that the Bible supports this view.

            

Mexican Missiology III: It Get's Personal

I have to say a lot of goodbyes.  It’s one of the worst things about being a missionary kid.  Homecoming felt awesome, full of unpredictable possibilities of thrills.  Homeleaving feels disgusting.  I’m not sure I’ve ever had so much fun and now I have no clue when I’ll be back.  At the end of the day, not one of the thirteen hours I spent traveling passed without me wondering once more if I would return to stay. 

I tried to imagine coming to Mexico in my minivan, with a wife in the passenger seat and maybe a kid behind us.  The back is stuffed with our few, necessary possessions.  I imagine renting a cramped apartment while we learn the ropes of our job.  Maybe we’ll get upset stomachs after we go to a taco place.  Maybe our side mirrors will get stolen.  Maybe our neighbors will have a party and keep us up all night.  Maybe we’ll spend hours together in the van waiting in bumper to bumper traffic.  Maybe we’ll gather around our Mexican friends and laugh and weep together.  Maybe we’ll visit my old friends Carlos, Javier, and Pedro.  That’d be the bomb!  Or maybe reality would be even more the bomb than anything I could dream.

Some preachers that I respect have made me think twice about returning to Mexico.  For example: John Piper teaches that the most important missions are frontier or pioneer missions—missionaries that take the Good News to people groups that have never been exposed to it because that is working toward the second coming of Christ.  Out of curiosity, I checked out websites for Frontier Missions and the Joshua Project.  These websites give their own analysis to the spiritual need of countries based on how established Christian churches are there.  According to their data, missionaries should be focusing on Muslim countries, not Mexico.  Supposedly, Mexico has established Christian ministries.  But when I dug deeper I found that they considered Catholic churches to be Christian.  Of course the Catholic church is well established in Mexico!  They make up more than 90% of the population!  But are these churches teaching the Good News?  No.  They teach a false gospel.  Most Mexicans have never been exposed to a sacrificed Christ who is sufficient to restore our relationship with God.  It’s hard for me to get work up about unreached people groups when the “reached” people groups have so many more lost people in total.

I will wait for the Lord to open opportunities and continue to show me the need before I set my eyes on Mexico.  Until then I will store the love of my Mexican friends in my heart and press on, knowing that God can satisfy while I’m chained to America for a while.

The drive from the Indianapolis airport to Lafayette shocks me.  Instead of swerving around traffic and weaving through concrete buildings we fly down open roads surrounded by lush greenery.  Walking back to my room, the floor boards creek under the weight of my suitcase.
            I find that my nine-year-old sister Nicole had slipped a 3x5 card in my suitcase.  She says she’s going to miss me very much.  Natalie also wrote me a card she designed and decorated herself.  Inside she placed two pictures of us and some Mexican friends that I frame and place on my desk.  I remember how my family, including my dad, was choking back tears as we said goodbye earlier that day.  My dad and I spent a lot of time talking and bonding.  The thing I miss most about Mexico might be talking to Dad about just anything.
             Next I pull out a soccer ball that the youth at Nueva Vida church signed for me.  So many wrote “gracias”.  I fight back tears once again because I had nothing to do with the goodness that they received from me… it all comes from God… and yet He is so gracious to let me taste the fruits of His own goodness.
             As I set the ball on my desk, I notice that my cheap, thread bracelet that we got as a group in Poza Rica is starting to lose its color.  “Never take it off,” Javier said to me on Skype, “and if it breaks, tape it together so you don’t forget us.”  After he said that, Natalie started joking around saying "Don't cry Nathaniel!  Don't Cry!"  I pretended to cry, burying my face in Natalie's shoulder only to look up and see Javier crying for real.  And as the tears started rolling I found that our friendship meant more to Javier than I realized.
             Before I climb into bed, I slip off the t-shirt that my best neighbor Carlos gave to me the night before.  It’s made of slick polyester and looks kind of like a soccer jersey.  I can’t wait to flaunt its uniqueness in front of confused Americans.  The night before I left Mexico, Carlos and I talked on my front patio.  I found that our restored friendship and his introduction to my dad's church meant more to him than I realized.
             Crawling into my full sized bed, it feels twice as big as it needs to be.  I take time to thank God for allowing me to enjoy His glory working in the lives of all these people.  "Dear God, nothing beats seeing Your glory.  Thank You for opening my eyes.  I couldn't have dreamed of a better visit.  It thrills me to see Javier burn for You.  It thrills me to see Nueva Vida exploding.  It thrills me to see Carlos looking for You.  If I am not mistaken, this is Your doing and You want it to thrill me.  I ask that You keep raining Your grace down and I'll dance all the harder in it, enjoying the way it soaks me to the bone."  I close my eyes and instead of falling asleep to the constant rumble of traffic and booming parties and barking dogs, I drift off to the piercing sound of my own ringing ears.

Una Carta para los Cautivos

(Two weeks before I had to leave Mexico, we held a three day youth retreat at church complete with camping tents and smores and meals that my mom cooked and capture the flag in the dark.  Our activities wore everyone out and two guys were nodding off to sleep before I finished the second sentence of this lesson.  But anyways, this is a great lesson that has impacted the way I look at my life and I hope it is a blessing to you...)

¿Porque les gusta el retiro?  Porque no hay escuela.  Son alejados de tus papas.  No tienen responsabilidades.

Tal vez tu vida fueda del retiro se siente como una cárcel.  Tengo malas noticias:  Tienen que regresar a tu vida normal.  ¿Porque tienen que regresar?  Porque viven bajo la autoridad de tus papas y bajo la meta de graduar de la escuela.  Tal vez algunos de ustedes ya son estancados en el trabajo, bajo la necesidad de ganar dinero.  Tal vez cada dia es lo mismo para ti, levantado otra vez al sonido de tu alarma o al voz de tus padres, para irte otra vez a la escuela o hacer la tarea, para obedecer otra vez los mandatos de tus padres, para irte otra vez al trabajo.  ¿Así es tu vida?  ¿Te gusta escapar de todo eso?

¿Saben de qué habla la palabra “estancar”?  ¿Qué significa estar estancado?  Yo creo que la mayoría de los jóvenes están estancados.  Me explico: La etapa de la adolescencia en nuestra cultura es una etapa cuando empezamos a desear más libertad, más independencia.  Ya queremos tomar nuestras propias decisiones.  Pero hay problemas.  Seguimos bajo la autoridad de nuestros padres y maestros y jefes.  Y así va hacer toda la vida para la mayoría de nosotros.  Atrapados.  Cautivos.  Atorados.  Estancados.  Con nuestra libertad limitada.

Imagínate, tu, con un actitud malo contra tu vida estancada.  Imagínate formando el habito de hacer lo que puedes para escapar tu vida estancada.  ¿Puedes imaginar los problemas y el caos que crearás?  Tal vez necesitamos a estudiar que dice Dios sobre este tema para que cuando se termina el retiro y regresamos a nuestra vida normal, tuviéramos ganas de vivir diferente.

¿Pero, crees que la Biblia habla de este tema?  ¿O crees que este problema es demasiado moderno para este libro antiguo?  Cuando empecé a buscar pasajes en la Biblia sobre vidas estancadas, pensé que iba ser muy difícil.  Pensé que tal vez Dios no le importa las vidas estancadas.  Pero estuve muy equivocado.  La verdad es que casi cada página de la Biblia nos habla de nuestras vidas estancadas.  Pero uno de los historias tiene una enseñanza muy especial para los que sentimos estancados.  Esta historia es la historia de las israelitas cautivas en el país de Babilonia.  Esta historia es especial para los estancados porque Dios manda una carta a los cautivos enseñándoles como vivir en cautiverio.

El país de Israel fue el escogido pueblo de Dios.  Dios decidió manifestar sus leyes y ser alabado por medio de las israelitas.  Israel fue un país independiente por muchas generaciones antes del cautiverio.  Puedes leer sobre los reyes de Israel en los libros de Reyes y Crónicas.   Si lees estos libros, vas a encontrar que la mayoría de los reyes de Israel no siguieron la ley de Dios ni lo alabaron.  Aunque el reino de rey David trato de glorificar a Dios, muchos de los reyes quienes precedieron, eran muy malos.  Y poco a poco los israelitas empezaron a adorar otros dioses y ídolos de otros países hasta que Dios dijo “basta” y uso al pais de Babilonia y el rey Nabucodonosor para castigar a los isrealitas.

La caída de Jerusalén fue muy triste y la Biblia que todo paso porque no consideraron Dios.  Muchas israelitas fueron cautivas y los llevaron a Babilonia como esclavos.  Los cautivos se pusieron muy tristes y enojados.  ¿Es algo agradable ser cautivo?  ¿Por qué no?  ¿Normalmente que hacen los esclavos?  Están sufriendo.  No querían ser esclavos.  Querían ser libres.  No querían obedecer los babilonios.  Querían regresar a su propia tierra y tener su propio rey.  Algunos empezaron a quejar y rebelar contra la autoridad de los babilonios.  No entendían porque un Dios de amor podrá enviar los a una situación tan estancada.  En Génesis, Dios promete a Abraham una tierra para la nación de sus hijos.  ¿Pero ahora qué?  ¿Les abandonó Dios a los cautivos?  La verdad, no.  Hasta Dios les mando una carta para enseñar les cómo vivir en esta situación muy estancada.  ¿Están listos para leer la carta de Dios?  ¿Quieren saber que dice Dios sobre la vida estancada?

Jeremias 29:1,4-14

1 Ésta es la carta que el profeta Jeremías envió desde Jerusalén al resto de los ancianos que estaban en el exilio, a los sacerdotes y los profetas, y a todo el pueblo que Nabucodonosor había desterrado de Jerusalén a Babilonia.

4 Así dice el Señor Todopoderoso, el Dios de Israel, a todos los que he deportado de Jerusalén a Babilonia: 5 «Construyan casas y habítenlas; planten huertos y coman de su fruto.6 Cásense, y tengan hijos e hijas; y casen a sus hijos e hijas, para que a su vez ellos les den nietos. Multiplíquense allá, y no disminuyan.7 Además, busquen el bienestar de la ciudad adonde los he deportado, y pidan al Señor por ella, porque el bienestar de ustedes depende del bienestar de la ciudad.»

8 Así dice el Señor Todopoderoso, el Dios de Israel: «No se dejen engañar por los profetas ni por los adivinos que están entre ustedes. No hagan caso de los sueños que ellos tienen. 9 Lo que ellos les profetizan en mi nombre es una mentira. Yo no los he enviado», afirma el Señor.

10 Así dice el Señor: «Cuando a Babilonia se le hayan cumplido los setenta años, yo los visitaré; y haré honor a mi promesa en favor de ustedes, y los haré volver a este lugar.11 Porque yo sé muy bien los planes que tengo para ustedes —afirma el Señor—, planes de bienestar y no de calamidad, a fin de darles un futuro y una esperanza.12 Entonces ustedes me invocarán, y vendrán a suplicarme, y yo los escucharé.13 Me buscarán y me encontrarán, cuando me busquen de todo corazón.14 Me dejaré encontrar —afirma el Señor—, y los haré volver del cautiverio. Yo los reuniré de todas las naciones y de todos los lugares adonde los haya dispersado, y los haré volver al lugar del cual los deporté», afirma el Señor.

La primera cosa que dice la carta a los israelitas cautivos es… Aver, le lo otra vez:

 5 «Construyan casas y habítenlas; planten huertos y coman de su fruto.6 Cásense, y tengan hijos e hijas; y casen a sus hijos e hijas, para que a su vez ellos les den nietos. Multiplíquense allá, y no disminuyan.7 Además, busquen el bienestar de la ciudad adonde los he deportado, y pidan al Señor por ella, porque el bienestar de ustedes depende del bienestar de la ciudad.»

¿Que es el primer punto de esta carta?  …Quédense un rato; disfruten su tiempo como cautivos.  Aunque el ciudad de Babilonia no es su casa, dice Dios “¡Construyan casas y habítenlas!”  Aunque los israelitas no quieren vivir en esclavitud en Babilonia con los babilonios, Dios les está diciendo “quédense un rato.”  Las israelitas dicen “Dios, ya queremos regresar a casa.”  Dios dice “No, por ahorita, ya están en casa.”

Pero eso no es todo.  En la primera parte de esta carta, Dios da unos mandatos.  ¿Son pesados los mandatos?  Haber que son:  (1) Construyan casas. (2) Planten huertos.  (3) Hacen familias.  (4) Trabajen para el bienestar de la ciudad.  ¿Quales de estos mandatos causa tristeza?  ¿Es triste tener uno su propia casa?  ¿Es malo tener mucha comida?  ¿Son trises las bodas?  ¡No!  Estos mandatos no son pesados.  ¡Son bendiciones!

Pero tambien no son super faciles.  Dios quiere que trabajen con ganas.  A vezes cuando estamos estancados, nos ponemos flojos en vez de trabajar mas duro.  ¿Quando tu te sientes como cautivo, te pones a lavar trastes o vees tele?  ¿Ayudas tu mama a limpiar la casa o juegas en el compu?  Dios dijo a los cautivos que deberian trabajar mas y con ganas.

10 Así dice el Señor: «Cuando a Babilonia se le hayan cumplido los setenta años, yo los visitaré; y haré honor a mi promesa en favor de ustedes, y los haré volver a este lugar.11 Porque yo sé muy bien los planes que tengo para ustedes —afirma el Señor—, planes de bienestar y no de calamidad, a fin de darles un futuro y una esperanza.

¿Saben que es mi parte favorita de la paciencia?  Mi parte favorita es que la paciencia no tiene que durar para siempre.  En este parte de la carta Dios está indicando que el cautiverio de los israelitas no va durar para siempre.  Dios no va a cancelar su promesa que dio a Abraham.  Aquí Dios está prometiendo que un día, después de setenta años, los cautivos van a regresar a la tierra prometida, Israel.  La paciencia no tiene que durar para siempre porque Dios tiene planes de bienestar y no de calamidad, a fin de darles… ¿qué?... un futuro y una esperanza.  Dios está diciendo, “¡Ten confianza!  ¡Confía en mí!”  Dios nunca se le olvida de sus promesas y siempre se los cumple.  Prometió a Abraham muchas cosas incluyendo la tierra de Israel.  Lo cumplió en su tiempo y lo puedes leer en el primer libro de la Biblia.  Ahora la está prometiendo otra vez.

12 Entonces ustedes me invocarán, y vendrán a suplicarme, y yo los escucharé.13 Me buscarán y me encontrarán, cuando me busquen de todo corazón.14 Me dejaré encontrar —afirma el Señor—, y los haré volver del cautiverio. Yo los reuniré de todas las naciones y de todos los lugares adonde los haya dispersado, y los haré volver al lugar del cual los deporté», afirma el Señor.

Este es el último y más importante punto para hoy y con esto concluimos.  El propósito de Dios para el cautiverio de las israelitas era para que busquen a Dios.  Para que les den cuenta que necesitan a Dios.  Para que busquen a Dios de todo corazón.  Eso es el propósito del sufrimiento de los israelitas.  Para que busquen a Dios.  La carta está muy clara en comunicando que Dios causó este cautiverio.  Es parte de su plan.  Pero las israelitas no les gustan este plan porque son bajo esclavitud en Babilonia.  Tenían que hacer todo lo que los babilonios les mandaron.  No es fácil ser un esclavo.  Es sufrimiento.  Entonces las israelitas estaban preguntando, “¿A Dios le gusta vernos sufrir?”  Es buena pregunta.  ¿Si Dios causó el sufrimiento, podrá ser porque Dios le gusta vernos sufrir?  No creo que Dios le guste vernos sufrir.  Creo que le gusta más vernos buscarle a El que estar contento con una vida sin problemas. 

Entonces, cuando estamos desobedeciendo a Dios ¿que nos va a agarrar el atención más que el sufrimiento, las lagrimas, y los desilusiones?  ¡Tenemos que buscar nuestra felicidad en Dios!  Amigos, si lees la Biblia, te va a enseñar que la cosa más importante que puedes hacer con tu vida es buscar a Dios.  Cuando estás en cautiverio o cuando no estás en cautiverio, Dios quiere que lo busques.  Cuando estás estancado o cuando no estás estancando, Dios quiere que lo busques.    Él quiere tener una relación, una amistad buena contigo.  Y cuando nuestra amistad con Dios está mal, no hay nada más grave.  Todos deberíamos estar siempre buscando a Dios.  Pero si tu amistad con Dios está mal hoy, la mejor cosa que puedes hacer hoy es orar, clamar a Dios que él te da una corazón que quiere buscar a Dios.  Busquen lo.  De todo corazón.  De verdad.  Busquen en la Biblia.  Pregunten a tus amigos y los líderes aquí, sobre quien es Dios.

Por ejemplo, cuando tu quieres salir a jugar futbol pero tus papas quieren que cuidas a tus hermanitos, ¿Qué dice Dios?  1) Quedate un rato disfrutando tus hermanos 2) Ten paciencia porque no vas estar con ellos para siempre y 3) Busca Dios.  Otro exemplo: cuando tu tienes el deseo de tener novio o novia, pero tus papas dicen no o sabes que todavia no es tiempo de tener novio o novia debes: 1) Quedate un rato disfrutando la vida soltera 2) Ten paciencia porque Dios promete que no vas a sentir solo toda tu vida y 3) Busca Dios.  Entonces, para terminar, recuerden que dijo Dios a los cautivos cuando te sientes estancado.  1) Quedate un rato, disfrutando la vida 2) Tenga paciencia porque Dios cumple sus promesas y 3) Busca a Dios.   

Reading List

My Dad has a really good collection of books that I enjoyed quite a bit.  Here are some books I read in order from most recommended to least:

1) "Anthropological Reflections on Missiological Issues" by Paul G. Heibert
You might need a dictionary for the first few chapters but the rest is fantastic.  It disillusioned me to a lot of ministry and missions philosophies and got me thinking outside of our box of traditions and more on track with the Bible.  This book gets the Nathaniel Spring '10 Book Award! 

2) "Martin Luther Had a Wife" by William J. Petersen
Glimpses of the marriages of historical Christian leaders such as: Martin Luther, Jonathan Edwards, John Wesley. 

3) "Harriet Breecher Stowe Had a Husband" by William J. Petersen
John Calvin, William Cary, Adoniram Judson. 

4) "Adoniram Judson" by Faith Cox Bailey
Biography of the first American missionary.  Clearly one of the coolest missionaries ever!  His life was full of unexpected twists and turns in the jungles of Burma. 

5) "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J. K. Rowling
Delightfully funny and wonderfully written.  Haven't finished it yet but so far I don't know why this book is so controversial in Christian circles.  Read it to my sisters with a British accent and had lot's of fun. 

6) "The Supremacy of God In Preaching" by John Piper
 An argument for the need of God's greatness to be preached and a brief look at how Jonathan Edwards accomplished this task. I highly recommend John Piper's messages at desiringgod.org 

7) "The Gospel According to Rome" by James G. McCarthy
A very thorough study of Roman Catholic theology and practices and how they contradict Scripture. 

8) "A Brief History of Mexico" by Lynn V. Foster 

9) "Lectures to My Students" by Charles Spurgeon
Heavier on the practical side of ministry than theology.  Some lectures seem to drag on and on. 

10) "The Book of Romance: What Solomon Says About Love, Sex, and Romance" by Tommy Nelson
Falsely advertised as a study of "Song of Solomon".  It's mostly Tommy Nelson's advise for relationships.  Although he has a ton of really good stuff in here, most doesn't come from Solomon which kind of ruins it for me.  However, the small portions that comment on the Song of Solomon are pretty excellent.

11) "How America Lost Her Innocence: A History of the Sexual Revolution" by Steve Gallagher

12) "John Calvin: A Heart for Devotion, Doctrine, and Doxology" by various authors
The first few chapters are good introductions to John Calvin.  But I would rather read Calvin's own works than read this dry book. 

13) "Taste and See" by John Piper
Hundreds of small Piper-meditations for devotional use.  After reading about 50 I realized I would rather spend more time in the Bible and listen to Piper's messages than read this book.  I highly recommend John Piper's messages at desiringgod.org 

14) "In Spite of Ourselves..." by Beulah Pinkston
A brief look at the missionary lives of the Pinkstons.  I enjoyed it because I knew the Pinkstons and my family worked with them in the ministry.  But I would not recommend it to anyone who is not intensly interested in the history of Mexican missions.

Mexican Missiology II: The Rise and Fall of the Good Old Days

(Once again, Facebook has messed up my post.  Please see the original version http://americanchilango.blogspot.com/2010/04/mexican-missiology-ii-rise-and-fall-of.html)

In the summer of 1997 we moved to the north outskirts of the city and just so happened to plop right into the neighborhood where the Burkholder missionary family also lived.  This was the beginning of what I have creatively labeled "The Good Old Days" of my life as a missionary kid.  I have countless fond memories as a missionary kid, but these were "The Good Old Days".  The Burkholders had three children and Jared was a boy my age.  I believe I was ten and Jared was eleven when we began our mischievious friendship that lead to countless escapades that tottered on the edge of getting us in serious trouble.  But it's not the mischief that causes me to call those times "The Good Old Days".  Rather it's the network of friendships with missionaries in the city that rapidly accumulated after we met the Burkholders. 

It happened that the Burkholder kids attended a school for missionary kids, located in the neighborhood on the other side of the main road.  Although my parents never trusted the school enough to let me attend it, we did get accuanted enough with the teachers and families for them to allow me to attend some classes and some activities and make a slew of American friends.  During these years, a new missionary family, the Gigers, from our same mission board arrived in the south side of Mexico City.  They had kids my age too that I got quite close to during our missions conferences and visits to the south side.  Then a missionary family, the Ellisons, with 6 kids and counting moved in about five minutes walk from our house.  Nathan Ellison was my age and became another very close missionary friend.  So in a period of about two years, I had made a ton of close missionary friends.  This accumulation of new friendships also marks the time when I was able to witness some of our parents work together as teams.

In 1999, Bruce Burkholder and my dad worked together to organize and teach a Bible seminary to better prepare Mexicans for ministry.  About that same time, the Ellisons decided to join my parents in their service to Maranatha, despite a few theological differences between us.  A while later, my Uncle Jim and his family arrived in Mexico to join us in both the seminary and Maranatha.  At that time my dad became convinced that Maranatha was ready to have its own national pastor and Rene Baez, who was studying in a seminary in the US, would soon be prepared enough to be that pastor.  When we got back from a year of furlough, the Bailes, Metze, and Hyde families also joined the teaching team at the seminary.  Ministry was booming, the future was full of possibilities, and I had tons of American friends in Mexico.  Little did I know that much of this was about to come to a grinding halt.

The Gigers only lasted less than a couple years and before family problems drove them back to the States.  The Bailes didn't last much longer.  Some friends from the missionary school also left the Mexico scene and then the entire school moved.  I think the Ellisons were expecting child number 10 or 11 or probably 8 when they decided that we were too non-conservative for them and left Maranatha and eventually Mexico.  When Rene Baez became the pastor of Maranatha we too left all our friends at Maranatha to plant our own church with Uncle Jim and fam.  We soon found that we had too many differences with Uncle Jim to work together on a church plant.  Here, my dad and Bruce were trying to better prepare the Mexicans for ministry when so many of the new missionaries weren't even surviving missions in Mexico. 

There was a number of other sad occurences as well, but the most heart breaking for my family was when Bruce developed heart problems and was forced to return to the States with his family.  Six years after I had met Jared, our mischievious friendship had changed.  We were no longer encouraging each other to get into trouble but instead encouraging each other to glorify God with our lives.  To this day, the Burkholders are beloved friends of the family and saying goodbye to them seemed like the end of "The Good Old Days".

Ministry happens to get people extra involved in people problems. I've been able to observe the aftermath of all those "goodbyes" and they seem to have intensified a lot of people problems in the Kingdom of God.  Churches planted by the departed missionaries have often divided and struggled to survive.  National church leaders have tendencies to abuse authority and for that very reason, my dad had doubts that the seminary would survive.  In my time here in Mexico, my dad and the two missionaries still helping with the seminary have run into some conflicts and seemed to be one meeting away from dropping out.  Dad said to me, "It can get so overwhelming.  Sometimes it seems like God is pushing missionaries out of Mexico.  Maybe Mexico's age of Baptist missionaries is over."  Could God be shutting down the missions to Mexico machine?  It's hard to say since, against all odds, my parents are still going strong.

As a kid, Dad would say that he was willing to be a missionary anywhere except China and Mexico City.  He hated the city.  Somehow my parents ended up visiting a friend in the city and committing their lives to spreading the Good News there.  Our first years as missionaries nearly sent us home because of my mom's medical complications.  Then just when Dad was about to decide to leave Mexico, Mom got better.  Who knew that after all the comings and goings, my parents would be the ones to hold down the Mexico City fort?  God did.  And so far it seems God wants them to stay.  Despite all the problems that seem to be weighing down other churches, the new church plant of my parents is exploding.  Since my visit, the average attendance has shot from 80 to 100 people.  In that ministry, there seems to be less indication than ever that my parents should leave Mexico City.  They are finding needs and meeting them, doing their best to reveal God's goodness.  Even my dad's patience in the seminary seems to be paying off.  We were expecting Dad to come home from a meeting with the news that he would not be teaching in the seminary any more.  Instead he returned to announce that problems were being solved.

The good old days may be over but that doesn't mean that God doesn't have a future and a hope for Mexico.  Looking to Him is best.  Good old days are dangerous if they make us look back longer than we look up.  If it takes leaving the good old days in the dust, bringing tears and confusion to our lives today... if that's what it takes to get us to look up... may it be.

Welcome to Poza Rica 3/17/10

I’m afraid I left a chunk of my heart in Poza Rica and my friends there refuse to send it back in the mail.  The city of Poza Rica in the state of Veracruz is a five hour drive from Mexico City on a curvy, two-lane road that winds through one of Mexico’s two mountain ranges.  My dad, my 16-year-old sister Natalie, and I had plenty of time to go through old CD’s, singing aloud to forgotten songs.  We made good time since we only got stuck behind a couple slow semi’s that we had to pass on those curvy mountain roads.  The scenery out the windows changed drastically from the dry cactus desert on our side of the mountains to the lush tropical forest on the other side.  The mountains provide the state of Veracruz with very fertile soil that ends up sustaining Mexico City’s consumption of tropical fruit.  Javier says that Veracruz has been blessed with soil that will grow anything you throw in it, and he’s not far from the truth.  Their soil is so full of life that the wooden posts used to fence properties sprout limbs and become their own trees.  The tropical forests that surround the city seem like National Geographic magazine pictures of Africa.  A forty minute drive from Poza Rica could take you either to the beach, to indigenous farming towns, or to the world-famous Tajín pyramids.

There are a few things about the Poza Rica area that might attract tourists, but that’s not why I went there.  I went to visit Javier.  “You have to come visit me sometime,” Javier said to me just before he hopped on a plane and headed home.  During his Lafayette visit, Javier became a very close friend and I knew I would have to fit him into my Mexico visit to check up on him and taste life in his hometown.  Three months later, I got the chance.  I had my suspicions that Poza Rica would be a highlight of my Mexico visit and was totally looking forward to it.  I have visited Poza Rica numerous times, but this time I was more connected with the people that live there then ever before.  The following couple posts will be a memoir about the adventures my sister and I had during our week and a half stay in Poza Rica:

My dad’s parents are also missionaries to Mexico and live near Poza Rica; so our first stop was their house.  But after visiting the grandparents for a couple days, making homemade ice cream, having devotions on the roof, and listening to embarrassing stories of Dad getting in trouble; the time finally came for us to hang out with Javier and be introduced to his friends.   My grandparents serve at the church that Javier attends and lives within a ten minute walk.  So when my grandma said she had to pick up some women there for a women’s Bible study, Natalie and I hitched a ride with her.  The women’s study was going to celebrate a birthday, so Grandma brought a beautiful cake decorated with frosting roses.  With a covering that didn’t fit very well and with bright white and red frosting leaking on her fingers, Grandma slipped the cake into the back of the minivan and we were off. 

We left ten minutes later than Grandma had hoped and so she put the pedal to the metal.  The road to Poza Rica was spotted with pot holes and bustling with taxis, buses, and construction trucks.  But Grandma didn’t let the traffic or the holes slow her down as she weaved between vehicles and meticulously applied gas and break almost precisely when needed.  I say “almost” because we clipped a bus with our side view mirror while swerving around it. 

“Did I just hit that bus?” Grandma asked me as she licked icing off her fingers. 

“Sure did,” I said as I rolled down the window and straightened out the mirror. “How often do you do that?” 

“Once a month.”

We could hear the cake sliding from side to side as we dodged the pot holes. I said, “You’re really skilled at missing the holes.”

She said, “These aren’t even the big ones.  Wait till you see them.”  A minute later she tried to squeeze by a dump truck and our tires sank into a hole, bobbing the van and wagging our heads violently from side to side.  “That’s a big one.”

I looked back at Natalie who was grasping the seat and trying not to laugh.  We flew through downtown, startling dozens of pedestrians, and arrived at church only a couple minutes late.  The cake was unrecognizable with the frosting smeared all over the plastic covering.   Grandma and the women left for the study and Natalie and I waited for Javier to come pick us up and show us where his house is.
A year ago, January of 2009, we visited Poza Rica and talked to Javier at this same spot--the steps at church.  Things were much different then.  For most of his life, Javier had his eyes set on professional futbol (soccer) and he had reason to.  He spent four months practicing with the Pumas (professional soccer team in Mexico City) but failed the test to get on the team.  He was also dating a girl who was a negative influence.  When we saw him a year ago, sitting on the steps with his chin resting in his hands, his world was falling apart and he was only beginning to turn to God for the answers.  Although we'd played together as kids during other visits, I didn't know Javier very well and didn't know all this was going on.  As we talked, I remember Javier mentioning that he was thinking about going to the U.S. to learn English.  Then, in August of 2009 he showed up at Faith Baptist Church in Lafayette where I was studying college.  During his visit, we spent our free time bonding and going to church activities.  He let God work in his life more than ever before and his eyes were opened to more important things in life.  The college ministries so inspired him that when he returned to Poza Rica he got the youth ministries in his church rolling.  His emails were full of encouraging news about how the youth activities were well attended along with news that he was filling his time with work, school, and serving in youth ministries.  I was eager to see with my own eyes how my new, close Mexican friend was putting to practice his new, flaming desire to glorify God.

Javier finally made it to church and we were all smiles to see him.  He led Natalie and I on the short walk to his house.  After a couple blocks of houses, we went through a futbol field and over a rusted walk bridge, crossing a brown river that smelled like sewage.  We cut through a small park and reached the lumpy dirt roads of Javier's neighborhood.  We stopped by several houses where Javier would holler for the young people who lived there to come play volleyball.  "Nobody has door bells so we just yell," Javier told me.

Javier introduced us to some of his friends through a volleyball game at the small park near his house. Then he and I and some of the guys from the neighborhood went back to church for the small group study while my sister stayed at Javier's cousin Alexia's house.  The study impressed me.  It was on how the Bible defines marriage using the book Dije Adios a Las Sitas Amorosas, or I Kissed Dating Goodbye.  The young guys were interested in the topic and there was plenty of participation.  In fact, I honestly believed it was a discussion and not merely another lesson.  That's what a small group study should be all about.  The guys felt comfortable enough with the leader that they shared their thoughts and joked around and laughed heartily and still made an effort to stay on track.
          "What is the purpose of getting married? " the adult leader asked.
          "To raise a futbol team!" a big guy we call Emman.
          "You kidding?  I want my own orchestra!" Helge said, making everyone bust up with laughter.
          After we quieted down a bit, Javier said something about companionship and sharing life.  The leader added that close relationships help us grow and what's closer than marriage?
          "It is most likely that your wife will have to work through some unrealistic expectations or misconceptions about what kind of person you are early in your marriage.  But part of loving your wife Biblically also means getting as close as you can to her expectations," the leader said as we munched on cookies and creamy coffee that a kind lady from church brought us.
          "What misconceptions did your wife have about you?" Javier's brother Daniel said.
          The leader smiled and blushed as everyone laughed.  Javier backed him up, "Surely you were the perfect guy, right?"
           "I've never had to ask her about that," the leader replied and everyone busted up.
           Dad picked us up to go home and we talked about the day with him.  "I'm not sure we're going to want to leave after just one week," I said, trying to begin negotiations to stay longer than the originally planned week.  Natalie agreed and Dad listened patiently.  Indeed, after that evening of fun, the rest of our stay seemed full of exhilarating possibilities.

No Desperdicias Tu Vida! 3/16/10

Two weeks ago, we held a youth group activity at our house.  My dad asked me to give a short lesson.  When the day came, my nerves ran wild since my lesson wasn't short and my childhood friend and neighbor, Carlos, decided to come with his girlfriend.  Although I practically read the whole lesson and kept my eyes glued to the paper, it went fairly well and I thought it was worth posting.  So this one is for those of you who speak Spanish or are learning Spanish:

¿Es posible desperdiciar la vida?  ¿Sí?  Yo siento que sí, y te digo porque:  

Eh desperdiciado un chorro de mi vida con los juegos de video.  Especialmente durante mis años de prepa, era adicto.  Juegos de nintendo, de compu, Playstation, X Box, GameBoy, maquinitas, y de todo.   Era yo un zombi infectado con el virus de los video juegos.  No tenía amigos y me dio el hábito de ser flojo.  Hasta un día me despertó y me dio cuenta que era esclavo de los video juegos y estaba malgastando la vida.  

¿Qué es una vida malgastada?  ¿Han visto personas que están desperdiciando su vida? 

El libro de Eclesiastés nos ayudará ver lo que dice la Biblia acerca de la vida desperdiciada.  ¿Han leído el libro de Eclesiastés?  Es un libo que me fascina un chorro.  Creo que es uno de los libros más modernos y conecta mucho con el mundo secular.  Pero al empezar, el autor de este libro tiene malas noticias.  Haber que son…

Ec. 1:1 y 2

Éstas son las palabras del Maestro, hijo de David, rey en Jerusalén.

Lo más absurdo de lo absurdo,
      —dice el Maestro—,
   lo más absurdo de lo absurdo,
      ¡todo es un absurdo!

¿Crees que este hombre se siente feliz?  No, estas son las palabras de un hombre quien se siente como que la vida la está desperdiciando.  Tan rápido, tenemos noticias horribles.  Dice que todo es un absurdo. 

¿Qué significa la palabra “absurdo”?  La versión antigua dice “vanidad”.  O se puede decir “sin propósito” o “sin valor” o “vacío”.  Lo más vacío de lo vacío, ¡todo es vacío!  No suena muy agradable.

En otras partes de este libro, el autor describe su vida como “corriendo tras el viento.”  ¿Puede uno atrapar el viento?  Imagino un hombre con una red buscando y casando el viento.  Y cuando el viento sopla, el hombre usa su red y ¿qué crees?  Tal vez atrapa mariposas, pero el viento no.  Que absurdo.  Así se siente el autor.

¿Porque se siente así este hombre?  Ahorita veremos.  Seguimos leyendo en el capítulo dos.

Ec. 2:1

Me dije entonces: «Vamos, pues, haré la prueba con los placeres y me daré la gran vida.» 

“La gran vida.”  Este hombre no quiere una vida desperdiciada.  Quiere la gran vida, una vida excelente y con sentido.  ¿Y cómo la va aprovechar?  Pues con los placeres.  Y ahora nos va a contar acerca de estas pruebas.  Vamos a ver brevemente unos cuatro o cinco ejemplos de una vida desperdiciada y ya con eso terminamos. 

Ejemplo #1:  La Risa

Ec. 2:2

A la risa la considero una locura; en cuanto a los placeres, ¿para qué sirven? 

¿Con cuál placer empieza?  Con la risa.  ¿Les gusta reír?  Seguramente, a todos nos gusta reír.  Hasta a veces cuando nos juntamos como amigos gastamos todo nuestro tiempo en una junta tratando de hacernos reír.  Es que es divertido tener payasos para amigos o ser un payaso.  Muchos de ustedes saben que a mí me gusta reír mucho. 

Las bromas nos sirven de muchas maneras.  Hasta a veces una broma bien ridícula nos puede servir como medicina para los malos sentidos.  Las películas y los programas de televisión que nos hace olvidar de nuestros problemas.  Las cosas que traen el doble sentido son muy comunes y son muy populares.  Y aunque las cosas del doble sentido tienen mucho peligro de ser inapropiados, estamos tentados porque nos gusta tanto reír.  Pero el autor de Eclesiastés nos dice que el humor está chafa.  No nos satisface y no resuelva al problema de la vida desperdiciada.  El autor pregunta, “¿Para qué sirve?”  Continuamos…

Ejemplo #2: El Vino

Ec. 2:3

Quise luego hacer la prueba de entregarme al vino —si bien mi mente estaba bajo el control de la sabiduría—, y de aferrarme a la necedad, hasta ver qué de bueno le encuentra el hombre a lo que hace bajo el cielo durante los contados días de su vida. 

Ahora habla del vino, la cerveza, el alcohol.  ¿Puede uno ser esclavo del alcohol igual como yo era esclavo de los juegos de video? 

El alcohol es una manera muy popular de divertirse.  ¿Saben porque?  Porque el alcohol es una manera muy fácil de olvidar de la problema de la vida malgastada, aunque lo estamos desperdiciando.  Las drogas hacen lo mismo.  Nos controla y nos hacer olvidar, pero no resuelva las problemas.  Entonces, ¿para qué sirven?  Seguimos con el próximo ejemplo…

Ejemplo #3:  El Éxito Material

Ec. 2:4-8

Realicé grandes obras: me construí casas, me planté viñedos, cultivé mis propios huertos y jardines, y en ellos planté toda clase de árboles frutales. También me construí aljibes para irrigar los muchos árboles que allí crecían.

Me hice de esclavos y esclavas; y tuve criados, y mucho más ganado vacuno y lanar que todos los que me precedieron en Jerusalén. Amontoné oro y plata, y tesoros que fueron de reyes y provincias. Me hice de cantores y cantoras, y disfruté de los deleites de los hombres: ¡formé mi propio harén!

¿Te imaginas?  La casa de este chavo tendría que ser padrísimo con casas grandes y jardines bellos.  Tiene esclavos corriendo por todos lados, limpiando las casas, atendiendo los jardines, preparando la comida, contando los tesoros que están amontonando.  ¡Seguramente esa es la gran vida!  ¡Tener éxito en el trabajo!  ¡Tener esclavos bajo mi control!  Amontonar el dinero para comprar cualquier cosa que se me antoja y tener todo el entretenimiento que quiero y tener el poder para jamás negar a mis ojos ningún deseo, ni a mi corazón ningún placer alguno.  Esa es la gran vida que todo el mundo quiere.  Tener éxito en el trabajo, ser jefe de una empresa con muchas personas bajo su control, y amontonar dinero.  ¿Creen que esa es la gran vida?  La Biblia no dice así.  Dice en el 11:

Consideré luego todas mis obras y el trabajo que me había costado realizarlas, y vi que todo era absurdo, un correr tras el viento, y que ningún provecho se saca en esta vida.

Hasta el gran éxito es como casar el viento con una red.  

Todavía nos queda dos ejemplos: la vida malgastada por las relaciones románticas y la vida malgastada por la educación.  Sorprendente ¿no?  Las relaciones románticas y la educación son cosas muy buenas.  Pero aun dice Eclesiastés que estas cosas te pueden robar la vida.  Regresando al versículo 8, vemos:

Ejemplo #4: Las Relaciones Románticas

Amontoné oro y plata, y tesoros que fueron de reyes y provincias. Me hice de cantores y cantoras, y disfruté de los deleites de los hombres: ¡formé mi propio harén!

¿Un harén que es?  Mi entendimiento de un harén es: una casa donde un hombre tiene varias esposas y concubinas.  En esos días los hombres a veces tomaban más que una esposa.  Ósea, el autor tenía varias esposas y concubinas y una familia enorme.  En estos días eso no se vale.  Pero si vale tener varias novios y novias.  Me parece que hoy en día es fácil de tener varias relaciones románticas.  Así es el mundo de hoy.  Y dice el autor que después de formar su propio harén le dio cuenta que el valor que las relaciones románticas estaba agregando a su vida era vacio, absurdo.

Por fin, también habla Eclesiastés sobre la sabiduría en el 9.

            Ejemplo #5: La Sabiduría

Me engrandecí en gran manera, más que todos los que me precedieron en Jerusalén; además, la sabiduría permanecía conmigo.

El autor era muy sabio y muy bien educado.  Se supone que la educación es muy importante para no desperdiciar la vida.  Pero dice en el versículo 15:

Me dije entonces: «Si al fin voy a acabar igual que el necio, ¿de qué me sirve ser tan sabio?» Y concluí que también esto es absurdo,

Amigos, todos se mueren.  Y la vida esta demasiada corta para desperdiciarla.  ¿Han visto como son las estrelláis del cine o de los deportes?  Muchos de los actores quien gana fama y dinero se ponen bien tristes.  ¿Por qué?  Muchos atléticos quienes gana el campeonato, se ponen bien tristes.  ¿Por qué?  Porque para ellos, el éxito era su dios y cuando ganaron la fama, ganaron el dinero, ganaron novios, ganaron sabiduría… apenas les dio cuenta que eso ya no les da alegría.  ¡Desperdiciaron sus vidas!    Dice Eclesiastés que la risa es vacío, el diversión es vacío, los juegos de video son vacíos, el vino es vacío, el éxito—vacío, el dinero—vacío, las relaciones románticas—vacíos, la educación—vacío.  Entienden que no está diciendo que estas cosas son malas.  No dice que siempre es pecado reírte o tener éxito o educación.  Lo que está diciendo es que solitas, todas estas cosas no dan propósito o valor a nuestra vida. 

Entonces, ¿cómo puede uno no desperdiciar la vida?  ¿Quieren saber?  ¿Quieren vivir la gran vida?  ¿De verdad quieren saber que es la solución a la vida desperdiciada? 

Pues ya se nos acabo el tiempo.  Ya es tiempo de acabar el estudio.  Pero hay pasajes en Eclesiastés que te dan la solución a la vida desperdiciada y te dejo como tarea a buscar ustedes mismos y tal vez en la próxima junta, hablamos sobre la solución.  Les doy una pista de la respuesta, y se encuentra en el versículo 25.  ¿Se han dado cuenta que hasta ahorita, el autor de Eclesiastés no ha hablado acerca de Dios?  Qué raro.  Haber:

¿quién puede alegrarse, si no es por Dios? En realidad, Dios da sabiduría, conocimientos y alegría a quien es de su agrado;

Entonces, te dejo como tarea de pensar en esto: ¿Que es la diferencia entre viviendo con Dios o sin Dios?  De eso trata la Biblia.  Mucho de la Biblia nos enseña cómo vivir en la manera de no malgastar la vida.  Te animo a leer Eclesiastés y espero que sigamos aprendiendo como no desperdiciar la vida.