There’s a term in software engineering speak called “legacy code,” which essentially refers to leftover stuff from older versions of a particular software. Sometimes its necessary to make sure the old stuff works right alongside with the new, and sometimes the decision is made to cut off support altogether (anybody try to run some of their old DOS games on their nifty Windows 7 machine?) In either case – whether the code is just there for archival purposes, or to maintain compatibility, I’d venture to say that there’s always something to learn from it for the programmer, either in the form of mistakes and inefficiencies or brilliance in a prior version. In other words, there is much to be learned from those who have gone before.
Another, perhaps more powerful, set of examples is this – Marcia and I were recently talking about examples of people who left behind their respected positions in their home countries to come to the United States in the hope of creating a better opportunity for the next generation. A doctor in her home country becoming a part-time language teacher here. A policeman in his home country becoming a custodian here. An engineer in his home country becoming a store operator here. In any of these cases, a certain amount of sacrifice happened with their arrival in the States. Years of training set aside. More years of experience (from a career perspective) placed down for the sake of the next generation. That takes courage and love.
Reminds me of the ancient Israelites. Abraham lifted up his family to travel hundreds of miles to place he never knew on God’s Word that he would multiply his descendants like the stars. Moses, Aaron, and his generation did some heavy lifting getting the people out of slavery in Egypt, following that promise, only to get to the edge of the land God gave to them, never to enter it. It was Joshua’s generation that made it into the promised land, and even they didn’t see the full realization of what God had in store. Interestingly, the initial set of commands given to Joshua speak of legacy code, in a sense. Joshua 1:8 says, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Throughout the Old Testament, one of the repeated themes is that of remembering. These Israelites were never supposed to forget where they came from, what God did for them, and what God said to them. I can’t help but also think of them telling stories of past mistakes too. Legacy Code, B.C. style.
Just last month I finished an intensive study on 2 Timothy 2:1-13, looking in depth at the sense of legacy that Paul sought to pass on to the next generation of Christians in the first century. I’ll write more on it later, but one of the particularly interesting things about 2 Timothy is that it’s Paul’s last letter, and you catch a glimpse of what’s near and dear to his heart by examining it. He had many ambitions, some realized, many not. Yet his legacy lives on in his writings and teachings, carried along by the Spirit. I think I’m starting to get why history is so important. It’s not only the study of it and gleaning principles and lessons from the past, but the very fact that those that have gone before us have paved the way and opened up new opportunities for us that God is waiting for us to walk into. What will we leave for the next generation? We may never know, but I’d sure like to do whatever my part is to help create something better.
Happy New Year everyone! I hope your 2010 is filled with peace and joy. To kick off the new year, here are some thoughts and links:
One: Daniel Curran writes about end-vision, “Any church-planting or missions movement that does not begin and end with Jesus’ beautiful vision of truly ‘discipling all peoples’ (Matthew 28: 16-20) is not worthy of Jesus.” He’s got some really good thoughts in there, check it out.
Two: Got a new year’s resolution to volunteer more? My friends over at the Page Street Center could always use a hand. They run a food pantry on Monday afternoons that I’ve gotten to be a part of, and some other programs throughout the week.
Three: Digital trends for the future – Christmas Day marked the first time ever that digital books outsold printed books at amazon.com. While there’s some logic to that (i.e., someone getting a Kindle as a present), it is interesting to see how digital media shifts how people live. That said, sometimes it’s just nice to have a physical, printed book in your hands as you read.
Four: Speaking of digital, I’ve been taking notes on a computer for quite some time now, and I’m giving Evernote a go again in an attempt to collect all these ideas in my head in one place. Plus, it syncs with multiple computers and devices (and it’s accessible on the web). It’s free, so give it a try if you’re in the same boat.
Five: Finally, in the midst of uncertainty and a constantly changing environment, there’s a solid rock that never fails. God reminded me of that this week as I read through Luke 12. Jesus starts in Luke 12:22-23, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.” The bookend in Luke 12:33-34 is this: “Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
A while back, I had the privilege of speaking at a men’s retreat about the idea of wisdom. In my preparation for it, God led me to 1 Corinthians 1:18-31, and what Paul writes about as the antithesis to worldly wisdom as portrayed in the cross. I think worldly wisdom breaks down into one of three categories: Consumerism, Compartmentalization, and Convenience. The vast majority of our decisions get passed through a matrix that involves something from one or more of these categories, and informs how we live in a profound way. Since we’ve just emerged from the advertising saturated months of November and December, I’ll start with consumerism.
One of the interesting things about the first-century city of Corinth is that it was known for being a place where status mattered based on who people knew, not unlike the world we live in today. In fact, people were known for “buying” friends so that they could appear more important to the rest of society. Today, our world tells us that happiness can be bought, for the right price. I was particularly struck by this when a friend pointed us to The Story of Stuff, which is a clever video that demonstrates how consumerism has infested how we think about almost everything. Think about it:
Black Friday is one of the most anticipated days of the fall.
When a new _____ (fill in the blank) comes out, we’re convinced that our old _____ is obsolete.
In Christian circles we have a term called “church-shopping.”
All of this drives us to believe that if we can just get the next thing that fits our perceived needs, we’ll be satisfied. I’m not immune to this. People in college used to connect me to the expressions, “I can’t stop eating,” and “Buy more, save more.” Now I would say things partially in jest, but I think part of it pointed to an inner reality that accumulation of things – objects, food, friends, or status symbols (think college degrees or that cool job) – would lead to an inner joy. But it never does.
The cross tells us a different story. Where consumerism asks the question what can I buy?, the cross gives the answer: you’ve been bought. A big part of what I’ve been learning is that spiritual vitality is deeply intertwined with sustainable living. That means physical, emotional, and spiritual sustainability. Now, consumerism constantly feeds our addiction to accumulate more for ourselves in order to fulfill our longing for satisfaction, propelling us into an unsustainable cycle – physically, emotionally, and spiritually – that will only leave us high and dry in the end. The gospel, on the other hand, points us to the sustainable source of unending joy – Jesus Christ himself. If our complete hope and identity is built on the cross, then what emerges out of that is sustainable living, and hence, spiritual vitality. It can’t be built in the other direction: seeking certain types of output and hoping that it fills our core need won’t work.
That’s what we want to be a part of building here in the city: sustainable life patterns that find their root in the gospel and sprout healthy, joy-filled, vibrant living. Everything that we do, all our decisions, all our spending patterns, are fed through the matrix of the gospel. I’m in. What do you say?
*Here’s a preview of that video, by the way. I’d highly recommend watching it.
It’s the day after Christmas, the skies are a classic SF overcast, my stomach is still full from a night of feasting, and it’s great to be home. I hope you had a wonderful day resting, eating, traveling, or whatever you were up to. I’m particularly thankful for family and friends, and the huge blessing it is to be free to simply be together.
One: Some good friends introduced us to the music of Sara Groves, and her songwriting, themes, and sound are powerful and inspiring. And right now, you can download her latest album Fireflies And Songs for just five bucks.
Two: As we celebrate Christmas, one of the most striking words that comes to mind is “Immanuel,” meaning “With us, GOD.” At our church community gathering earlier in December, we were reading through the full lyrics of the song “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” and we were struck by the depth of the words. Just this week, I got to the section in New Testament Theology where he discusses the connection between the Gospels and the Old Testament. He made a profound connection (for me) between the beginning and end of the gospel of Matthew: “We also see a theme that frames the entire book of Matthew. Jesus is Immanuel – God with us (Matt. 1:23) – and the book concludes with Jesus’ words, ‘I am with you always, to the end of the age.’ All that the OT teaches about God being with his people is fulfilled in Jesus as Immanuel.” (Schreiner, 73)
Three: Any Bible software geeks out there? Logos is running their Christmas Specials through the end of the year. Some pretty good stuff in there.
Four: My friend Leslie Kim has a timely thought about joy in the midst of chaos, in which she concludes, “joy overcomes the chaos, putting the flotsam and jetsam of my life in perspective. Peace, joy, blessedness reign.”
Indeed, may joy reign in your life as 2009 comes to a close.
We here in the San Francisco Bay Area suffer from a disease called busy. The land of hour plus commutes, wall-to-wall weekends, work weeks going into the triple digit hours, constant web surfing on your iPhone/Blackberry/Droid/Palm – you know what I mean. I got to thinking about this on my morning bus ride while reading The Contemplative Pastor by Eugene Peterson, specifically in chapter two, entitled “The Unbusy Pastor.” His main point there is that a pastor can get so caught up in the busy, filling time with all sorts of seemingly meaningful tasks while missing the whole point altogether. At one point, he makes this striking suggestion as to the cause of the busy-ness: “I am busy because I am vain. I want to appear important. Significant.”*
And I think that’s true not only for “pastor-types,” but of all sorts of types here with the frenetic pace of life we lead. We were talking about it for a little bit tonight, and I thought, could our inclination toward busy-ness be a byproduct of having so many choices? The Bay Area affords us so many opportunities for finding the perfect job, the right neighborhood to live in, the grocery store with the best options (from our place can walk to Safeway, Trader Joe’s, Smart & Final, and a whole host of Chinese supermarkets), public school or private school, day care, parks, cell phone plans, computers, whatever. But I wonder with all of that choice, we get saddled with a paralyzing busy-ness that Satan wants us to get all caught up in and distracted. The gospel tells us something else, that we’re not to get swept up in all these different things to the point they take our focus away from what really matters, loving God and loving people.
This week is Christmas, when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, who in Himself brings good news that is of lasting significance, not just the appearance of it. Let’s not forget that in the midst of this season.
*Eugene H. Peterson, The Contemplative Pastor : Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction (Waco: Word Books, 1989), 27.
