The Reconstructionist

 Seventeen years ago, I wrote the following at the end of the very first blog post here:

We have to rely on Him lest our hearts be shattered to pieces by this imperfect world.

It's been twelve years since my last post. This site's design has broken and makes reading it rather hard. Updates to come, to make consumption less of a test of your patience.

Deconstructing The Secular And Reconstructing A Life That Honors God

When I was a child I was shown that it was important to be a Republican. Focus on the Family told my parents to spank me, and they did. The families that surrounded us spent their energy protecting their children from the evils of the world; there were often few tools of interpretation, compassion, and we lacked a deep orthopraxy. Primarily this came from only studying the themes in the Bible which supported the current lifestyles and culture of these families.

I'm not writing this to place judgement and condemnation on their practices. Wisdom is justified by all her children, and I must learn in humility and wisdom to serve my family and community as a disciple of Jesus the Christ. I am no better; perhaps I am simply more desparate.

Many children of these families pursued a variety of lifestyles not condoned by the Bible, and in some cases to the point of death.

Their was a systemic lack of full obedience to the Bible present in this culture overall, which starts with each individual. What happens when many connected individuals disobey in similar ways? The entire culture sees a pattern of brokenness. This culture, and many others in American churches, have powered the reverse-awakening, the Deconstruction.

It is my humble opinion that the statistics of people leaving churches, leaving faith behind, is a culling akin to the twelve spies of Israel. If ten out of twelve are hypocrites, that is an effective excuse for someone who does not want to humble themselves before God and recieve the gift of salvation provided through the death and resurrection of Jesus, our King.

The Joshuas and Calebs are not simply those posting about Supreme Court decisions they did or didn't like, or those attending protests of various persuasions. Joshuas and Calebs may do those things. But the defining trait of a Joshua or Caleb is to resist the pull to trust in worldly wisdom (often what American Churches and political organizations use to operate) and instead hold on to the real promises of God beyond all calls to separate oneself from it.

And the most devious and destructive places worldy wisdom is used are organizations designated "churches."

That is what I want to deconstruct: everything that was handed to me my the Pharisees that designed a culture that gives them power and comfort. I want to tear that down inside my life (being the set of actions that I take, in aggregate) and my mind (being the set of beliefs I hold, evidences by my life) and my heart (being that fickle thing it is), and reconstruct this small corner of the Kingdom of God he has seen fit to place in me.

The Language of the Disciple

I grieve when I see fellow Christians using the language handed to them by the American political system, for it is not the language of the people of God. The language of the people of God reflects and brings forward the Kingdom of God; the language of the American political system advances its political parties.

Our individual lives, and the lives our of churches as bodies, have a much different scope than political parties. The parties seek your vote. Our churches (should) seek to obey Jesus as their head. For the vast majority of people and churches, this means your scope is your community, your circles of influence.

It is a privelege live in a place where we can seek education on those who would govern us, and vote. Removing oneself from any awareness of politics often indicates that the current set of policies is not actively causing distress to your life. Or it does, and you lack the capacity or desire to learn further.

If a political party is your primary vehicle for the hope of positive results in your community and the United States at large, you have misplaced your hope and you will find it lacks the power to save anyone or anything.

The Internet Is The Marketplace And The Synagogue

The apostles and other servants of God in the new testament often went to places where people would expect to hear teachers speak, or at least where there were many listening ears. They went there physically and engaged in preaching and conversation.

The culture in the United States (though it varies greatly from place to place) often puts suspicion on those who would employ this tactic directly these days. There are ways to do it well, in wisdom and the fruits of the Spirit.

But the power of distribution of ideas on the internet is a paradigm shift. It allows those discussions to happen on scales neverbefore seen. The various mediums of internet communication also come with their own challenges; rarely are you using the internet to talk directly, 1-on-1, with another person. Context, intent, tone, references, all of these become more complicated to communicate.

Many people who are not Christian use the internet to their great advantage, obviously. Many people reshape their principles to conveniently allow for whatever generates them the most influence. It is a challenge for a Christian to create Biblical best practices for this.

Since we know many people are influenced, swayed, and educated by information on the internet, I believe there will be Christians called to use it as a tool to distribute their content (you are reading a blog I started 17 years ago, after all). 

What Is Next For Lest Our Hearts Be Shattered?

If you have somehow found this particular blog post and read all the way to the end, thank you. The internet can break after 17 years so I am unsure this will reach many eyes, at least initially.

As a gauge of who's reading, leave a comment if you're able to. This blog is my reentry into the "marketplace of ideas" to share what I have been reflecting on, and would love to read your thoughts, feedback, rebuttals, or bad jokes, whatever you may share.

The blog will receive some lightly updated visuals (the name will remain) and a new platform likely by the end of the year, to make this place findable and readable. Maybe even some social media accounts if our readers would be helped by seeing the content on multiple channels.

Thank you, Dear Reader.