The Tension and the Terror

     It is every man’s worst nightmare: you’re on a date with a girl, things are going well, you lean in for a goodnight kiss….and she turns her head at the last minute.  You have an awkward cheek-kiss-side-hug, say goodnight, and limp home.  My own wife did this to me.  Of course she wasn’t my wife at the time; we still still dating.  She now claims innocence but I know she was deliberately playing hard to get.  Spoiler alert!  I did eventually kiss her.  But most of us have experienced the tension of a moment like that.  A band I used to listen to has a song called “The Tension and the Terror”, and the lyrics of the chorus really capture the excited, fearful anticipation such moments:

And I try but I'm not convincing

Your lips, they pout and twist

And I die trying just to keep myself from kissing you
You take in everything with
a certainty I envy
It's somehow all I need

Just keep me guessing please


The writer of the song dreads, yet longs for, this uncertain moment.  He both identifies AND juxtaposes the tension with terror.  This tension is scary… and beautiful!

     Whether you are in school or working, single or married, young or old, you will experience tension in your life on a regular basis.  Tension occurs when our perceptions or expectations are challenged.  It is a pulling back and forth of our own experiences and expectations with that of others'.  It can be, and usually is, quite uncomfortable.  When you find yourself scared (or even terrified) of the tension this season,  remember that is when you grow.  Girls know that trimming your hair makes your hair healthier.  Guys know that lifting weights and breaking your muscles down makes you stronger.  Less masculine guys know that playing video games on a harder level increases your skills.  And so we as Christians grow in Christ, and with each other, when we are challenged and force to wrestle with ideas and situations beyond our grasp.  Just like Jacob wrestled with an angel in Genesis 32, sometimes all we have to do is hang on and God will bless us.  We need that tension!

Holly Good

Due to my father-in-law's awesome job and business relationships, the wifey and I got to go to a mega-swanky fundraiser for Operation Smile this weekend.  It was at the Beverly Hills Hilton, presented awards to various celebrities for their efforts, raised millions of dollars, and was overall a very lovely event.

The whole family was starstruck to varying degrees all night, but at some point it hit me that this was Hollywood using its power/fame/resources for a good cause!  I know whenever an award show is on T.V. I just flip past it and roll my eyes.  Celebrities are just soulless, out-of-touch with reality money-grubbers who lucked out into a profession where they get overpaid to act like someone else, right?  Maybe some of them.  But that night we witnessed evidence that there are those with wealth and power who give back, both with time and treasure, and give generously.  These acts are very rarely publicized.  It is very encouraging to know that even in a place like Los Angeles, where there are so many lost and lonely, God is working in very cool ways.  He is working to bring about His kingdom in ways we will never imagine.

Diverse City

      My job as an MSA (media support associate-we do audio and video for events) means I will sometimes get to experience (albeit behind a camera) interesting events most students do not.  Last night we shot about four hours of discussion hosted by Dr. Mouw (president of Fuller) and Andy Crouch (author of Culture Making).   Participating in the discussion were dozens of pastors and leaders from Latino, African-American, Asian, and Caucasian churches and organizations.  The topics ranged from what God is doing in local congregations to what Fuller seminary should/could be, and any combination thereof.  Two things stuck out to me as I walked home:

    First, what an encouragement to know that we serve the same God as our brothers and sisters in Africa, South America, Asia and the rest of the world.  Our God is bigger than our home church, parents' house, sunday school classroom, or wherever we first learned about Him.  I think sometimes we have a tendency to think of God in selfish terms-how is God working in MY life?  What is He trying to say to ME?  While those are certainly important concepts to wrestle with for any Christian, it is quite refreshing to be reminded that it is NOT just all about US as individuals.  God is at work all over this fragile earth, our island home!

     Second, I now have an important addition to the old cliche, "Don't put God in a box."  My buddies and I would joke around with that phrase as a catch-all in undergrad.  It really is humorous and semi-applicable in all situations.  Go ahead and try it.
 "Can I have a bite of your sandwich?" "Don't put God in a box."
 "I have to go to the bathroom." "Don't put God in a box, bro."

     The assumption with this phrase is that we needed to be reminded that God is GOD, and can do anything beyond what our unimaginative minds can fathom.  But last night I heard someone add a great qualifier to that phrase - God works through us in OUR box.  We are not infinite.  We, as Christians in the world, cannot be everything to all people, nor should we.  Though we may look, sound, or act different, we are united in the most beautiful and important way possible-Jesus!  We truly are the body of Christ- I'm a kneecap, you're a bicep, and we each can accomplish what the other cannot.  God has given all of us a specific skill set and personality that is intended to reach a unique part of creation for His glory.

    Let us go forth knowing we can do things for the kingdom of God that nobody else can!

A New Season

This is the blog for Matthew Pittman.  I have avoided blogging for a long time but now find myself at a stage in life where it might benefit me to articulate some thoughts from time to time.  My wife and I just moved to Pasadena where she is in PA school at USC and I am studying at Fuller Seminary.  

For years I let myself be distracted by the fleeting, trivial junk that this world has to offer; I am finally trying to tune all of that nonsense out and hear with greater clarity the voice of the One who created me, that I might do what He created me to do....