Done!

About 2 hours ago, I completed my final assignment as a DTS student (a forum post for an online course). I have completed all the requirements for a Masters of Theology (ThM) degree, just waiting for the final grade :-)

This was a *long* road (6 and a half years!). Along the way I read and studied all 66 books of the Bible (5 - Ruth, Jonah, Romans, Ephesians and Phillipians - in the original language), read another 17,000+ pages, attended 1500+ hours of lectures, wrote 476 pages of various papers (longest came in at 32 pages) and gave 10 sermons. All while getting engaged, working full-time, getting married, having a son and buying a house.

God has shown me His grace and provision. He has broken me down and built me back up in Christ.

I look back and can't believe I'm finally done and wonder how I made it. But somehow here I am, glory to God!

Props

So as some of you know, this has been a busy past few months in the Owens household. On January 1, we welcomed Steven "Asa" Owens into the world. While the first few weeks were very rough with him waking up about every 45 minutes to an hour, things got a lot better and now he sleeps from about 8 pm to 6:15 am. As soon as he started getting a little more sleep, Lora and I embarked on buying a house.

We have been talking about buying a house for a couple of years, with one house or another catching our eye every once and awhile. We were referred to a realtor named Randall Simpson, who each time advised us not to buy a house as the time was not right for us. When we finally started looking we called up Randall only to find out he is no longer in Real Estate (he started a business as a CPA). I felt bad since Randall had given us so much good advice in the past I want to work with him when it was time for us to buy. He did refer us to Harold Smith, an excellent mortgage broker who helped us figure out what we could really afford (and he gave us a realistic picture not some 'stretched to the max' scenario). Harold in turn referred us to Sharon Hargett, who turned out to be the perfect realtor.

Lora an I had looked a a few neighborhoods in East Dallas (like Lake Highlands, Little Forrest Hills) and a few neighborhoods in north Oak Cliff. We really wanted to be close to downtown and if possible in a historically protected neighborhood. Last summer, on a whim, we went to open house in Junius Heights where the realtor told us she had another home open. That house, 5600 Victor, is the one we ended up buying about 6 months later. The closing process was very arduous and there was more than one time when I didn't think we would actually close. But we moved in April 10th and we love the house.

Along the way we had a great house inspector (Tom Deschane with Premium Home Inspections) who gave me a lot of confidence that I knew what I was getting into (important when the house you are buying is almost 80 years old). Also I recently dealt with a great electrician named Nathan Magill.

I mention all these names in order to give credit where credit is due. We were blessed to work with so many great people.

A sensible healthcare plan

With all the debate going on about Health Care Reform, I thought I'd throw in my two cents.

First of all, I agree that reform is needed. Healthcare is too expensive and too complicated. While much has been made of the 'who pays' question, the 'why the heck is this so expensive' question really hasn't been asked or answered. No matter if the government acts as a single payer (i.e. we all pay via taxes) or we have a network of insurance companies (i.e. we all pay via payroll contributions) no system can compensate when costs go up 10%+ per year. A major component of any healthcare reform needs to be net reduction in total cost.

Now obviously a healthcare system needs to ensure that high-quality care is available for everyone, so we need to find areas of costs to eliminate that won't jeopardize quality or availability of care.

Here are some cost contributors to health care that add little/no quality or availability of care:

1. Lawsuits (doctors and hospitals need to be accountable for mistakes, but this should be performed by the criminal justice system, not by lawyers)
2. Insurance overhead - go in to any doctors office and you will see a whole gaggle of people who do nothing but handle insurance forms (be it private insurance or public insurance). Additional costs can be found in the entire health insurance industry. While necessary in the current system, these people don't make anyone healthier.
3. Medical records - we have been talking about this for some time; making electronic/online medical records would be a huge cost savings.
4. Pharmaceutical marketing - drug companies spend millions on advertising, free lunches for doctors office staff and free samples (which effectively acts as universal perscription coverage in some cases) trying to push expensive drugs onto patients. The choice of prescription drug should be solely that of a doctor and patient, without persuasion on either party.
5. Unnecessary ER - We have universal healthcare in the United States. Every hospital ER must treat incoming patients regardless of their ability to pay. What this means is there is a whole class of people who don't have the ability to pay for (or simply don't pay for) normal preventive care (say a diabetic who can't afford insulin) so they end up in the ER regularly. ER care is expensive and money would be saved if these people could access preventive care. As it is, hospitals absorb all of these 'freeloaders' and pass the costs onto the rest of us.

Problems #1 and #3 could probably be solved regardless of what type of health reform we peruse.

So in my estimation there are two potential systems that could make a real difference in reducing cost. They are at different ends of the political spectrum and both have weaknesses and strengths.

Option #1 : Medical Savings Accounts

This idea has been circulating in conservative circles for quite some time. The idea is simple. Instead of traditional insurance plans, employers would give employees money in a special fund that they could spend exclusively for healthcare. Additionally employers would provide high-deductible insurance for catastrophic coverage (like cancer). So for example, you get $3000 and an insurance policy with a $3000 deductible, so you have 'complete' coverage. You would get to pocket any money that was left so it would be to your advantage to shop around for doctors, prescriptions, etc. It would introduce cost competition to health care, which would lower costs. You would be able to choose any doctor or treatment. Right now, similar plans (sometimes called 'Cafeteria Plans') exist however disallow the employee from receiving any extra dollars.

Advantages:

1. Introduces Competition to lower costs.
2. Similar to existing system, so transition could be easy.
3. Could be done with no new tax dollars.

Disadvantages:

1. What about the poor/unemployed? We could still have the ER problem mentioned above in #5, also this plan would leave the Medicare/Medicaid/VA care untouched - and still inefficient. Also most proponents of this plan would not force employers to provide a plan to their employees, so many (including self-employed) would be left out.
2. This plan would not reduce the Insurance overhead as you would still need to track things because of the catastrophic coverage. Also you might not have total coverage as the insurance company may not count everything you choose as going towards their deductible. Additionally an employer could provide you with a plan with a gap (say $3000 MSA but a $10k deductible catastrophic coverage).
3. An employer-based system leaves US employers at an economic disadvantage in the global marketplace.
4. Competition could introduce a 'race to the bottom' with quality of care becoming in jeopardy.

Option #2 - Completely Public Healthcare

The idea here to make healthcare function like other public services such as police and fire protection. Communities (cities, counties or even states) would run hospitals and doctors offices with the doctors and nurses being public employees. Private hospitals could still exist (for 'elite' care or things like non-reconstructive cosmetic surgery) but would be a minority part of the system (much like private schools today). Tax dollars (rates, types and collection method determined by the community) would support the system. Medicare/Medicaid and much of the VA could be done away with since everyone (regardless of income, age or military service) would be able to access public health care. There would be a small national tax (likely far less than the current Medicare/Medicaid tax) that would fund grants to poor/rural communities, oversight to make sure communities are providing quality care and scholarships to medical students or funding for medical schools (since the pay would be lower than the current system). Additionally patents on prescription drugs would be done away with, reducing the cost of medicine. The government would provide funding for new medicine research. This would be an improvement on the existing system where pharmceutical companies have an incentive (i.e. small piece of a big pie) to research drugs for common conditions even if good drugs already exist and if their new drugs offers little difference for the existing ones (they rely on marketing to convince people, see #4 above). The government could ensure the research occurs for drugs for rarer conditions.

Advantages:

1. Insurance overhead eliminated
2. Local oversight, national accountability
3. Preventive care would eliminate unnecessary ER cost
4. Universal access to quality care
5. Employers no longer required to provide insurance (think of the $ they would save on HR) thus putting them on a better footing in the global marketplace.
6. No insurance means that employees can change employers without worrying about healthcare. Even better more may opt to start their own businesses since they don't have to worry about expensive health insurance (this is a major deterrence to many potential entrepreneurs I know).

Disadvantages

1. Stark departure from existing system - conversion may be difficult
2. No competitive element (could be an advantage depending on your outlook)
3. Possibility for corruption.
4. New taxes required (though some of this will simply be a shift from existing taxes and payroll deductions)

Now it should be noted that the current proposal being debated by Congress is not 'Completely Public Healthcare' but rather an extension of the current insurance-based system whereby employers would be forced to give insurance to employees, new taxes would help poorer people pay for insurance and the government would run their own insurance company. So aside from move around the 'who pays' question, little actual savings occurs (possibly un-necessary ER visits to some extent may be eliminated).

What are your thoughts?

Satisfied

One of my favorite activities is reading Wikipedia. This is ironic because I used to make fun of my mother for reading the encyclopedia for fun. I guess we are destined to become our parents. Oh well.

So I was reading the article about the Amish. I've always been sort of a fan of the Amish since they seem to stick to their peculiar way of life despite the rest of the world. But one thing really struck me as I read. Their reasoning for not using certain technology is not out any belief that the technologies are evil but rather that they allow people to be evil. For example, why do they not use motorized tractors but do use modern chemical fertilizer? Because the tractor would allow a farmer to farm more land thus possibly depriving another farmer of that land. They are satisfied were their simple standard of life and want to ensure that no one gets greedy.

So why am I not satisfied? I have far more material possessions than the Amish. I have a car, an apartment and a satchel I take with me pretty much everywhere. Yet I envy people with other cars and imagine myself living in a big house. The problem tends to be that I make up in my head (with the help of our society's mindset) that my life would be substantively better if I had one of these things. These other people with their better satchels seem so much happier than I. But I know it is the poor who are happy and the humble who are blessed.

So for at least today I am satisfied. I have a beautiful wife to wake up to each morning, work that I find rewarding and friends to laugh with. For everything else, I know I am loved more than sparrows or lilies.

Policies vs. People

I've had a couple of recent conversations that have caused me to think about the reasons for poor leadership. How come so many organizations have overbearing policies? A friend related to me that at his workplace they recently implemented a strictly defined dress code - a list of what constituents appropriate attire for the office. When I inquired about what caused the policy, he explained that a co-worker routinely dressed in a very sloppy manner. So management's response was to develop a 'complete' description of the boundaries of office-wear. Now in reality this dress code does little to improve the sloppy employee (who was unable to follow the simple dress code let alone this complex one) however causes much frustration for his fellow employees who now feel oppressed by the 'legalistic' rules. Further, other employees may blame the rules on the offending employee. This is another example of the classic management failure - the solution that fixes no problems but causes more.

What is the better solution? Simple. The manger should discuss the offending employee's dress with him. This makes it clear to the individual employee (who is the real problem) without involving other employees. Most likely the individual will improve his dress.

So why do mangers not have these conversations? Fear. Simply put it is easier to 'draft a policy' than to have a difficult conversation with an employee. In reality the conversation doesn't need to be that difficult.

Facial Hair

So it is kinda lame that I've have not posted anything for a very long time. So I'll give all those so interested an update of sorts.

First of all, after almost 6 years, I've decided to change up the ole' goatee. I shaved of the mustache part and may do more, not really sure yet. See the picture Any suggestions in this department would certainly be welcome.

Second, I am happy to report that for the past few weeks, I've been doing WeightWatchers for Men online with some good results. I've been able to lose 20 pounds since November (not all of those are with WW, but most are). I have to say I like the system, it seems like something I could do long term without feeling deprived.

This was a nice story for Christmas

North Pole Flight

The Love of God

If tomorrow my life falls ever apart
From the beginning I must again start
If I am found the ever lowest place
If judgment and destruction I must face
If tomorrow I fall and wonder how
God will love me as He loves me now

If tomorrow I am an ever better man
Who grips reality with ever stronger hand
If tomorrow I reject each and every lie
If I live to God and to myself die
If tomorrow I keep every vow
God will love me as He loves me now

If tomorrow is just like today
Some victories, some failures, some hard to say
If tomorrow is unremarkable and bland
Perhaps a good day but nothing too grand
If tomorrow is anything but wow
God will love me as He loves me now

Busy

So I failed to post even a single item for all of September. If you happen to be reading this, I apologize. But I'll give a quick update, I'm super busy with school, work and life. I am happy to be able to return to some ministry at Skillman Bible Church which I am falling even more in love with. I am increasingly convinced that the Church is God's primary tool for changing lives and changing the world.

I've also been toying with the following idea concerning mission/vision. In Dr. Malphur's PM301 class he talks about how the mission of the Church is basically the Great Commission, though churches may express this in different ways (namely using different imagery or alliteration). The mission tells us what the Church should be doing (going, making disciples). I think this idea is good, the mission of the Church does not change. But I think we can go farther.

If the mission of Church is the Great Commission, then the vision of the Church is the Eternal Kingdom of God (see Revelation 21-22). The vision tells the Church where we are going, what it looks like. Normally church vision statements talk about having a biblically functioning community where people are growing, worshipping, where lives are restored, where every tear has been wiped away, where the nations are healed and where there is no more night. The end goal of the Church, the place where we are heading for is the Eternal Kingdom. This is what we look forward to, the day when Christ rules, when there is justice and everything has been set right.

I think most church vision statements are already basically going this direction, but not intentionally. Vision statements picture a 'perfect world' which is by definition exactly what the Eternal Kingdom is. We may express it differently but the vision is the same.

This is the most important election since time began and other hog-wash

Ok, here it goes. I'm fed-up. If I hear one more person say, 'this is the most important election of our lifetime/the century/the millennium/eternity' I am going to publicly flog them.

We hear this every election. Politicians and their minions use it to whip up support and create a sense of urgency. Other language that I also detest is 'we are at a crossroads' which is obvious since we are having an election.

Every election is the most important because it determines the future. Past elections aren't as important because they are over and their influence is already measured. Future elections are beyond our grasp so they lack importance. Saying 'this is the most important election' is similar to saying 'When you walk the step you are about to take is more important than the steps you have already taken since you can change course'.

Donald Miller gives closing prayer at DNC

Sin and the Problem of Evil

It just hit me. Maybe it has been obvious to you, but not so for me.

I have been think a lot about 'The Problem of Evil' This is sort of a philosophical problem that goes like this, "How can God exists in a world where there is evil? He either doesn't want to deal with it (which makes God evil), can't deal with it (which makes God weak) or doesn't know about it (which makes God dumb)." This problem is posed by atheists and by those who are experiencing the effects of evil ('How could God let this happen?').

A lot of Christians have failed in trying to 'answer' this problem. We can be so anxious to 'let God off the hook'. But we do little to help God. In fact, most 'solutions' present more problems.

The problem of evil is real, in fact the problem evil is ultimately the presence of Sin. The "problem of evil" only exists because there is Sin in the world. When Sin entered the world, it caused major problems, one of which was to put evil beside God. This is not right. Sin can be defined as that which is contrary to God. The presence of both God and Sin causes this big messy rift in the universe, making a lot of things 'not right'.

Now God is fully aware of the 'Problem of Evil' and while we can pose philosophical answers, He has put in place a practical solution. Through Christ's sacrifice God has defeated and is defeating Evil. In the Kingdom, there will be no sin and no problem of Evil.

The Truth is in the Tension

Theology is the process of trying to understand God. The problem is sometimes we can't understand God. If the Bible stands as God's self-revelation then it must be a source of Truth; Truth so we can understand God. The problem sneaks back in when we read the Bible and see tension.

I don't like tension. I like clarity. I want a God who I can understand.

So I read the Bible.

"Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift." - Matthew 5:23-24

Simple enough, if I've offended another it is my responsibility to seek him out in reconciliation. It is the guilty who must ask for forgiveness.

But I keep reading.

"And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins." - Mark 11:25

Here it is the victim who must initiate reconciliation. But the verse in Matthew said the opposite. How can I understand this tension?

Now it can be tempting to analyze and systematize this. Maybe the difference is in the fact that one one is in the context of offering, the other in the context of prayer. Maybe one applies to Christians ('a brother') while the other applies to all people. Or maybe this is just another contradiction in the Bible and another reason to throw the whole thing out. Such is the ultimate result of 'either/or' logic.

What if the truth is in the tension? What if it is the responsibility of both parties to make amends? This indeed would be a beautiful thing. It paints a picture of the guilty and the victim meeting on the road of reconciliation as they each move toward the other. This was the case of Jacob and Esau (Genesis 33).

I must embrace the tension for within it lies the truth. It may be easier to choose one verse over the other and release myself from the responsibility of reconciliation. But to do so would be error. Whether I have wronged someone or they have wronged me, it is my responsibility to seek reconciliation.

We do this all the time, choosing one verse over another for complex theological reasons which often serve only to reinforce our preferences. We try to solve tension rather than embrace it. We make God understandable, fitting into a neat box of logic.

If I think I can understand God, I fool myself into thinking I can control Him. Then I become God.

But I am not God and I cannot control Him. I can understand Him only inasmuch as He has revealed Himself and no more. So if I see tension in His self-revelation I should always seek to embrace not explain. The Truth is in the Tension.

Rescue

The depth of transgression is deep as the sea
And under the water, way down there was me
Drowning in pain and misery

But I am one who jumped into this ocean
I thought I could swim or go through the motion
But this sea drowns all who leave their devotion

From the boat the sea seemed cool and calm
A relief from the sun shining hard down upon
Just a quick jump, I’ll hardly be gone

The water was not cool, but fatally cold
Freezing my mind, I’d never been told
That this sea is always ever so bold

I tried to swim back with all that's within
Back to the Boat, back again to begin
I'd makeup for the mistake; atone for my sin

Truth is this sea cannot be swum,
It cannot be fought, it cannot be won
Battling the waves and the drowning’s begun

The salt blinded my eyes and closed up my lips
The waves beat my body like the cracking of whips
Losing all feeling from toes to fingertips

I realize that I have but only one plea
Only one way to battle this sea
Since I cannot swim, the Boat must find me

Indeed I was found by that merciful Ship
Yet how could I escape the sea’s terrible grip
My feet are so wet and surely will slip

And even if I did return to that Boat
I may look back and to the sea gloat
And jump back, like a fool, expecting to float

As I looked upon that Ship so true
I see it is manned by an incredible crew
And there was one sailor who I well knew

I should have cried out, my great need to tell
But it was my choice, how could I yell
It would be a lie to say that I fell

The sailor, whose beauty is beyond compare,
Yelled, ‘What are you doing way down there?
And why have left this ship so fair?’

I finally shouted out over the crashing sea,
“I am drowning dear sailor please help me”
Over the waves she heard my desperate plea

She had mercy on me and threw out a line
A way out of the waves and the sea full of brine
A way back onto that boat ever divine

Other sailors, too, helped pull me back in
Rescuing me from the sea of deep sin
Winning the battle alone I could not win

It is not over, the victory is not yet mine
I’ve just left the sea and still smell of the brine
Still fearing I’ll again leave this Ship so fine

I must learn other ways to cool down from the heat
And even when hot never to retreat
So my time in the sea will never repeat

I will stay in the boat and work with the crew
Being ever honest and remaining ever true
To the woman whom to me a rope threw

That woman’s my wife, who to my aid ran
The boat is the Savior and God’s awesome plan
The sailors are Gods’ Church who help hand-in-hand

And I am the fool who jumped into the sea
The man who was rescued, that too was me
The one who is and always will be
Thankful for the Boat who conquers the sea!

The Beginning of Boundaries

Recently I've been thinking about the importance of boundaries in self-identification. Someone recently pointed out that in the act of Creation, God created boundaries (separating light from darkness for example) which made everything.

Realizing that I have a poor self-identification, boundaries are a place to start. For me it is easier to define what I am not rather than what I am.  I hope that this will be a running post and that I will learn more more about who I am (and am not) through the process.

I am not:

• God
• Athletically-inclined
• A charismatic speaker
• Perfect

Ancient Bible manuscript available online

Codex Sinaiticus, a manuscript of the Christian Bible written in the middle of the fourth century, contains the earliest complete copy of the Christian New Testament

This important manuscript is now available online at www.codexsiniticus.org. There you find scanned copies of the manuscript (which you zoom in on) a transcription of the text (a great help for people not familiar reading Uncials) as well as an English translation.

It is nice to have such an important manuscript in such a usable form so widely available. While there entire manuscript is not yet available, the project is off to a wonderful start.

Very funny

I thought this was really clever... someone at the end looks familiar...

Happy is Good

Coming back from vacation, something felt strange. I thought perhaps I was missing the lazy days of the beach. Or maybe it was the wonderful food and culture of Puerto Rico that I missed. Now I realize it was the strangeness of coming home from a vacation and being really happy.

Lora and I are learning how to travel and vacation well together. To get to and from Vieques we took a total of three flights on two separate airlines. Total travel time was about 11 hours each way. This normally would be stressful, but while it wasn't fun, we got through it. I've realized that if a vacation is going to be truly relaxing, the way I relate to Lora is more important that any itinerary. We could be in an exotic locale, stay in a beautiful room, eat wonderful food, but if Lora and I are not getting along, none of it is worth it.

But coming home, I realized that Lora and I had really had a wonderful time, not only because of where we went or what we did but because of how we related to each other. And this makes me happy and happy is good.

Christmas in July

"Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”
- I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (Henry David Longfellow)

A time to re-heal

It has struck me that one of the most difficult and painful things to do in life is to re-heal.

Let me give an analogy. Say as a child, you break your arm. Instead of going to the hospital or doctor, you just strap a piece of wood to your arm to hold it stiff. Over time the bone will repair the fracture and you will heal. However your arm probably won't be straight and the bone may be very weak. How can you repair it? Only one way. You have to break the arm again and allow it to heal correctly. A doctor would set the arm and help your body heal properly.

So it is with life. Often we go through different sorts of trauma and heal in wrong ways. Maybe we ignore the problem and after awhile it seems to have gone away. Or maybe we blame ourselves for the problem. We do heal, life goes on, but we have healed wrong. Part of becoming a better/well person involves identifying times when we have been hurt and looking at the ways we have 'healed'. Looking back often has the effect of re-opening old wounds. This is painful, for we think that the way we healed worked, but it hasn't. Poorly healed old wounds quickly become new. Only a well-healed wound can endure another injury. Therefore, we must open the old wounds so that they may heal.