The Writings of Brandon Goober

injustice meets the savior

there’s no need to point a finger

no need to pass the blame

let Me take off your blinders

you’ll find everyone’s the same

and I have come

to break the bonds of injustice

and i have come

to untie every yoke

and to show the oppressed and the oppressors

how to be free

share your food with the hungry

give the homeless your spare room

share your clothes with the orphans

and you’ll find very soon

how I came

to break the bonds of injustice

how I came

to untie every yoke

and to show the oppressed and the oppressors

how to be free

I am the foundation of every generation

I rebuild the streets where you live

so you will know

that I came

to break the bonds of injustice

I came

to untie every yoke

and to show the oppressed and the oppressors

how to be free…

my grandfather's song

“i can’t believe what my eyes have to see
as the last of the smoldering embers die
along with the place that i once called home
and it looked so nice
they lead us away in chains
while our head were bowed down
to the ground because of all the shame
and our walls might be broken down
but our city lives on in our hearts
everyday”

i remember my grandfather singing that song
and of course he went on and on and on
but it seemed like i never got tired of hearing
about that place that i really should call home
i still remember his final words
as he called me over to deathbed
and said:
“boy if i’ve taught you something, i hope it’s this
that there’s nothing sweeter than the Promised Land’s kiss
all my stories of the honey and milk are not fables, child
they truly do exist
and i’ve prayed to the Lord, dear one
that you would be filled with wisdom
and the might of the sun
for when it shines its light on the crops and the trees
they bring forth the fruit of that season”

so i grew up and i became wise
and no matter how hard they tried
i never once lost the song my grandfather sang
and one day my time finally came
for when the king would eat his meals
i was always there first
to drink his wine, which wasn’t bad all the time
but it came with a high risk of death
and i thank the Lord i hadn’t gone out yet
then the king asked why i was looking so sad
because every day before i had a smiling face
i took a second to pray
then proceeded on with great caution

then i recited to the king
the very song my grandfather used to sing
i told him how my people just wanted to go home
but they couldn’t because the city was ruined
i proposed to rebuild the town
and the wall that went around
to keep us safe
but i would need the best lumber
from the forest of the king
and a few years off from my daily routine
when the king opened his eyes
to my surprise, he said:
“take what you need! i’ll sign the papers
and you can go on your way.”

such a bold and risky move
for a servant like me to the king
but i knew after many sleepless nights
there was nothing else i could do
the place i stay now is just a house with walls
but tomorrow i set out to rebuild our home
and i remember well my grandfather’s song

my name is Nehemiah,
i was once the cup bearer of the king

so, what do you want do be when you grow up?

i’ve been getting this a lot lately, especially since i’m still in a small, rural, unadventurous southern town. when i say small, i mean just that (less than 11,000 persons. though, roughly twenty years ago, there were almost 9,000… it’s not going anywhere, i assure you). rural- the “ideal” friday night is getting drunk down by the river or in the woods. unadventurous- this isn’t so bad; most of the town is pretty chill, but when the local hangout is walmart, something in me needs more. but coming from this type of small, rural area where the general attitude is very “back-woodsy” many people spend their lives having these “ideal” nights and pouring more money into the machine. so when people ask me “so, what are you going to do when you grow up?” it’s generally not a simple answer and i generally respond with something generic by now, because i’ve learned that it’s not an accepted practice to say, “let’s go for coffee, and i’ll explain it to you.” much like saying “how are you?” it’s a loaded question. one doesn’t actually care to know the answer, it’s merely an acceptable greeting to which the acceptable response is “fine, how ‘bout chew [you]?” [vernacular].

these days, for me, however, are soon to be over. though i do not have a detailed plan for my future, i do have hopes and dreams. i would love to share them with you. but i cannot do that in a sentence, a paragraph, or a blog post. but i can share them with you in my life. and maybe we work out some of the details over coffee.

this said, however, i realize that not all of you are coffee drinkers, while some prefer different flavors, black, sugar and cream, mild roast, bold roast, french press, or whatever. that’s neither here nor there. but i’ve come to love all you, no matter what your flavor or distinct features or aromas. and in the case of my not seeming too caring or distance [forced or chosen] you have always been a beautiful creation, and i can’t wait to become reunited once more.

but just as Jeremiah the Prophet was sent to the Potter’s House to hear the words of God [Jeremiah 18], i must go to my own Potter’s House. i don’t know where that will take me, or where i will end up, or what i will be doing [to tell you the truth]. so whenever someone asks me that ever enduring yet never quite adequately answered question of “what are you going to be when you grow up?”, if you are near, you just might here me respond with a grin, “i’m going to find my Potter’s House. because it is there i will hear the words of my Father.”

and it is there i know i will be at rest, and home.

grace to you.

"holy ground" vs. "keep thy foot" in the church

let me begin this post by saying that i really don’t like doing this, but sometimes i have to. well, it’s not so much that i dislike it, just that i don’t like defending the bible with the bible. it’s annoying, and one always ends up going into deeper confrontations over “validity” or “authority” or “inerrancy” scripture. let me just say that i’m not here to debate any of those things. i really don’t want to debate anything; i just want to state my claim, speak my piece/peace, ect. but it will more than likely be “left-wing” or “emergent” or even “post-emergent” or whatever the modern church is called these days. sigh, and for that i am sorrowful. labels only bring dissension, and i’m not about labeling things. so let’s just cut that crap man.

this is about an argument presented to me recently about my choice of dress in church, specifically regarding my choice of footwear of all things. now, of course of all the things to discuss— the coming of Jesus, injustice done in His name, or the ignorance towards the poor— this person decided to pursue the shoes (or lack thereof) that i wear to the weekly gathering of Christ-followers (known to some fundamentalists as “church”).

just to lay this on the table, i wear flip-flops to church. for two reasons: 1. they are easy to take off, and 2. they don’t smell as bad as regular shoes when i take them off. now, there is an elaboration to the first reason. there are two scriptures in the old testament and one personal theory for which i base my reasoning. [this has the potential to get very deep, so if your faint of heart, or freaked out by deep study of original hebrew words, read with caution. however, if you’re up for a challenge, read on!]

old testament, part 1: Exodus 3:5 (kjv) “And he [Yahweh] said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.” and again, Exodus 3:5 (nlt) “‘Do not come any closer,’ the Lord warned. ‘Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground.’” for these original hebrew scriptures we will use the king james version, because the strong’s concordance — which contains every word in the english bible and translates it back to its original tongue with an accurate definition of that word in its original tongue — uses every word from the king james bible to go back to the hebrew tongue. that said, lets dive! God, or the LORD in some translations, essentially Yahweh, told moses to “put off” his shoes (sandals). “put off” - (hebrew) to pluck off; divest, eject, or drop; cast out, loose. so drop them off. literally. remove his shoes. moses’ sandals had to come off. why? Yahweh said that moses was on “holy ground.” “holy” - (hebrew) a sacred place or thing; consecrated, dedicated, hallowed. and “ground” - (hebrew) country, earth, or ground. again, very literal. the actual place he was standing, the very “ground” was “holy” (a sacred, consecrated, dedicated place). are our gathering places not sacred? does God not come down and visit us in our worship services? is not God present with us at “church”? wherever God is (which, of course is everywhere, but i’m concentrating on the very presence and essence of Him, in our “inner courts” or “holiest place”) i feel that that very place should be held with upmost honor. if moses came so close to the holiness of God, and had to remove his shoes, why can’t i come so close to God’s Spirit that i also must take off my shoes?

old testament, part two: Joshua 5:15 (kjv) “And the captain of the LORD’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.” and again, Joshua 5:15 (nlt) “The commander of the Lord’s army replied, ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.’ And Joshua did as he was told.” one interesting fact, is that in the king james bible, the angel asks our buddy josh to take off his shoe- singular. strikes me as humorous. the hebrew for “shoe” here is literally implying the tongue of the sandal, but also extends to imply a symbol of occupancy or a symbol of something valueless. how amazing! not only do we get a literal explanation of throwing aside our shoes with moses, but the angel of Yahweh actually tells joshua to throw aside all that is worthless, and all that previously occupied us. “holy” is the same hebrew word, but the word “place” is used instead of grace in joshua’s case. “place” - (hebrew) a standing, or a spot. essentially, right where he is at that very moment. when joshua is in the presence of Yahweh, the area where he is located becomes holy, and he is commanded not only to throw aside his natural shoe(s), but also everything that is worthless in his life, and go after the LORD, Yahweh, to deliver Israel to the promised land.

ok, when i was explaining to someone the concept of why i don’t wear shoes in worship because the place is holy, i got a rebuke. this person knew the bible, and quoted Ecclesiastes 5:1 (kjv) “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.” at the time, i had no answer (we were discussing over a meal, so i was somewhat unprepared for this sudden rebuke), but now i’ve had a chance to research, and have a more concise evaluation. Ecclesiastes 5:1 (nlt) reads “As you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and your mouth shut. It is evil to make mindless offerings to God.” Ecclesiastes 5:1 (nasb) says “Guard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil.” from these two translations, we get some totally different views on “keep thy foot” and how it pertains to God’s house. let’s go to the hebrew- “keep” means accurately to guard, to protect, attend to, or to hedge about. then, if we put this with “foot” (hebrew) - a literal foot as used in walking, or a step, we can clearly see that though surface level reading may lead someone to think this passage pertains to wearing shoes, a deeper understanding of the original tongue shows us a better understanding of what God was trying to say. a combination of the nasb and the nlt give us a good english translation: “Guard your steps as you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and listen rather than offer the sacrifice of fools who don’t know they are doing evil.” i honestly don’t feel this verse relates to the root of the issue- holiness. God’s holiness. am i not honoring God by removing my shoes as the patriarchs of our faith did?  i feel that i am in every way honoring Father. however, i am at the same time not condemning any person who decides to wear shoes during a worship service. we all worship the same Father, the same Son, the same Spirit, and by Him we live, move, have being.

my personal reason (or my reason that i don’t specifically back up with scripture) is as follows [don’t write me off here, please]: many times in worship, i have felt Holy Spirit flow in and through me and the gathering place. this “flow” is not unlike that of a river, with a tangible manifestation, meaning the feeling of a flowing among those gathered. to further compare Him to a river, He has a current, which we follow if we are abiding in Him. therefore, the Holy Spirit flows among us in our worship as a river, and takes us where He wills in the current of His flow when we abide in Him. and i always like to leave my shoes behind when i dive in to the River. (just a personal thing, however.)

and all of this to say, one does nothing really by doing all of this. maybe you have gained knowledge, as i have, but there if i were doing this research only to prove that i can go barefoot and worship God, it would be pointless, and without meaning. i would gain nothing, essentially. but knowledge is good, and useful when people ask questions. sometimes, i back it up with the bible, and other times i compare it to a Holy River that flows through my soul. it all depends. i think the root of the issue over the whole flip-flops vs. “dress shoes” is legalism. but, we can defend our Christianity against legalism with knowledge. let us go and worship freely, in Spirit and Truth, boldly approaching the Throne Room of Grace and dancing a dance of freedom all the way.

grace and peace to you, -brandon

just finished The Ragamuffin Gospel...

so, i just finished reading The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning, and i must say, what a marvelous work of literature. it was truly inspirational. i would absolutely recommend it.

but, with the back of one book comes the front cover of another. so, give me your opinion on which i should start next.

(here are the options)

The Prodigal God, by Timothy Keller; Searching For God Knows What, by Donald Miller; The Jesus of Suburbia, by Mike Eere; Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis; or Churched, by Michael Turner.

what do you think?

Lonesome Train Whistles

[i’m listening to Thursday]

A train whistle sounds on a lonesome railway

But is anyone around to hear?

Not even a conductor is near

Or a savior for another day

One cannot imagine what has happened here

Has it been far too long?

“Wake!” Say I, for it is dawn

As my friends sleep, or cower in fear

I hear the whistle weeping

Is it going to pass us by?

We were hiding underground this night

Without knowledge that were descending

“Into the Earth we must go!” once cried I

But was that my mistake?

My dirty feet and hands feel fake

And my bones are brittle in such an absence of light

There is no ascension path, for we thought it naught

“We will never need to leave!” I had said once

As I sank deeper into myself for months

There was no outside thought

Then a man enters, who is tall and thin

He says there is no one else here

No one asleep, or cowering in fear

Only me, not even him

But then another man comes, not as tall, not as thin

Who says I’m not alone

Or I won’t be for long

And that everything exists, even Him

first corinthians chapter eight, and other rantings.

[original posting date- Sunday, February 8th, 2009]

there has been a great discomfort in my life recently by so much “religion” being almost forced down my throat. it’s not about any religion, it’s about a friendship. a religion with freaking impossible rules to uphold is not something i’m capable to cope with; a friendship, that endows grace in my shortcomings, and strength in my weakness, that is something i can live with.
in this passage, paul is talking to the corinthians about meat that’s been offered to idols, and whether they should be partaking in it or not. in the end, he basically reinstates what Jesus said about putting others ahead of yourself. i’m also reminded of when Jesus told the pharisees that it’s not what goes into the body that defiles it, but what comes out, because out of our mouths come what we have hidden in our hearts. (mark 7:18-22)
[for me, the kicker is verse three, in bold.]

“Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that “we all have knowledge” about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church. Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn’t really know very much. But the person who loves God is the one whom God recognizes.
So, what about eating meat that has been offered to idols? Well, we all know that an idol is not really a god and that there is only one God. There may be so-called gods both in heaven and on earth, and some people actually worship many gods and many lords. But we know that there is only one God, the Father, who created everything, and we live for him. And there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom God made everything and through whom we have been given life.
However, not all believers know this. Some are accustomed to thinking of idols as being real, so when they eat food that has been offered to idols, they think of it as the worship of real gods, and their weak consciences are violated. It’s true that we can’t win God’s approval by what we eat. We don’t lose anything if we don’t eat it, and we don’t gain anything if we do.
But you must be careful so that your freedom does not cause others with a weaker conscience to stumble. For if others see you—with your “superior knowledge”—eating in the temple of an idol, won’t they be encouraged to violate their conscience by eating food that has been offered to an idol? So because of your superior knowledge, a weak believer for whom Christ died will be destroyed. And when you sin against other believers by encouraging them to do something they believe is wrong, you are sinning against Christ. So if what I eat causes another believer to sin, I will never eat meat again as long as I live—for I don’t want to cause another believer to stumble.” (NLT)
so, what we have is paul telling these believers that it’s not wrong to eat food sacrificed to idols, because the idol is meaningless. we can apply this to many aspects of our lives, and many things that the religious crowd condemns because it is seemingly “of the devil.” i have seen many religious people condemn meaningless thing because they didn’t understand it. what paul is relaying here is that we have the liberty to do things that are condemned by the overly religious folk, if we have knowledge of such things. but he says it’s also important that we don’t hurt a friend with our liberty. let us not destroy ourselves by trying to “please men and please God” though. we serve a king and a kingdom that is not of this world. may we always obey what God is telling us to do above everything else.