Subject to Change

Terms & conditions (or T's & C's as we refer to them in my industry) define the specifications of restrictions for the use of goods or services. Whenever you sign a contract, it's wise to have a look at the terms and conditions so that you'll know just what you're getting yourself into - and what options you have to get out of it if necessary. Some folks pay no attention to the T's & C's until something goes wrong...

Life itself doesn't really come with terms and conditions. Sometimes we assume that we have legitimate rights to certain things, and when something goes "wrong" begin to look for redress as if a contract has been violated. What sorts of things do we tend to feel entitled to? Health, prosperity, blue skies, clear sailing, etc. Maybe you're not even aware you have these expectations until something happens.

That "something" could be: a job loss, illness, financial crisis, divorce, or the death of a loved one. Things like these happen, and we're tempted to think that the terms and conditions of our lives have been violated.

St. Patrick's Day is coming up in a couple of days. I was reminded about his life in some reading I've been doing recently. St. Patrick was the son of a British government official. When he was a teenager, the Roman Legions were pulling out of the western portion of the Roman Empire. Their absence set the stage for raiding, pillaging, and plundering by the very uncivilized Irish. Patrick was caught up in a raid and was taken as a slave. His life went from one of privilege to one of powerlessness. The terms and conditions changed dramatically for him.

Patrick met Christ while in the fields working as a shepherd. After a time, he found an opportunity to escape. He told God that if he was successful in his plans to get away, that he'd come back one day to evangelize the Irish. There just happened to be a ship laying at harbor which provide the perfect means for him to make his escape. The rest is history. Patrick did come back and under his leadership, Ireland became the center of a very vital and evangelistic group of Christians. Though Patrick had his struggles, he eventually responded positively to the changes in his life. It wasn't instant or easy, but in the end, great good came from his change of circumstances.

Eventually everyone will face what they believe to be a change in the T's & C's of life. When it happens you've got a choice. You can be bitter. You could adopt a new identity - that of a victim. You could bear up with quiet resignation. Or... you could live creatively. You could live into the new reality with an attentiveness that opens the door to adventure and meaning. It won't be instant. There's no fairy dust. Time and openness and trust are required. Time to heal, openness to change, and trust in the God - who's in control and means good for you.

On March 19th Greensboro College will host an art show called "Subject to Change". There are four artists who will show for the first time that night (5-7 pm). Each one of them chose to respond creatively to very challenging circumstances. If you're in the Greensboro area consider stopping by. Maybe you'll be inspired.

When The Joke's On You

God has an amazing sense of humor. He has a keen sense of the ironic, and loves surprises. God likes to put little twists into the plots of the stories He tells. He revels in the unexpected. Often when humans think of God they think of words like dour and humorless. The biblical record reveals Someone very different.

Take the readings from the Lectionary reading for this Sunday: In Genesis 17 we find God’s third enunciation of covenant with Abraham. The first time God appeared to Abraham in Genesis 12, Abraham was 75 years old. God tells Abraham at that time that He will make Abraham into a great nation and that all of the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. Abraham believes and sets out at 75 years of age to settle in a new place many miles away.


In Genesis 15 God appears again to Abraham. This time God tells Abraham that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars in the heavens. Eleven years have passed since God first called Abraham. He still doesn’t have any children. He’s 86 for crying out loud! Abraham and Sarah figure that maybe they need to think out of the box. Maybe God wants them to get creative in solving the problem of an heir. So that’s what they do. They “solve” the problem with Sarah’s slave Hagar, and along comes Ishmael.

When Abraham’s 99 God appears to him again. God reaffirms His promises to Abraham – to bless him and to make him numerous. Kings and nations will come from Abraham. It’s now that God changes Abraham’s name from “Abram” or “honored father” to “Abraham” meaning “father of many”. God not only changes Abraham’s name, Sarai becomes Sarah, and Sarah is included as a full partner in God’s promises and plan. God tells Abraham that He will give him a son by Sarah. It is this son who will inherit the covenant. Not Ishmael.


What’s Abraham’s response? He falls on his face and laughs - at first. Listen to some of the verses that were not included in today’s lection: “Abraham fell face down; he laughed and said to himself, ‘Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?’ And Abraham said to God, ‘If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!’" At first Abraham finds God’s little joke funny. But then…… hadn’t Abraham and Sarah already solved the problem of an heir? Why, then does God insist on this complication?

Here’s the thing: God is working His plan out in His way. The plan’s very particular; and God doesn’t need Abraham and Sarah’s help to bring it to fruition. He wants to do the impossible in their lives. All the nations of the earth will be blessed through Abraham, but it’s really God’s work, not Abraham’s.


Abraham and Sarah are on the receiving end of covenant life with God and so are we. In Romans, Paul says that we who live by faith are all Abraham’s children. We too are heirs and are living in the presence of the God who brings the dead to life and calls into existence things that did not exist. God is still working out His plans: on the earth, in our church, and in our lives. We must remember, though, that the plans are His and He’ll work them out in unexpected sometime counter-intuitive ways. It may be that the very times we’re tempted to fall on our faces laughing are the very times we need to perk up and pay attention. So...What’s got you laughing?

The Last Enemy to be Destroyed

On Sunday we buried the remains of my ex-husband Mike. He died almost five months ago, but for various reasons, five months passed before his ashes were put in the ground.

I hate the graveyard. I hate it in spite of the fact that I'm a Christian and firmly believe in the resurrection. Knowing that your loved one is in a better place - is free from suffering - doesn't change the fact that they're gone from your immediate life. Every headstone in a cemetery represents an empty seat at some one's table. Tears, grief, and loss.

Our inner scream of protest when someone close to us dies (or when someone innocent is cut off too soon) is evidence that humans weren't really created to die this way. Ironically, I think that it's proof that another kind of life was intended for us: a life with no dying, disease, sorrow...

Christians believe that death has been defeated in the resurrection of Jesus. Defeated yes - but not yet destroyed. George Eldon Ladd uses the analogy of D-Day verses V-E day to talk about the difference. When the Allies landed on the beaches of Normandy, the war (in Europe) was essentially won. Many more people would have do die before it was over, but the outcome was assured.

Christ's victory on the cross ("victory" and "cross" - again a lovely irony) was D-Day for death. We can celebrate that fact as Christians -even in our grief. One day every tear will be wiped away. Every wrong will be set right.

I Corinthians 15:24-26 "Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death."