Korean Dramas: Hallyu or Hallelujah?

 On August 7, 2012 evil June told me to watch a show called City Hunter.

Me: What's that?!
June: It's a Korean drama
Me: With subtitles and stuff?! Nah...
June: Yes, but I hear they're really good!
Me: I'll watch the first 3 episodes of City Hunter if you watch the first 3 episodes of Downton Abbey
June: Deal

At the time, Downton Abbey was my latest obsession. I'd watched the first 2 seasons in a whirlwind, and wanted to share its greatness with June. But...you can't get her to do anything without striking a deal of some sort (this is indicative of some unhealthy flaw in our friendship, but I digress). In any case, it was the beginning of an addiction.

Korean dramas are typically between 16 and 25 episodes, with each episode approximately an hour long. From August 7 to September 21, I've watched the following:

Boys Over Flowers

1. City Hunter
2. Boys Over Flowers
3. Stars Falling from the Sky
4. IRIS
5. Secret Garden
6. King 2 Hearts
7. Rooftop Prince

So in 40+ days I've spent over 140 hours watching subtitled television exported from South Korea. And loved it! It was like crack to my inner tv junkie. I'm yelling at the TV, shaking my little fist at it; I'm laughing, I'm crying, and I'm telling every person who will hear me about how GREAT Korean dramas are. I find myself saying things like: "The King and Kim Hang Ah's love is real"! I'm like on fire for Korean dramas.

King 2 Hearts

Huh? I'm on fire for Korean drama, the way Christians should be on fire for Christ. The way I consume episodes, is the way I should consume Bible verses. The way I tell everyone they should watch them, is the way I should tell everyone to accept Christ. But wait, why am I down on myself?  I've written 133 blogs, and 90% of them are about the Christian experience. So what then is making me feel weird?

I was crazily off-balance. 
 

Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?... Isaiah 55:2 

Why that scripture? Well, I was feeding myself with what wasn't food, and filling myself up with what didn't satisfy. The more I tried to satisfy my mind and my heart with romcoms and melodramas, the more traumatically unsatisfied I became.

140 hours given to Hallyu; less than 140 hours given to "Hallelujah" in my quiet time, and in the church service, and in studying for my blog writing. I can't live on Hallyu, but I actually can live (eternally) on Hallelujah:

Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Matthew 4:4

The thing that gives me life: The Word of God...woefully neglected, for like 40+ days.

I spent more time thinking on the good-lookingness of Lee Min Ho* than I did on the goodness of Jesus! Ah!!

So, I had to re-center, re-focus...because it was kind of killing me. I had become so depressed...and it took me a while to realize why. So I had to get back into quiet time. Get back into blogging. Get back into serving. And I already feel better. It can be turned around in a moment!

So is K-drama out of my life? No, no, no. NO. It's just going to be a much smaller part. Goodbye hours upon hours of parroting "kamsamnida" and "Fighting!" back to my screen. It's been real.

I actually might sneak in a "Best of K-drama" blog now and then...but my opinion means little given that there are literally 1000s of these dramas and I've seen 7. That being said:

ROOFTOP PRINCE IS THE BEST! Watch it...right after you read Romans 8!!

What do we allow to steal our focus?


*I got so distracted looking at photos of him. Gotta take every thought captive! LOL

I'm Disobedient

This weekend I realized: I'm disobedient.

For the first time in over 3 years, I went to Cedar Point, "The Best Amusement Park in the World". While there, I rode one of my favorite rides: Top Thrill Dragster.

Upon entering the line, I am met with this sign:

Then when you get into the car, this is what you see on the back of every seat:

And then, when you're at the start line you see this:

On top of all that, an announcer is using every opportunity to enumerate these simple rules. So, one has to believe that if you hear and see the rules this many times...they mean it.

But, on roller coasters, I LOVE to have my hands up. I can hear. I can read. But still, I disobeyed. I put my hands up, and then TTD took a turn, or twisted, or did something at "break neck" speeds, and my arms were up so I wasn't braced, and my upper body was just slammed down. Ribs bruised. It was the cost of my disobedience.

The big question is: why did I do it? To enhance the experience.

Being shot up 420 feet at 120mph is simply not enough. Clearly, I have to do something to enhance my experience. The something that I do is disobedience. And it actually took away from my experience. What I didn't realize, but I do now, is that the ride is built for my enjoyment and the safety parameters are set to ensure that I receive optimal enjoyment of the ride.


It's the same thing in your walk with Christ. We're living life with our hands up, trying to enhance the experience. We read about "it" in our quiet time, we get held accountable about "it" in our small group, and we hear "it" preached as if it was meant just for us on Sunday mornings at service, and yet...we do our own thing, because we want our life set on optimal enjoyment. I call it "it" because there is variation among us. Everyone has their own life optimization plan that is somewhat outside of the parameters. Whether you're adding sexual immorality to your life optimization plan, if the love of money/power is part of your optimization plan, or if you just have a mentally-satisfying-but-totally-inappropriate thought life that is part of your optimization plan...believe it's taking away from your experience.

Why/How? Because the ride is built for your enjoyment and the safety parameters are set to ensure that you receive optimal enjoyment of the ride:

"... I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10

Why would Jesus come to give you a full life, if it's really not a full life? This is of course rhetorical. Your life is not full, because you seek to fill it yourself. We're not looking for fulfillment in Christ, because we don't always believe that total fulfillment can be found there. And so while we're busy trying to enhance the experience with disobedience, we find ourselves less and less fulfilled, sometimes even hurt. Ribs bruised. The cost of disobedience. 

“Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” Luke 11:28

Obedience leads to happy contentment. Why do we think other roads lead there? Food for thought.

The Law of Give and Take

...Or maybe I just love really "put together" people. I had a moment of conviction a few days ago while reading my small group book The Reason for God by Timothy Keller. In general, it's not my favorite book, but occasionally this guy has some legit nuggets of wisdom:

In the real world of relationships it is impossible to love people with a problem or a need without in some sense sharing or even changing places with them. All real life-changing love involves some form of this kind of exchange. It requires very little of you to love a person who is pulled together and happy. Think, however, of emotionally wounded people. There is no way to listen and love people like that and stay completely emotionally intact yourself. - Timothy Keller*

I used to think that "sacrificial love" meant loving people in spite of their crap. Turning the other cheek. Loving people when it hurt your pride to do so. And it totally does! But, the aforementioned quote got me thinking about this:

Giving of yourself vs. Giving up yourself

And this is why I love the bible. I can quote a verse forever, and not realize that I didn't get it. Isn't that crazy? I was writing last year about Lenten sacrifice, and didn't really get the give and take of sacrificial giving.  I often think of sacrifice as a choice. And sometimes it is. We'll give something up for something that we think has greater benefit. But in the quote, sacrifice is a result.

In order for something to be given...something else has to be taken.

And therein lies the rub! I don't want to lose anything as a result of loving people. The only way to ensure this is to either 1) love people only up to a certain point, or 2) only love people who are really put together.

But what happens when that "put together" person falls apart? ...That's why they say in hard times, you "find out who your friends are". The people who stick around, the people who hold your hand, the people who hug you and let you cry it out...they are being your strength because all of yours has run out. And they are doing this at a cost. When you give your strength to someone who has none...strength is leaving you. For real.



How do I know?

The woman with the issue of blood.

When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?” 

 Mark 5: 27 - 30

The faith aspect of this is AH-MAZING, and I'll possibly cover it some other time; but the clincher here is that when she touched Jesus, she took power; she took the healing that she needed from Jesus.

So how can I prevent something, that even Jesus couldn't prevent? And even beyond that, how can I live life attempting to circumvent the true nature of love, as laid out by God? What do I mean by that? I'm saying that love results in sacrifice, just like Tim Keller said.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

God loved so much that he gave. Love results in sacrifice. If I love you...I am sacrificed. If I love God...I am sacrificed.

MAN that sucks! It sucks because I want love to be EASY. But there is no easy love. There is no cheap grace.

 Is this what it means when the pastor says to "pour yourself out" for others? Oh. No.

*Keller, Timothy (2008-02-14). The Reason for God (p. 191). Penguin Group. Kindle Edition.

Jesus is a Dentist: Anxiety

Me: Jesus...I was just thinking, you're kind of like a dentist.
Jesus (gasping): What?! This is blasphemy!
Me (shocked): Lord, I'm so sorry, but why?!
Jesus: I'm a real doctor





So this blog is a continuation of my previous I Hate the Dentist post, where I outlined that coming to Christ is like going to the dentist in three major ways:

• The Anxiety
• The Invasive Nature of the Process
• The Cost

Going into more detail on just...

ANXIETY
Anxiety is a word easily described as "fear." But I like looking at the opposite words: certainty, serenity, and tranquility. Anxiety is the absence of those things, and when you feel that way about the dentist or God it will prevent you from approaching Him. You never know what's going to happen in the dentist's/"dentist's" office. Our uncertainty often comes from two places:

1. Who we are? Dentist - Have I exercised awesome home care? God - Have I already gotten too far away from Him with my lifestyle. In short: Am I already too far gone.
2. Who He is? Dentist - Is he a mean dentist? An honest dentist? What's he gonna do to me?! God - Is He really as loving as they say? Does He really forgive all sin? What's He gonna do to me?!

I can't speak for the dentist, but the anxiety that we feel towards God is misplaced. Jesus longs to be with you. Jesus hit the scene for many reasons, but I'm gonna to give you three anxiety-killing reasons why you should feel certain about Christ:

First, Jesus finds and hangs out with people that other folks have written off: 

Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him. Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” 

Luke 15: 1- 2

 

That's right. Jesus will make Himself available to people that most other people hate on principle (i.e. anyone with the word "tax" in their job title), as well as legitimately terrible sinners. He wasn't worried about what they had done, or who they had been, or who's legs they had broken to collect a debt. He was there, with that particular group,because...

 

Second, Jesus rescues folks: 

...the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20:28

Ransom? Ransom is the paid redemption of a prisoner, slave, or kidnapped person. He gave his life to rescue mankind from the clutches of sin and death. We were rescued! Sometimes you don't know where you stand in a relationship, but Christ considers you to be a friend (John 15:13).

Third, Jesus wants to be cool with you:

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. 

Revelation 3:20

Jesus makes an open invitation for fellowship...He wants to come over for dinner!  The Last Supper was not the "last" supper.  He's looking for relationship.With us.

Now for some theft. I have a friend who wrote something in an e-mail chain that was so profound, it almost put tears in my eyes. And I had to use it...and give him credit. 

"It is God constantly seeking to use His power base to bend the rules or create a means of having the garden back. You think that we are the only ones that miss the garden? The innocence of man? The evening strolls? The late day conversations? The joy of sending all of creation before Adam just to see what man would call them? The scripture says all of creation groans, awaiting a day of return to the garden. (Romans 8:19) Don’t you think God also longs for those moments again? This is what David knew, that God’s emotional, perfect Will was driving everything to restore a relationship lost." 

- Justin Lamar

Anxious? Don't be. 

I Hate the Dentist

This morning, I went to the dentist after a three year hiatus. The hiatus is especially shameful given that there is a dentist operating out of my apartment building. However, like most people, I'm not really a fan of the dentist. Prior to heading downstairs, I was in the bathroom flossing, brushing, and gargling with mouthwash. I wanted my teeth to be clean before having them cleaned, because it had been so long. The thought that my teeth were gross, created all sorts of legit fear. And I thought to myself: why have I waited so long? And I narrowed it down to these three:

The Anxiety
 I had kind of fallen down on flossing in the past couple of months. I hadn't given it up completely, I just didn't do it every night like in times past. Sometimes, you get home really late, and you just hurriedly brush your teeth and fall into bed. Or, sometimes, you're out of floss, you go to the grocery store, buy everything BUT floss, and decide: "I'm not going back out there." I feel like I have the basics: toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash. But, I get worried that (1) my gums will bleed when they start doing their little scraping, which will (2) lead to a lecture on flossing, which ends with (3) shame. I also fear they will tell me I have cavities...

The Invasive Nature of it All
I'm not thrilled when strangers touch me. So, you can imagine I really don't like it when their hands are IN my mouth, and they are lifting and twisting and turning my tongue. It's gross. They're putting little metal sticks right on my sensitive gums, and scraping. Dental Hygienist...you are too close!

Also, I HATE HATE HATE the X-rays. It hurts when you bite down on the little X-ray sticks so they can take the picture. I feel really exposed and vulnerable just laying there. And they put a stupid apron over your body--to shield you from radiation I guess. But I'm always thinking: but you're X-raying MY FACE. I guess it can't be helped. No protection to be had for my face.

Side Note: I quite enjoy the polishing. That weird toothpaste they use with the little red sand...I love it! Only because my teeth feel SO clean afterwards. It makes it all worth it.

The Cost
What if they find a cavity, or receding gums, or gingivitis? Then...thou art screwed. Insurance helps a little, but I've spent a lot of money over the years in dental care. And it's unavoidable. If a tooth hurts, it's excruciating, and you HAVE to get it fixed. You're all like "money is no object" when money is always an object...just not at the dentist.

And I started thinking: this is kind of like going to church. Kind of like becoming a Christian. How so?

1. There is anxiety in taking that first step, because sometimes we don't feel good enough or "nice" enough, or like the type of person who should be at anyone's church. We've done things. Or we haven't done things that we should've and you can fear "they" will tell you that you have "cavities."
   
2. Church is super invasive. Salvation is really nitty gritty, personal, in your face drama. I really can't sugarcoat it. When you are at the dentist, those tools HAVE to go in your mouth. When you're reading the Bible, and you're listening to sermons, it's going straight to your heart...and you feel it. And it kind of hurts.
3. Being a Christian is legitimately a life of sacrifice. And it will cost you. Anyone who tells you that it will not cost you, and who is selling you this hippy dippy version of Christianity has tricked you but good. "Take up your cross and follow me" is real (Luke 9:23).

I will expound on those three points in my next blog: Jesus is a Dentist.

Absolution or Absolutely Not: Being Nice

 
So, clearly, I've been having a writing drought this month. Part of this is because I simply don't have any new ideas. The other part is I don't really have time to form any new ideas because I'm working so much. The month following a quarter-end (March 31, June 30, September 30, and December 31) is a brutal time for me. I have worked over 24 hours straight before. In the past 6 months I've missed two concerts because I was working so late I couldn't go...one of them was last week. It was Ingrid Michaelson. I was a little bit crushed. Add on to that, I was working until nearly midnight and eating things like Panera and Taco Bell for dinner. I was sad. And drained. And eventually, I turned into a raging B%#$*. (see note*)

I wasn't being unprofessional, but  I'm ashamed to say I wasn't very nice for maybe 2 whole days. And when it was over, and I had calmed myself down with contemporary gospel on Spotify, I realized: There's no way I was shining the light of Christ on those days.

Not. At. All.


But do I have to be nice? All the time? Regardless of circumstances? 

I felt kinda bad, so I started looking for absolution. GOOGLE! What did I google? "Do Christians have to be nice." Google is great for finding absolution. You can find a nice blog, or a cool sermon that really caters to your nonsense. For example, I found a blog that said:

"This belief [regarding Christians being nice] will destroy the ability to for Christians to have any influence because nice people always finish last. Jesus was not a nice man.  Jesus broke the rules, got in fights, disrespected the leaders, did what he was told not to do, and even broke tradition.  Jesus is not nice, Jesus is dangerous and unpredictable."

Absolution or Absolutely Not? 

Sigh. Absolutely not. At least, absolutely not in my case. First of all, I see where this guy is going with the above quote. Christians are called to live bold lives WHEN IT COMES TO SPREADING THE GOSPEL. But Jesus broke no laws, He fulfilled it (Matthew 5:17). License to be mean: revoked.

I don't know how you can call a guy who heals the sick, raises the dead, and feeds the hungry multitudes a "meanie" but...whatevs. I know what he's getting at. Jesus did shake things up, but it's not because he was having a bad day. License to be mean: revoked.

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 

Ephesians 4:29 (NASB)

She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. 

Proverbs 31:26 (NASB)

Proverbs 31 Woman? Not me. Not last week. 

I wonder what else I have tried to absolve myself of...and did I succeed? 

*Note: I don't curse. So even in my mind, that's a "bleep" but trust me, the "bleep" was real.

Frank Ocean and Public Opinion

Frank Ocean came out of the closet this weekend, and immediately Jay-Z and Beyonce came out in support of him. This show of support could save his career. Regardless of my religious views, great music is great music. Period. Case in point: Tegan and Sara. I will rock out to "Call it Off" in my car like I just want to "break my own heart" right there in my Jetta. What awes me about the Frank Ocean saga is not the bravery of a hip-hop artist coming out of the closet (b/c I don't care), but rather the way in which Jay-Z and Beyonce might actually have the ability and the power to shape the landscape of public opinion.

And I thought: who's shaping my opinion? What changes my mind when I hear it? Who's seal of approval sparks my own approval? 

And I thought: The Woman Caught in Adultery

This is a famous occurrence in the Bible and people quote it ALL the time, when they don't want judgment to fall on them. However, it's conveniently forgotten when they feel the need to pass judgment.

Setting: The Temple at Dawn
Sitch: The Pharisees have just brought a woman who they "caught" in adultery to Jesus saying:

“Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” ...But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger... he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” ...At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time...until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said “Then neither do I condem you,”Jesus declared. 

Excerpts of John 8:3-11

 

Prior to JC speaking  a word, everyone approved of her stoning. Everyone's opinion was shaped in the same way. But then, out of nowhere,  Jesus re-shaped the landscape of public opinion. Right then, in the midst of what had to have been mob mentality, Jesus changed minds. And here's what's crazy:

Their opinion was based in fact. 

We know "You shall not commit adultery" is one of the 10 commandments, as well as just being icky behavior. Per a little research, I found out that  Jewish law treated adultery as super serious because it (1) violated God's ordinance and (2) wreaked havoc on the stability of marriage and family life.  Does that sound familiar? Since they were right, all they needed to do was throw the first stone. Maybe they had forgotten how to throw stones?

 Again, their opinion was based in fact.

This woman was caught in the act of adultery. The Law did command them to stone such a person...but yet they were dissuaded from throwing stones. In a pistols at dawn moment, Jesus shot Grace over Law. And he shot everyone in the heart, by introducing self-examination into the judgment process.

She's an adulterer. But what are you?

And before you say you're perfectly awesome, please check 1 John 1:8 and settle down.There, there, settle down.

But Jesus, being sinless and...ummm God, was certainly in a position to condemn her, but He didn't. And it is not like He was endorsing her lifestyle, because at the end of v. 11 He says "Go, and sin no more." But rather, He (1) dismissed all the people who judgment didn't belong to, and (2) as the one person with judgment authority...He pardoned.

Look down.

Is there a stone in your hand? If so, who's shaping the landscape of your opinion? ...Because odds are it's not Christ.