What does resurrection mean to you?

On Easter Sunday (yes, a few weeks ago now), we were asked if we wanted to share a little something about what Easter means to us.

Easter for me is about death and resurrection.

I didn't prepare anything. I didn't expect to have anything to say, but when the moment came, I was compelled to share a few words.

Through tears and trembling, I said something like:

Resurrection and Easter is about:

Hope where there was none

Peace when their is none

Life where their is none

Grace where their is none

Wholeness where their is none

Strength where their is none

Forgiveness where their is none

How about you?

PS: I love this little video about resurrection.

water works.

I've found myself much more likely to cry recently. It's not an easy thing to say, but it's the truth. I'm sure I won't be the first person to say that, but there you are.

What points me towards precipitation? More often than not, it's stories. Stories about life, allegories intended to teach, hopeless and hopeful stories.

Our traditions of storytelling are many and varied, and the ones I connect with most obviously are probably films. But books do it for me too. In fact some recent songs have brought me to tears.

It's usually tales of reconciliation that get me the most. Of estranged family members reconciling. Of the lost child coming home. Of the proud parent realising that love is more important.

But it's the reality of the story that makes it all the more compelling for me. That doesn't mean it has to be in what we'd call the "real world", or in the present. But it has to be *real*. Which is something else, isn't it.

So it's good to weep. It helpful to admit that we aren't that pillar of strength - a rock that cannot be shifted. We are human, after all.

If it's great news or something devastatingly harsh, tears are alright.

Is there a link between turning people away from a B&B and the Apple iPad?

Now that's a daft question.

Of course there isn't.

Or is there.

Privacy, rights and permission are in the focus at the moment:

there's the gay couple being turned away from a home-run Bed & Breakfast

There's the US preacher who was stopped from speaking (and arrested) because he was "anti-gay".

Then there's apple's drive to open up a new market - and control it.

Reading this about the iPad (Cory Doctorow on BoingBoing), I recognised a lot to agree with. I also read this about the iPad (Stephen Fry in Time magazine) and was taken by the quest for engineering purity. And this is worth a read too.

There's two worlds colliding: freedom & control.

Both Doctorow & Fry talk about both ideas.

Doctorow wants freedom to tinker/understand, control over what his devices can do (and what content he can use them for.

Fry wants freedom from glitch-laden hardware & software, allowing him to control how he interacts with content.

Those who run a B&B from their home want the right to say who they welcome into their home. Others want the right to stay in any place that makes itself available as a B&B.

A guy who passionately believes something wants to respond with his views (non-violently) when people ask, others want to be able to silence people who disagree with them. Whether he's right or wrong in your view - the fact he was locked up for answer people's questions and expressing his opinion - without violence. Hmm...

Clearly, there's a ton of detail being missed here, and I'm not coming down on one side of the other, but I think there's a link.

The iPad is beautiful (I'm told). It's functionally amazing and heralds another shift in how we interact with content.

But that it's locked down - which means there's limitations on what can be done on the platform. It's controlled. Not that is an entirely bad thing. Infact, it may help prevent our children who are fast becoming users of these tools & technology.

But this is one to watch. Particularly given that Apple have announced a new form of advertising on their mobile devices - and "ads will have access to location, accelerometer, and a lot of other stuff."

I ain't preachin' fear, but do you think we should have our eyes open and be aware of what's going on around us?

Hard work

We miss a lot of that out.

I was watching Chuggington with Beth the other day. It was the one with the ice cream maestro "Frostini" and his quest for an innovative flavour for the banquet. Anyway - being a train, he couldn't mix the ice cream by hand. He had a machine to do that.

He had a machine to do some of the hard work. It responded to his instructions, but ultimately, the machine took the strain.

So we watch films or tv - and in the interests of plot movement, time saving or generally staving off boredom for those watching in on the lives of the people involved - we don't see the full story. We miss some of the hard work out.

My earliest memory of this comes from Blue Peter: "here's one I prepared earlier". Or perhaps "here's one we took time to make in a more intentional manner".

Then it's the A-Team and the inevitable montage (with purposeful music) where some form of battering ram/armoured car/flying fortress/tank was made from a few sheets of steel, the sweat from Murdoch's head and the power of Mr T's stare. Willing suspension of disbelief aside, we were whisked through the hard work in a few seconds and amazed by their Maker ability.

I get it. I do. I understand why it's like that. It's entertainment, right?

Just ask anyone trying to start/grow/maintain a small business in these days: we don't build an armoured car in a few hours, no matter how strong your glare is. We don't learn to play the violin in a few time-elapsed minutes. We can't grieve and find some semblance of *normality* in a few seconds, no matter how soothing the soundtrack.

I think about the weeWeir growing up and learning to do pretty much everything for the first time. She'll need to work hard at many things. I hope to encourage her not to skip the hard work, sure find ways to improve how she works, but many things in life are about the journey more than the destination. About learning how to as much as arriving.

Or should we just find the shortest route possible and do things as easily and cheaply as we can?

Maybe I'm reading this wrong and the storytellers are trying to let us see the hard work. Maybe it's my perception that's wired the wrong way!

What's your take?

Lens: What am I nurturing?

I'm reminded of the tension of parenthood.

Often we hear that people "weren't brought up to behave like that". Or "he's not normally like that".

A recent experience of being around other parents and children (a good thing) left me thinking about how we protect our children from evil. From injustice. From suffering. It's because we love them and want the best for them right?

And protecting them from self-obsession.

How we bring the reality of life, how to handle feelings of rejection and being lied to are all influenced by our worldview. Our worldview is shaped by our lens. And our lens is formed by our surroundings.

And so it's easy to see how the way I view the world will have an impact on the weeWeir. If the way I see the world is with eyes of hope, faith and love, then let that be real for her. If I see the world as doomed, failed and wretched then I'm not sure she'd want to hang around here all that much.

Lord, let my lens be clean, clear and centred on Your reality. That you love the world and gave your life for us.

Environments

Such a clear way of illustrating the different worlds we can inhabit.

Coming from the business side of the tracks in the recent academically-driven "Vitrtualisation & Society" event, I noticed the apparent disconnect between the two. I'm not saying either extremes are wrong, but they need to be mindful of each other. Infact, we live in the tension of these worlds!

(cartoon from XYCD here)

"stop trying to hit me, and hit me"

One of the many memorable moments in The Matrix was where Morpheus says those words to Neo. It always felt to me like he was really saying was "stop thinking about and just do it".

As I listen to people's stories to help me get better at telling stories, I find a lot of layers, lots of complexity and plenty of intrigue. I guess that's life.

But why do we like the intricacy? What is it about the analysis of something that can lead to such in-activity? Many of us have categorised a film as no good because the story wasn't interesting enough. But why? Are we so cerebral in our culture that we NEED complexity. We almost crave it. I know I enjoy the challenge of re-arraning the complex into something I can follow.  But that's not to say that complex isn't right either.

Listening to the Passion Podcast yesterday and the Something Beautiful podcast this morning there were two strong examples of the simplicity of what Jesus seems to call the Church to be. To Love God and Love people. No matter the cost. Be it our time, money and even our intellect.

Spending time with a child exposes how complex we have made things. BabyB will play with simple things, enjoy the simplest of books or at times, just be held - and that's enough. Am I that siimple in my living of life for the Kingdom of God?

NOTE: I am not advocating that we disengage our thinking. We are made this way for a reason. However, let's revel in the childlike, simple faith that walks thru life hand-in-hand with the God who makes Himself known. Let's live in the tension between understanding and faith.

God, let me live my love out loud today.