Musings

Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh

2012-01-07T20:38:00.001-05:00

OK. I know I'm a day late - Epiphany (a.k.a Three Kings) was yesterday, but I still want to think about the Three Wise Men (or Kings). We talked about them today with members of the community that we serve lunch to on Saturdays.

Some folks in the crowd were aware that yesterday was Epiphany, and when I asked if anyone remembered what the three kings brought to Jesus, some knew that it was gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I asked if anyone had any gold, frankincense, or myrrh -- no one did. Then I asked if we had any kings or queens in the audience. Two pretty smart guys raised their hands.

I suggested that we are all kings and queens of our own little kingdoms (thank you Dallas Willard for making me aware of that!). We all have a realm where we rule. We may be the only subjects of that kingdom, or their may be many subjects, but in our kingdoms we rule. And although we may not have any gold, frankincense or myrrh to bring to the Lord, we each have something that is uniquely ours to bring.

Epiphany is a great time to be reminded. It's also a fantastic time to reflect on the quality of our rule. Are you a good, kind and wise ruler in your kingdom? Are you bringing the gifts that only you can bring or are you squandering your wealth? May we, like the Three Wise Men, seek after the King of Kings and bring him our worship and our most precious gifts.

Random Thoughts

2011-12-30T22:14:00.002-05:00

I saw a commercial last night for a new show on Fox called (I think) The Finder. It's about a guy who notices the connections between things, allowing him to find things that are lost and/or solve mysteries. It's an interesting premise and one that illustrates an important truth.

I think that many folks today believe that much of what happens in the world is random. In fact several years back we were encouraged to practice random acts of kindness. The emphasis on randomness grows out of a world view that asserts that the universe happened by chance and everything since the beginning has just sort of happened- randomly or by chance. We won't go into all of that right now, but suffice it to say that I find that very hard to believe. As one of my Philosophy professors said (and he may have been quoting someone - I don't know): you could set a chimpanzee in front of a typewriter, and it would never type out Hamlet- or anything remotely resembling brilliance....

It's tempting to believe something to be random when we do not apprehend the cause. If we could see the connections between events, we would better understand why certain things happen when and how they do. Even a person who thinks he is practicing a random act of kindness likely chooses the recipient of his largess for reasons that are determined by events or individuals from his past.

On his new album Counting Stars, Andrew Peterson has a song entitled "Many Roads". It's the perfect song to begin a concert with, assuring his listeners that many small decisions may have led them together so that they might hear a certain song or story.

One thing is clear: Christians understand that behind it all is the hand of a loving God who guides history and the lives of individuals toward a glorious end. Even the events that appear to be random are full of meaning if we can but apprehend. Perhaps in the new year, like The Finder, we'll become more adept at noticing connections.

I Will Feed Them With Justice

2011-11-20T11:04:00.001-05:00

2011 has been a year of unrest. People are not happy, and mainly it appears, that the unhappiness concerns the way things are being run. For the last several weeks in the United States there have been "occupy" protests from Wall Street to university campuses and towns. Around the world it's more obvious than ever that the guys in charge can't be trusted to rule wisely or justly.

It's nothing new that those in power want to hold onto power - and of course, wealth. The 'system' is designed to keep the poor in poverty and the weak without power. Justice is the exception rather than the rule.

Although this is true, there is (I think) an innate sense in most people - even those who live in parts of the world where the rule of law is not practiced - that wrongs should be righted. While many accept injustice as normative, there is a longing in human hearts for justice and righteousness.

Today is Christ the King Sunday, and the end of the liturgical year. Christians end each year with a reminder that Christ is King because we live in a world filled with many things that are wrong and cry out for remedy. Christians remind themselves today of two things:

1. One day, Christ will return to set things aright. Today's Old Testament Lectionary reading is from Ezekiel 34. In that passage, the Lord says that he will feed people in good pastures, that He will seek out the lost and strayed, that He'll bind up the injured, and strengthen the weak. He also promises to judge the "fat" sheep who took for themselves, leaving the weaker ones to only get weaker.

2. The Gospel passage for today is from Matthew 25 and is the parable of the sheep and the goats. Knowing that God will judge injustice, Christians should be engaged in working (like God) to feed the hungry, tend to the lonely and ill, clothe the naked, etc. I'm not talking about the simple redistribution of wealth (a concept doomed to failure). Instead Christians are called to give at every level - money, time, love, concern - to be fully invested as humans in the well-being of other humans.

As Thanksgivng approaches, we have much to be thankful for. Chief among them is that fact that Christ is King. He will one day return and "feed them with justice" (Ez 34:16).

On Being Human

2011-10-26T20:57:00.000-04:00

I'm writing a paper on King David right now. It focuses on his humility. This summer I was reading a book entitled Humble Leadership: Being Radically Open to God's Guidance and Grace. At the same time the Lectionary, which I read devotionally was moving through 1 and 2 Samuel. It was (I suppose) natural that I would be reading about David's life with the rubric of humility superimposed...

I preached at a church a couple of weeks ago, and afterward one of the elders asked me who my favorite Bible character is. I promptly replied David (though my 'favorites' are subject to change). He was surprised. "David was a scoundrel. A womanizer." "Yes," I responded, "but he was humble." And that's the truth. David was always ready to submit to God's will and ways, even - or maybe especially after he'd sinned.

David did some very human things. He wasn't idealized in the biblical narrative. It's actually normal for the foibles of the biblical characters to be highlighted, since the Story is really about God... But when you think of kingship in the Old Testament only David is upheld as a successful example of "king." He's an integral part of the history of salvation.

David's humanity shouldn't make us uncomfortable. I don't know about you, but I fall into the 'human' category myself. My leadership at home, church, and work is effective, but flawed by my own sin and brokenness. Check out this quote from Eugene Peterson's commentary on 1 and 2 Samuel:

"...notice the way the story keeps us immersed in and attentive to hour human condition. For it is not easy to attend to ourselves; it is more attractive to try to rise above our human condition; it is easier to sink below our human condition and live like animals. But 'human' is unique, and we require a long growing up to realize who we are and the way we are before God. (p. 137)"

It's okay to be human. Don't worry if in the story of your life your 'starring' role is marred by lots of imperfections. You don't really have the starring role - not even in the story of your own life. "For we possess this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that this surpassing power is from God and not from us" (2 Cor.

The Power of Gratitude

2011-10-26T20:32:00.002-04:00

Lately I've encountered several people who have been very focused on what's wrong. What's wrong in their lives. What's wrong with other people in their lives. What's wrong in their town, the USA, and the world. Lots and lots of talk about what's wrong.

I was playing tennis a couple of weeks ago at one of our city parks and mentioned that I would be playing the following day (Sunday) after church. A guy there said, "Oh, you need to go and atone for your sins, huh?" I responded, "No, I'm going in gratitude for all that God has blessed me with." He told me that God had done nothing for him.

Christians focus a lot on gratitude. Gratitude is meant to be the motivation for much of what we do. As grateful recipients of love, grace, forgiveness, and God's generosity, we should be generous givers of the same. The concept of tithing is rooted in gratitude. Does God need our money? Not, really. Does God need us to say, "Thank you?" No.

We're the ones who need to experience and express gratitude. Gratitude focuses us on the positive. If you want to be happy, it's critical that you have an attitude of gratitude. Why? I think because we get what we're looking for. If you feel that everything is wrong in your life, and you spend time thinking about all that is lacking, you'll be miserable. Things will go from bad to worse as you spiral down that rabbit hole.

It's amazing, however, how focusing on all that is right and good seems to increase your awareness of all that is right and good. Even when there is something wrong that can't be ignored, it's better to begin your prayers about it with a thankful heart - one that acknowledges anything good in the situation or person you're praying about or for.

Spend some time thanking God for the good stuff. There's lots of it there if you'll look.

"Yes" and "No"

2011-09-08T19:49:00.007-04:00

Tomorrow I take my daughter to college. It's late, I know. She will attend a college on the quarter system, and classes do not begin until September 12. All during her senior year, I could see signs that it was time for her to transition to a new stage where she lives as a young adult on her own. She desires independence, and she's earned it.

Olivia is a responsible, intelligent, and independent young lady. She's worked since she was fourteen, played music in a variety of settings (including the very demanding marching band), all the while maintaining excellent grades. She's a great kid -- I mean young woman. Our relationship has been markedly similar to Lorelai and Rory Gilmore's. Very close and full of enjoyment.

Many times over the last several months I've used the pregnancy analogy when people asked me if I was ready to let her go. When a woman is first pregnant she suffers from fatigue and morning sickness. I can remember that stage very well. I didn't feel the greatest, but I couldn't imagine the trauma of actual labor and delivery. It scared me to death. Toward the middle of the pregnancy,you begin to feel good. Energy is back, and the baby is moving around which is pretty neat. I remember feeling that I was already getting to know my children during this stage. But then the third trimester comes... Back to tired -- and uncomfortable. By the due date (if not before) you just want the baby out! It doesn't matter how much it hurts or how scary it is. I remember people telling me to not be in a hurry for the baby to come. "Rest!", they said. "You'll need it later."

Once kids are born, the same cycle starts again, only this time taking years rather than months. In the first year or two, although you're not feeling sick, you are more tired than you ever imagined possible. Time passes slowly, and you think that this baby thing will go on forever. Now folks say, "They'll be grown before you know it." During the middle years, the Halcyon days, you get to feeling comfortable again. Your kids become more interesting and they want to do lots of fun stuff! Time begins to speed up just as you want it to slow down... Before you know it, the teen years arrive. You're back in what feels like the third trimester of pregnancy. Finally you reach the point where (even with a great kid) you saying to yourself, "It's time this kid was out!"

Well it's the night before I drive Olivia six hours away to school... Now out of one side of my mouth I'm saying, "It's time," while the other side is saying, "Wait! I'm not ready!" Of course, she's going. It is time. We both stand on the threshold of a new era, and whether we think we're ready or not, we will transition into a new way of living and relating to one another.

Big changes are often like this. We sense the time is right for something, but letting go of what we know and embracing the unknown is frightening. Without a doubt, however, it's better do move into the future. If my daughter stayed home and we tried to maintain the status quo, our relationship would move from happy and normal to pathologically unhealthy.

So, instead we'll choose to take a minute to mourn the passing of one stage and then run joyfully toward the future, trusting that the God who in His goodness put us together in the first place, has wonderful plans for the future. I hope if you're in transition, that you'll choose to look toward the fantastic things coming while being grateful for the good things that are passing away. It is the only way to live fully and freely.

Accepting Responsibility

2011-06-06T21:18:00.002-04:00

I watched with interest as Anthony Weiner accepted responsibility for his inappropriate use of social media (Facebook and Twitter). Over a period of three years he had on line relationships of a sexual nature with six women.

Although it's unfortunate that Weiner decided to engage in these inappropriate relationships, he serves as a model of how to accept responsibility for his actions. He made it clear in his news conference that his actions were wrong and that he and he alone was responsible. He did not attempt to deflect blame onto the women or any one else who might serve to distract attention from his bad behavior. He made no excuses.

All of us are guilty of mistakes, poor judgement, etc. Christians call it sin. Weiner did not use that word for his actions. Some may criticize that, but I think he was right to say that he had made mistakes, used poor judgement, and done some deeply regrettable things. The word "sin" is laden with connotations that make some people immediately close their minds to whatever is said next (perhaps Jimmy Swaggart's teary confession coming to mind).

Weiner's demeanor was one of contrite seriousness. He understands that he let people down: his wife, friends, and constituents, and is not looking for sympathy. Perhaps that's why I find my heart going out to him. He was humble, accountable, and has had a change of mind about behaviors that he originally did not believe to be as hurtful as they really are (the Greek word for repentance is "metanoia"- a change of mind.

Hopefully you don't have something like this to own up to. But if you do, Weiner offers a great example of how to respond. Own up to what you've done. Blame no one else. Be honest. It may be tempting to deflect attention off of yourself, but in the end no one is fooled. Accountability and honesty is the road back to health and trust.

A Slippery Slope

2011-06-02T07:17:00.006-04:00

I was reading the news this morning when I saw the headline "Global War on Drugs Has Failed." The Global Commission on Drug Policy states that the war on drugs has not and cannot be won. It recommends that governments should end the criminalization of drug use and experiment with legal models that would undermine organized crime syndicates. Drug users, after all only harm themselves, right?

This sort of reasoning is an alarming slippery slope. We also have not (and probably will not) win the war on human trafficking or pornography. Should we also give up on those battles and attempt to "regulate" how people are sold or exploited? People are still killing each other too. Should murder be legalized? How about robbery? One may argue the above points by saying, "Well, these are not victimless crimes. Drug use is...."

So, drug users only harm themselves? I'm wondering what percentage of crimes are committed under the influence of drugs. I don't know the answer, but everyone has heard of crime (often violent) committed by someone who was high. Drug use takes a toll on families (just as alcohol abuse does). The drug user harms himself, his family, and sometimes others. There is no such thing as a victimless crime.

The commission states that governments have spent too much time and money hunting down criminals and incarcerating them. Drug addicts are a financial drain on governments regardless. Treatment facilities cost money too. Not to mention that most drug addicts are not productive members of society.

How about the organized crime angle? If drugs are legalized, won't that hurt organized crime? Last time I checked, garbage collection is perfectly legal, but that hasn't stopped organized crime from being involved...

I usually try to stay away from anything remotely political, but when I read a news story like this it's hard not to comment. Hopefully we'll decide to hold the line against illegal drugs, human trafficking, pornography (which no matter how you feel about your right to view it, often involves the exploitation of someone), and everything else that harms people. Just because we haven't won - and perhaps will not win, doesn't mean that we shouldn't keep fighting.

Vengeance Is Mine

2011-05-28T11:13:00.007-04:00

Perhaps enough time has passed since Osama Bin Laden's death to make some comments. A couple of weeks ago I was having dinner with some friends and made the comment that although I think that the US needed to stop Bin Laden (and the only way to stop him was to kill him), I did not think that it was right that there was so much celebration. My observation was not well received at the table. I believe that many think that it's right and patriotic to rejoice and celebrate over the death of one who wounded many families as well as the pride of the USA.

This week I read a short article about an Iranian woman to whom the courts granted the right to throw acid in the face of the man who threw acid in hers when she refused to marry him. She may exact retribution on her attacker. While it was an unthinkable evil for this man to attack her so viciously, I wonder if mutilating him as he mutilated her will bring her any sort of inner healing and peace. Without a doubt the man should be punished - and punished severely. Should it be in like kind, and delivered by her hand? Could it be that exacting revenge will diminish her humanity as well as his?

It's natural to want to get even with one who has wronged us. I'm the oldest of five kids. In a family our size there were regular fights. I can't tell you how many times I've heard my mother say, "Two wrongs don't make a right." That lesson sunk in. I don't think that individuals are very good at figuring out how to make situations "even steven".

In various places throughout the Bible God says, "Vengeance is mine." Why do you think He wants to reserve vengeance for Himself? Is God rubbing His hands together in anticipation and glee over the fate that awaits the "bad guy"? I think not. Instead, the Bible portrays God as One waiting to show mercy and give grace. We like to think of Him this way when we're the ones in need of it (and all of us play the bad guy at some time and on some level). But imagining our enemies as the objects of God's grace, mercy, and love is more that we want to contemplate. God does, after all love everyone - even terrorists and the guy who throws acid in the face of the lover who has scorned him.

Hopefully you'll never have to forgive someone who has murdered or mutilated someone you love. There is no question, however, that you will be wronged in a significant way at some time in your life. The betrayal of a friend or spouse, the theft of property or your good name are grievous wrongs, and not terribly uncommon. If you're facing any of those things today, remember that two wrongs don't make a right. Let God deal with the one who has wronged you. He knows how to make things right and you can trust Him to do it.

River Monster Ruminations

2011-05-05T18:49:00.004-04:00

My new favorite show is River Monsters. I'm surprised by my attraction to this show- fascinated, and not entirely sure why. I don't fish, but I DO love adventure. Maybe that's the answer...

The host, Jeremy Wade, travels the world fishing for strange and/or dangerous fish. All of the shows I've watched (I only became aware of it this season) have sensational titles like "Flesh Ripper." The story unfolds a bit like a mystery: does a certain fish really do whatever people claim it does, etc. At its heart, however, is a man with a great deal of curiosity about and respect for fish. I think that's perhaps another reason I like it so much.

Although there are exciting scenes in every show where the fish is finally landed, it's clear that Jeremy Wade spends plenty of time with his line in the water beforehand. In one episode he fishes for eleven days straight ( day and night) before he manages to hook the fish he's looking for.

I've spent some time thinking about the truths that River Monsters reminds me of...

- For every moment of triumph, there are many many disappointments and much waiting. If fishing can teach this life lesson effectively, I'd say that it should be mandatory training for all of us. We often expect immediate results and chafe under the discipline of waiting.

- Related to that is the development of a skill until it reaches the level of art. Becoming adept takes time and commitment. Practice makes better (if not perfect) and one who has practiced a lot makes what he is doing look easy and natural.

- Life is better when you approach others with respect and wonder. On River Monsters Wade encounters peoples and cultures very different from his own. He's smart enough to make friends and learn whatever the indigenous people have to teach him. His success is in part due to his emotional intelligence. He also respects the fish he catches, examining them with gentleness and releasing them back into the water (I know for certain that I could not watch the show if he was fishing for trophies). This world is full of interesting people and creatures. When we take the time to notice, our lives are enriched.

- People who follow their passion live interesting lives. I don't think this requires any elaboration...

Perhaps more on this later, but for now I'm content to chew this cud.

Holiness

2011-05-02T14:57:00.004-04:00

"The striking visual features of heaven are its symmetry, its light, and its fertility. It is perfectly proportioned, it is light-filled, and it is life-producing. The symmetry is a realization of entire holiness. We are being fashioned into holiness: holiness is perfectly proportioned wholeness" (Eugene Peterson, Reversed Thunder: The Revelation of John & The Praying Imagination, p. 177).

"Be holy, for I am holy." Not so much a call to good behavior as it is a call to total transformation. It is an invitation to participate - to reflect - the beauty of God: His symmetry, His light, and his life-giving presence.

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, it's not something that is easy and it's not quick. In fact it takes a lifetime of work. The wonderful thing is, however, that although we do have to exert effort, the ultimate work is God's. It is God Himself that directs and plans everything in the believer's life to work together to achieve His vision of loveliness and wholeness.

Over the last seven or eight weeks one of my bathrooms has been in the process of remodel. I had the room gutted, and changed almost everything in the room. At some time in the past my home was a duplex. The bathroom upstairs during the duplex days served as a kitchen and a bathroom. There was a kitchen sink up there as well as a bathroom vanity. There were also kitchen cabinets - hung so high that I could only reach the bottom shelf.

When the renovation began I was very excited. I figured I'd be inconvenienced for a couple of weeks and then I'd have a beautifully transformed bathroom. Four weeks or so in I began to lose my enthusiasm. Stuff was sitting everywhere (although I could only reach the bottom shelf of those cabinets, I'd still filled them up) and we were constantly tripping over each other as we tried to find a good mirror to put our make-up on in front of or dry our hair.

Although it's still not 100% completed, we're almost there. My enthusiasm is back. The space is beautiful and I'm excited as I contemplate its use. I'm glad I decided to live through the inconvenience.

I live in an old house (built in 1912). Most of the house has been remodeled since I've been here, though there is still plenty to do. With every project I'm moving closer to what I consider a thing of beauty.

I think as our inner "houses" are remodeled we go through much the same process. We may begin with some excitement and a vision of what a "remodeled" future looks like. We'll enjoy the space and enjoy inviting others into it so that they can share the beauty. When we're in the midst of change, however, we begin to wonder if it's worth it. The old comfort may not have been terrific, but now we're in a mess and it doesn't look good yet. But if we hang in there, we complete the project and have a space that we're happy to live in - and to share with others.

While there will always be some other project to do, every bit of effort we expend or inconvenience we endure moves us closer to holiness and beauty. Wherever you are today, I hope you'll stay committed to the transforming work of the Holy Spirit in your life.

Reading the Gospel

2011-04-29T18:17:00.003-04:00

One of my Facebook friends posted a comment a couple of weeks ago about the Gospel. He basically said that one should not pick and choose what one believes about the Gospel because then the story becomes more about you than about God. One of his friends responded that he hasn't anything to do with the Gospel because he's lied to himself much less frequently than the Gospel has lied to him. I went back to the thread a few days later to check further comments. The same man said that he gave up on the Gospel when he was eight years old.

It's clear that someone who gave up on the Gospel at the age of eight has never really read the Gospel -- at least not the one written in the Bible. I've been thinking of this string of Facebook comments ever since.

Anyone who's been a Christian for very long has probably heard something along the lines of, "You may be the only Gospel someone ever reads." Well... here's the proof. The man's bitterness about the Gospel has nothing to do with Jesus and everything to do with his followers (and don't worry... I know that if I point my finger outward, that there are three pointing back at me).

God says in the Bible, "Be holy, for I am holy." One thing is for certain: God wants us to adopt His character - His holiness. Just to be clear, I don't mean He intends that we be holier than thou or judgmental. Instead, we're to look like Jesus.

Now if you have read the Gospels you know that Jesus made friends with all kinds of people. His life was characterized by love, forgiveness, grace, healing. He knew how to meet people of all walks of life right where they were and love them just as they were. In fact, the only ones who seemed to have a problem with Jesus were religious types (of the holier than thou variety).

"Be holy for I am holy." Become like Jesus. That's the mission of each Christian. It's what spiritual formation is all about. Being made over is hard and messy. It's not for sissies, and perhaps that's why so few have a real appetite for it. It's easy to judge others - to be holier than thou. It's simple to confess to some beliefs and follow a few rules that allow you to pass a "Christian" litmus test. It is something altogether different to have Christ formed in your personality. That requires a total overhaul. It's painful.

But it is critical that transformation happens. The stakes are high. It's not simply for our benefit, but for the benefit of those who truly won't read the Gospel except in the lives of Christians.

What You See is What You Get

2011-04-21T08:13:00.003-04:00

I was listening to music in the car the other day when the Sara Groves song "What I Thought I Wanted" came on. I'd already been pondering the way folks react to what happens to them, and this song thrust me deeper into my musing on the subject.

I was visiting Savannah, GA with my daughter. It was the SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) Accepted Students weekend. We were treated to events that were planned with excellence and (of course) an artistic flair. We were both impressed and filled with visions of what her four years at this wonderful school - in a beautiful city - would be like. I found myself hoping that it would all work out and that she would be launched into adulthood living her dreams.

I would be less than honest if I didn't admit that in the midst of all of our excitement I didn't also have a twinge of anxiety. What if the finances don't work out? What if she makes a bad choice that changes the trajectory of her life? What if , what if, what if?

These thoughts do not rise simply out of my imagination. They come, rather from my own experience. Most of us can think of things that we thought we wanted, and in the end, got something else entirely (Sara Groves says, "What I thought I wanted and what I got instead).

There are different ways to handle it when we get something different than what we want. We probably all know people who are filled with bitterness because something(s) didn't work out as expected. Rather than enjoy the present, these folks dwell on why they cannot be happy. For them, life is absurd and meaningless. But there is another way... Others are open to whatever it was that they got instead... That openness allows them to see God's hand at work. This doesn't mean that they're making the best of a bad situation. It means that they are able to see how what they got instead was the best. The unexpected, un-looked for, and even unwanted outcomes lead to a place filled with the blessings and presence of God.

Sometimes our plans, hopes, dreams, and fervent prayers do not turn out the way we want. What comes next depends on how we respond. When we have eyes to see the hand of God working His wise and loving plans in and through our circumstances, abundant life is what we get.

Understood In Context

2011-04-04T06:41:00.005-04:00

There is very little that can be understood outside of the context in which it is said or done. One may be able to hear and fully understand a short, pithy statement because its meaning is fully contained within it. However, most of what we hear, see, and even who we are can only be understood within a much larger context.

All of us are shaped by a large body of experience and cooked in a stew that consists of our families, friends, church, etc. This was brought home to me during the past week when we said goodbye to my Uncle Ted ("One of the Good Guys"). Ted's life was lived within the context of family and church primarily, but also in relation to Kiwanis, Master Gardeners, his former life in the Social Security Administration, and much more.

As our family and friends came together last week, I was struck by how profoundly I am attached to these folks - not simply that we've shared experiences, but that my true identity can only be understood and fully known within the context of my relation to them. I am fortunate. Those connections have been loving and affirming. There are themes of love and grace, fun and adventure that run through my life's story. They are all related to other people. Some are family, some friends, and many through the church - my other family. Even the dark threads of sorrow, pain, and brokenness - when woven together with the rest appear to be part of a good story - not a sad one.

What's your context? What are the themes running through your story? I hope you're not tempted to think that you have no control over what happens in the story. You can choose to associate with those more likely to provide a positive context. I once heard someone say that you're the average of your five closest friends...

One thing is for sure: if Jesus is you closest friend, your context (if you follow him) will be one that builds a glorious identity - a great story. He is the Author and Finisher of our faith and he loves a good story.

A Society of Haters?

2011-03-29T07:43:00.009-04:00

I was reading the news on line this morning and noticed that the 13 year old girl (Rebbecca Black) who has a YouTube song about the weekend will soon surpass Justin Bieber's song "Baby" as the most hated. I have not seen Justin Bieber's video and have not heard the song all the way through (my niece and nephews can occasionally be heard singing, "baby, baby, baby"). I have seen a part of Black's video. __________________ My daughter called me into the study a week or so ago to watch something she said was "appalling". I watched a clip of what my daughter had obviously watched in its entirety several times... I feel certain that she is one of the many who have "hated" this video. It's interesting, however mediocre the song, that anyone would be interested in "hating" the efforts of a thirteen year old girl. When I said as much to my daughter she replied that if the girl didn't want to be hated that she shouldn't have put herself out there. Hmmm... When my own daughter "put herself out there" it was in the context of performances at church (flute) which, in the early days, were well... mediocre. She wasn't "hated", however, she was loved and encouraged. ________________________ I notice that a lot of hating that happens on the web. I get my news from the Internet and at the bottom of most articles is a space for commenting. There are typically hundreds of comments, most of them full of sarcasm and hate. Maybe it's just the really angry people who feel moved to comment... It's bad enough that we feel we have to compound the bad news we hear in the news with our own tirades full of hate, but I think we cross a line when we think we have to let a 13 year old girl know that we don't like her video. I'm betting that most folk's efforts at 13 were mediocre at best (I know mine were). ________________________ There are many indications that our society is in bad shape. I think this propensity to be haters is one of the more troubling. I don't know about you, but I do not want to be defined by what I'm against or what I hate. Instead, I want people to know what I'm for - what I love.

One of the Good Guys

2011-03-25T20:56:00.003-04:00

Have you noticed that there really aren't that many good guys? I mean bonafide, genuine good guys. The real thing. We live in an age marked by selfishness and narcissism. Good guys today are rare.

It's not glamorous or sexy being good. In fact, to be really good, one would have to be deliberately low key. Good guys - real ones - don't draw attention to themselves. I know a few of these individuals. My Uncle Ted is one of them.

Uncle Ted is a guy who shows up when he's needed. He's dependable. He offers his strength rather than his opinions. He is a man who loves his family. He's provided a stable, normal, nuclear family for his children and grand children. It's not surprising that his three kids are still married. They've had a great example to follow.

Uncle Ted is good with his hands. He offers to fix things that are broken. He grows a garden and shares the vegetables. His home is a place where people like to gather, partly because my Aunt is such a fantastic cook, and partly because he's created such a beautiful space in the country.

You won't read about Uncle Ted's antics in the paper. He won't show up in the news. He hasn't had 15 minutes of fame. But he's left his mark on everyone who knows him. His son is very much like his dad and so is his grandson. He's invested his life in others who will also be (already are) good guys. I don't think the importance of this can be overstated.

Uncle Ted is in the last days of his life. Cancer will claim him very soon. But without any sort of notoriety, Uncle Ted is leaving the world a better place than he found it. He leaves behind two good guys to step into his shoes. He leaves his mark on the hearts of too many people to count, through his quiet life and his good deeds. When those who knew Ted stand over his casket, they will tell stories of his goodness. They will say what a fine and loving man he was - that he was one of the good guys.

I know that I want to be one of the good girls. I want to leave a legacy of goodness and good deeds behind me when I go - to have raised a good girl and a good guy myself... To leave two in my place to step up into this hurting and lonely world and leave it better than they found it.

When people stand over your casket, what do you want them to say about you?

What Do You Want Me to Do For You?

2011-03-09T12:23:00.004-05:00

A couple of weeks ago I was leading a Bible study for the Saturday Lunch Ministry at my church. The group is studying Matthew and they'd made it to chapter 20. The next day the same passage was a part of the Sunday School lesson. Hmmm... I don't know about you, but whenever I "coincidentally" encounter the same biblical passage in a short amount of time, I pay attention.

Matthew 20 consists of a parable and two others "scenes" from the life of Jesus. The parable is about the workers hired at different points during the day to work in a vineyard. Jesus stuns his hearers by having the estate manager pay those who'd only worked one hour the same as those who had worked twelve hours. This is a story that doesn't offend in the theoretical, but if you were one of the workers, you'd probably feel outrage at the unfairness.

The next scene in the chapter involves James and John's mother asking Jesus to see to it that her sons sit - one on his right and the other on his left - in the Kingdom. Jesus uses the request to reorient the disciples on what leadership in the Kingdom of God looks like - servanthood.

Finally, the chapter closes with Jesus' encounter with two blind men. When they hear that Jesus is passing by they begin to shout out to him. Jesus asks the men what they want him to do for them. They wanted to see. Jesus has compassion on them, heals them, and they followed him.

The parable about the workers in the vineyard and the vignette where James and John's mother are seeking honor and power for her sons set up opportunities for Jesus to explain what Eugene Peterson likes to call "The Great Reversal". In the healing story, the blind men have their sight restored and follow Jesus. Could these physically blind men serve as a foil for the spiritual blindness that was depicted in the previous scenes in Matthew?

As the Lenten season begins it's good to ponder the ways that we may experience blindness. The Kingdom of God operates very differently from the kingdom of the world, where we often feel very much at home. Lent is a time to shed our false beliefs about what is fair, what we deserve, and what we should have and learn to follow the Savior, who is bound for the cross.

Doing Difficult Things

2011-01-11T08:01:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago I wrote about Smokey, a cat that I rescued (for my niece) at an animal shelter. I had to take Smokey to the vet right away because he had a respiratory infection. After much poking, prodding, and discomfort (what I felt sure Smokey thought was the WORST day of his life) he got to go home. Smokey's doing great. He looks sleek and healthy, and my niece showers him with love every day.

Lately I've been in a season where I seem to have to do many difficult things. These days do not appear to be the best in my life. Chief among these difficult things was choosing after many tears and much prayer to send my son to military school. You may be thinking, "Pish posh! Military school? What's the big deal?" And maybe you're right. Someday I hope to look back on this and say the same thing. However, sending my son away to school meant delivering him to what I knew would be many difficult and lonely days. Maybe I've watched too many Disney movies, but it's been hard for me.

I became resolved to send my son away to school right before Christmas. We visited the school. I liked it, but he hated it. I consulted with family, friends, and my pastor. It became clear to me that it would be best for him. I knew it in the marrow of my bones. Actually sending him, however, required resolution and grit because I knew that it would be difficult for him. I believe that his time at Chamberlain-Hunt will be formative. That he'll grow as a person and as a man. I also believe that I am growing as a result of this resolve to do what's best for him despite the temporary pain.

It's the beginning days of a new year. There are lots of folks (if TV commercials are any indication) that make resolutions that may be hard to keep: diet, exercise, smoking cessation, etc. There are other worthy things to pursue. It's a great idea to resolve to be more mentally, emotionally, and spiritually healthy. Whatever aspect of your life you're resolved to improve, you can be certain that effort and (perhaps) a bit of pain await you. Maybe your muscles will be sore. Perhaps your heart will ache with the effort. However, in the end, you'll come out into a wider, healthier place. A place of greater freedom. May God bless you in all of your worthy resolutions.

Creating Beauty

2010-12-21T07:55:00.003-05:00

My daughter is in the process of applying to art school (SCAD, University of the Arts, VCU, etc.). She has to write essays for these places on why she wants to study art. Here's mom's mix:

I have often said that my daughter was put on this earth to create beauty. She is at heart an artist -- whether she's performing music, drawing comics, taking pictures, writing stories or poems. Even my daughter's style of dress is more of an art form.

I wonder if I've been correct about saying that her calling is to create beauty, however. It would probably be more correct to say that she was put here to reveal or uncover the beauty that already exists. Further, it may be even more correct to say that an artist is simply one who helps others to see. After all, some things are decidedly not beautiful, but we need to see them nevertheless.

Before the modern era it was generally accepted that art should imitate life. In the main I'd have to say that I agree with this statement. An artist's depiction of what IS can highlight some important quality that should be celebrated or (in the case of injustice, pain, etc.) what needs to be addressed by society. From this perspective, artists perform an invaluable service to mankind.

Art speaks to the human heart at a deeper, more basic level than mere rhetoric. Politicians and pundits can argue endlessly and never change a single opinion. But a painting, photograph, story or song can penetrate defenses and help people to see things from a different perspective. This power can be used for good or evil to be sure. Propaganda is a perfect example of art being used to manipulate. But the classics of literature and the art world prove that the highest use of art is to affirm life and humanity.

Hopefully as my daughter pursues her passions (writing and photography) she'll use her powers for good. The opportunity to see things through the eyes of her sensitive soul should make the world a better place.

Highly Favored of God

2010-12-19T17:41:00.003-05:00

I've been pondering Mary's call this afternoon. During the sermon this morning, our pastor mentioned in passing the fact that Mary and Joseph found no room in the inn when they arrived in Bethlehem.

In the past, I've thought some about the magnitude of what God asked Mary to do when He offered her the chance to be the mother of Jesus. It was a big risk being found pregnant with no husband. There have always been religious folks who like to enforce the rules - and according to the rules, Mary should be stoned to death... Joseph, however, made a respectable woman of Mary, after being assured by an angel that the baby was in fact, God's.

Then, when it was time to deliver the baby, Mary and Joseph find that there's no room in the inn. Instead they are consigned to a stable where Mary suffers the pain of childbirth with no mother around to support her and no comforts.

She must have been an extraordinary woman. If it was me I'd be saying, "Isn't it enough O Lord that I took the risk of having this child? Couldn't you have at least found us a decent room? If we're doing your will, why don't you make it just a little easier on us? "

I think we often make the mistake of thinking that the Lord's favor means an easy road. But if God did not offer the mother of his child an easy burden, I think it's fair to say that we shouldn't expect to be on easy street just because we're following His plans.

Being favored by God means that He offers us the incredible opportunity to participate with Him in what He's doing. We are offered an adventure not a couch. So... if you're feeling a bit put out with all that's on your plate, think of Mary and Joseph. They were given perhaps the greatest honor that God ever bestowed - fostering his Son. They found themselves facing the misunderstanding of the good people in Nazareth, an uncomfortable journey to Bethlehem, followed by painful labor in a stable, and finally fleeing to Egypt with a baby in tow. Though this doesn't sound much like a Currier and Ives scene, it is the biblical one.

"Crowning" the Year

2010-11-21T20:20:00.002-05:00

Today is Christ the King Sunday. It's the final week in the church year. Next week Advent begins - a time to look forward to the coming of Christ as an infant as well as a time to anticipate Christ's second coming (a part of Advent we often overlook).

In the Christian calendar the year is "crowned" (pun definitely intended;)) celebrating Christ as King. In the Lectionary readings for this Sunday a passage from Jeremiah 23 is included where God gives an indictment against the shepherds of His people who scatter the flock, drive them away, and do not tend to them. God promises a different King who will deal wisely and execute justice and righteousness in the land. Under his reign, the people will live in safety.

We're clearly not there yet, but sometimes I get a glimpse of the coming Kingdom and my heart is encouraged. Yesterday God granted me a peek. Our church provides lunch every Saturday as it's the only day that the Salvation Army does not provide a meal. We served a Thanksgiving style meal yesterday. Different folks made hams or turkeys and the rest of the meal (except for desert) was prepared in the church kitchen yesterday morning.

Typically the meal is prepared and handed over a counter on disposable plates and plastic utensils. The tables are bare - except for disposable salt & pepper shakers. The rules are pretty rigid about when desert is served and when seconds are served because without those rules there'd be chaos.

Yesterday the tables had tablecloths and fall centerpieces. The salt and pepper shakers were glass, as were the plates. The tables were set with the flatware we use for our congregational dinners. Rather than line up and receive plates over the serving counter, members of the congregation served as the wait staff.

I'm in charge on the third Saturday of each month, and I must admit that I was nervous. I was afraid the congregation members would not show up. On normal Saturdays we man the kitchen with around five people who cook the meal and clean up. We'd need a few more to serve the tables. Well... there were 25+ people who showed up with their homemade deserts and served those less fortunate than they. The vibe in our fellowship hall was really good. It was a beautiful picture of what it looks like in the Kingdom.

There isn't a single significant person (leader, parent, child, spouse, teacher, etc.) who won't let us down occasionally. Some of those people are like the shepherds indicted by God in Jeremiah - so bad that they scatter the flock. Christ, however, will never let us down. We may not understand everything that happens, but we can take His trustworthiness to the bank. His ways are just and right, merciful and gracious. In fact, Christ's throne is often called a throne of grace.

I think it's important to remember that Christ is indeed King; that He reigns even now; and that at some time in the future everything will be set right.

The Worst of Times or The Best of Times?

2010-11-15T19:12:00.003-05:00

Today I picked up a kitten at the animal shelter for my niece. She saw him over the weekend and decided that he was THE ONE. He's a cute little fellow of about seven or eight weeks. The volunteer at the shelter on Saturday was a young lady who told us that "Smokey" had a cold. When I returned to adopt him, however, the adult running the shelter said that "Smokey" has a respiratory infection - hopefully not feline leukemia.

I adopted him any way. That was the errand I was sent to do after all... When I got Smokey in the car, he immediately began meowing. I reassured him that the ride wouldn't last too long, and that this was, in fact, his lucky day. He was going to live in a very nice family, with a very nice home, and all of the resources to pamper him beyond his wildest kitty dreams.

I decided to run him by the vet before dropping him off at my sister's house. If he indeed had a respiratory infection, I reasoned, better to take care of it immediately and not saddle my sister with the job of taking him to the vet.

When we got to the vet, we (of course) had to wait. Smokey had to endure the scrutiny of several dogs while we sat in the waiting room. The dogs were not as much of an ordeal as his examination, however. We decided that he'd better be tested for feline leukemia (negative), so they took some blood. They checked him for worms (he had them); Cleaned out his ears (ear mites too - I didn't tell my sister about those!). Since he was running a fever, they gave him some fluids to cool him off and hydrate him, put ointment in his running right eye, and gave him his first dose of antibiotics for his respiratory infection.

By the time it was over, I could tell that Smokey was thinking that this must be the worst day of his life. He was shaking like a leaf. But Smokey didn't know what was happening next. He didn't know that he was on his way to the life of Riley at my sister's house. All Smokey has known is the Caswell County Animal Shelter. His life was about to get much better!

Smokey's morning has given me some cud to chew throughout the day. Sometimes we think that things are bad - the worst of days. We can't imagine why God is allowing all of this "suffering" and pain. All along, however, God knows His plans for us and the bright future ahead. Whatever we're suffering through in the present is only to make us better - fitter and healthier- to enjoy life in His Kingdom. If you're having a tough day or season, hang in there. Trust the good intentions of the One who wants us to share His home.

Kick Ass

2010-11-06T11:22:00.002-04:00

Last night my daughter and I watched the movie Kick Ass. On one level it's a story of a young man who wonders why no one in real life ever tries to be a super hero - right wrongs and fight the injustice and exploitation he sees in his neighborhood daily. This boy decides to don a costume and do something about the bad guys.

On another level the story is about what happens when the desire for revenge consumes one's life. This thread follows a more serious "super hero" who calls himself (I think) "Big Daddy" and his daughter "Hit Girl". Big Daddy was a police officer framed on a drug charge and jailed for five years. During that time his pregnant wife committed suicide. Their surviving daughter "Hit Girl" was raised by Big Daddy's partner until he was released from jail. Big Daddy decides to go after the organized crime family responsible for his pain.

While Kick Ass uses a couple of things that look like billy clubs to fight the forces of evil, Big Daddy and Hit Girl fight crime with guns, knives, spears, anything lethal that will get the job done. They're really killing bad guys.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I found it very diverting. I like seeing bad guys get their asses kicked. I found myself cheering as Hit Girl shot, stabbed, and beat up scary gangsters. There is something very right and very wrong about it, though. It's right that evil is defeated - to see those who've set a snare for someone else fall into it themselves. It's wrong, however for a ten year old girl to kill - and to kill with such obvious relish. It's especially wrong that a father's hatred and bitterness be channelled through his child.

I won't tell you more than that things do not end well for Big Daddy; and maybe that's a good thing... Fighting crime and injustice is good. There is something in all of us that wants to see evil defeated and the right asses kicked. A consuming desire for revenge, however, makes it impossible for real justice to be done. The good is tainted by a hatred that comes from (if possible) an even darker place than the heart of gangsters.

The daily Lectionary is moving through Revelation right now. For several days I've been reading about the wrath that is being stored up by God for the "gangsters" of history. Unlike our own anger, God's wrath is rightly directed and administered. It is held off until the last possible moment, because unlike us, God would prefer to administer mercy and grace - even to gangsters. Some things are better left in His capable hands.

Costly

2010-11-03T08:07:00.003-04:00

Anything of value will cost something. The better that something is, the more (obviously) it will cost. Though something of value may be costly, not acquiring that something may be just as costly - if not more so...

Home improvements are a good example of this concept. You may not want to spend the money to repair something in your home, but if you don't, in the end you'll pay more. Maintaining health is another example. Staying healthy may or may not cost money (it is possible to work out without a gym membership) but it will cost the effort of exercise and the pain of denying yourself pleasures you may prefer to enjoy -- larger portions, desert, alcohol, etc. If you don't stay healthy, however, medical bills as well as potential disability could result; not to mention the fact that someone whose cholesterol is sky high or whose kidneys don't work must change his diet simply to survive.

Lately I've been pondering the cost of what I'll call "inner health". By "inner health" I mean psychological, emotional, and spiritual health. This kind of health leaves you free to make loving choices about how you relate to yourself and others and God. Being healthy in this way is perhaps the most costly because it involves laying down and leaving behind many things we'd prefer to hold onto or not to think about.

Last night during a committee meeting at church we were discussing a couple of services our interim minister was calling "healing" services. One was for our choir and the other for the congregation in general. In both cases "healing" is what's needed. We find ourselves playing out the same tragedy every few years, with the characters and lines changed only sightly. Clearly there is dysfunction at work. Right now we're in a good place, but beneath the surface, there are still unhealthy patterns ready to emerge given the right circumstances or triggers.

What's interesting is that there was great resistance to calling the services "healing" services. "The word 'healing' implies that there's something wrong." Exactly! There is something wrong. In the end we decided to call the services "A New Day" or "Fresh Start" or something like that. The truth is, it doesn't matter what we call the services. What matters is that we recognize that there's something wrong and decide we'll do whatever it takes to make it better.

I've been a Christian now for 31 years. I am still in need of healing - and lots of it. Don't get me wrong... I'm a relatively high functioning adult with mostly healthy relationships. But my relationships are not 100% healthy. By that I mean that love is not my motivation 100% of the time. Until it is I'm in need of healing.

Jesus is the perfect picture of one who lived in freedom and love. He responded to others with a heart perfectly in tune with the Father's. As Christ is formed in us, our lives will more closely resemble his. But we must understand that love and freedom come at a price. It's a price that must be paid daily: laying down fear, unforgiveness, selfish desires, lust -- anything that gets in the way -- and replacing them with the fruit of the Spirit.

Love is always stretching - calling us outside of our comfort zones. It's costly. But it's more costly to continue to live otherwise. It's more painful to live out the same tragedies again and again.

The writer of Hebrews was on to something when he said,
"... let us rid ourselves of every burden of sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us, while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith. For the sake of the joy that lay before him he endured the cross, heedless of its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God." -- Hebrews 12: 1b - 2

Persistent - A Sermon for the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

2010-10-18T06:32:00.007-04:00

Scriptures: Jeremiah 31: 27-34, 2 Timothy 3: 14- 4:5, Luke 18: 1-8

Have you ever played Free Cell solitaire? When I first encountered the game (years ago) I remember being told that it's possible to win every game. Frankly I found that hard to believe. So I tried it. I played some games. I won some and lost many more. Over time, however, I came to believe not only that it's possible to win every game, but (with the help of the trusty "undo" function) that I could win every time I played -- as long as I persisted in trying.

Big deal, right? It's just a game. That's very true. It is just a game. But when I think about the instant society we live in today, Free Cell teaches an important lesson: persistence is critical to success. Thomas Edison is the modern poster child for the kind of persistence that matters. He failed more than 10,000 times in his attempts to invent a successful electric lamp. He knew, however, that with each failed attempt he was one step closer to success. there was no doubt in Edison's mind that he would invent the light bulb, and eventually he did.

If you're like me, you'd be sorely tempted to give up long before the 10,000th try. We're conditioned to believe that success should come quickly. An entire meal can easily be micro-waved in 4 or 5 minutes. Complex problems are solved in 60 minutes on our favorite dramas - and if you're into comedy, it only takes 30 minutes to resolve issues... When we're on the Internet we feel dissatisfied if we have to wait for a web page to load. Faster and faster speeds over time have conditioned a certain amount of impatience in us.

If you want to live a successful Christian life persistence is essential. The Christian life is not a 60 minute drama or a 30 minute sitcom. In the Medieval world view, the Christian life was depicted as a journey - a pilgrimage from Babylon to Jerusalem - from captivity to freedom -from slavery to son-ship. I think that's a good and accurate way to look at it. Life is a pilgrimage of transformation; and because the changes God intends are profound, they take time.

Persistence is an underlying theme in today's Lectionary readings. Through this morning's readings God is calling us to persist in three areas. We are called to persist in hope, in the Word, and in prayer. These three disciplines promise to assist us as we journey toward transformation and life together with God who is persistent in His pursuit of our hearts and lives.

Hope:
The words in the passage from Jeremiah are addressed to an audience that has lost hope. Do you remember last week's Old Testament Lectionary reading from Jeremiah? In that reading, the Israelites are told to settle into their captivity: to build houses, plant gardens, marry, and seek the welfare of the city where they'd been sent into exile. They weren't to expect to come home any time soon.

For the Israelites, the Babylonian captivity had drained the present of all meaning and hope, for their identity and destiny was from God and, in their minds, integrally tied to the Promised Land and the temple. Was it over for them? Did they miss out on their chance to participate in God's plans as His chosen people? The exile was a result of their unfaithfulness to the covenant and to God Himself. They had no one to blame but themselves for their predicament.

But through Jeremiah God speaks a word of hope. The days are surely coming when the exiles will be restored to the land, but more importantly they'll be restored in covenant - a new covenant. This time God will put his law within them - written on their hearts. Under the new covenant each one will be in dynamic relationship with God - knowing Him. Four times in the text Jeremiah emphasizes that the future will come because of God's action. It is God's loving, persistent pursuit of the people that will bring a bright future.

The good news for us is that God's plans for us will ultimately succeed. We can be confident that no matter where we are on our pilgrimage, that God has His hands upon us. One of my favorite verses is Philippians 1:6 where Paul says that, "He who began the good work in you will carry it through to completion, right up to the day of Christ Jesus." Our future is secure because God is in control of it. His loving purposes will be accomplished. Our job is to put our hope in Him, love Him, and obey what we know to be His will.

The Word:
The Scriptures from 2 Timothy urge us to be persistent in the Word. Paul tells Timothy to do two things: first to continue to live in what he has learned and believed, and second to proclaim the Word- the Gospel. In verse 16 Paul says that all scripture is inspired by God, literally "God breathed". It is not only inspired, but inspiring, and it can breathe new life into us. Regardless of the time or season of our life, the scriptures will always speak into our hearts and souls. As we read the scriptures they read us - exposing our desires, motivations, and actions for what they really are; the result is a transformation of heart, mind, and life as the Holy Spirit shows us a better way, revealing the heart of God to us in His word.

Unfortunately, many Christians don't know much more about the Bible than what they learned in Sunday school as children. They know some Bible stories and some of the common verses, but do not spend time reading daily - and being read - by the scriptures. Have you ever known someone who was looking for direction and guidance about a situation he was facing or a decision he needed to make and suddenly he's interested in what the Bible has to say? It's almost like he wants to use the Bible as a horoscope that day - close his eyes, open the book, and place his finger in a random spot hoping that God will guide his finger to the answer.

That's not the way to get good, sound answers and direction. When we spend time reading the Bible daily, God begins to speak into our lives and subtly direct us over time. Then when faced with a situation or decision, we find that God has been slowly shaping our hearts so that when the time comes to decide or act, we're ready to make a God centered choice.

How about proclaiming the Word? Pastor Joe has reminded us more than once that the people we encounter from day to day can read our lives, even if they never read the Bible. The truth is that this kind of "reading" happens all the time. I have acquaintances who are hostile toward Christianity because of the hypocrisy and lack of love they "read" in the lives of Christians. Our friends don't need us to preach them a sermon, but they do need us to live out the Gospel - to live in the love and grace, and truth we have received from God. As the Word of God speaks into our lives - reads us as we read it - our lives are gradually transformed (maybe conformed is a better word) - and we are made able to be flesh and blood pictures of the Gospel.

Prayer:
Our Gospel lesson this morning has intrigued me for years. Jesus tells a very interesting story about a widow and an unjust judge. We're told up front that the parable is about the need to pray always and not lose heart. Then we hear about a poor and powerless widow who through her continual coming wins justice from an unjust judge - one who cares neither for God nor man. The passage emphasizes the widow's persistence three times with words like: she "kept coming", "keeps bothering me", and "continually coming". Then Jesus shifts the focus from the judge to God and says, "And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

Here Jesus seems to be promising that those who persist in prayer will receive a speedy answer from God. This parable gets my attention! How many of us hammer away at God's door to no apparent avail? My guess would be that there are many here this morning who are weary - worn out - from praying. There are many who are exhausted, who wait un-expectantly for answers. There are others who say that God already knows what they need, so there's not need to ask for it. There are some - even some Christians - who don't really believe that God answers prayer. They haven't apprehended God's answers in the lives of others, so they don't feel moved to pray themselves.

Well, the answer for folks who don't believe in prayer because they can't see the answers in the lives of others is fairly simple: God's not interested in you learning about prayer second hand. Come to Him yourself. Commune with Him. Give prayer a try. See if God won't help you as you bring your concerns to Him.

How about those who say that God is good and already knows all that we need far better than we do ourselves? Why should we "bother" God by bringing our concerns to Him and asking Him to meet needs He already knows we have? Well... what if God knows that prayer is the thing we need first and most? What if God's object in prayer is to supply the thing we need the most - Himself? George MacDonald had a great illustration of this concept. He said that hunger may drive a run away child home, and that the child may or may not be fed immediately, but he needs his mother more than he needs his dinner. Communion with God is the one need of the heart beyond all other needs. The Giver is always in the gift. The truth is that sometimes the things that God would gladly give us, things that we need, must wait until we ask for them so that we can understand where they came from.

Then there are those who have been waiting in prayer for a long time. What about Jesus' promise of a speedy answer from the Father? It may be that the better the gift we pray for, the more time necessary for its arrival. There are some things -- especially the deep things in our lives - that take time. In some things, God must begin far back in our spirit, in regions we don't even know about, and do work that we can only be aware of in the final results. As we pray God works deep in our hearts - behind our consciousness - with His own presence. Through persistent prayer, God changes our hearts. He comes at us from behind, and so long before we're aware of it, He's answering our request - has answered it, and is visiting us in a profound way.

I began this morning by mentioning the game Free Cell. It is possible to win every game - as long as you approach it with patience and persistence. Occasionally I'll still lose a game, but only when I decide to give up. The reason it's relevant to all of us is that whatever our situation, in Christ it's possible to win. Winning in the Christian life means that Christ is formed in us, that the Kingdom of God is advanced, that love prevails. The only factor that prevents our winning is giving up. The God who is All Powerful and All Knowing is in full control. He calls us (as Winston Churchill - another very persistent person - once said) to never, never, never give us. Instead we are to persist: in hope, in the Word, and in prayer. And the God whose steadfast love persistently pursues us will be glorified in our lives and in the church.

Religion vesus Spirituality - Mom's Mix

2010-09-20T07:22:00.003-04:00

My daughter wrote an essay last night on religion versus spirituality. I decided to do one too. Here's Mom's mix:

Religion is a system of beliefs, usually adopted by a group. Involved in religion are notions of right and wrong and demands for observance. Spirituality is an individual's relatedness to God. Often in our culture of extremes, religion and spirituality are kept apart. But when they are wed, the result is a beautiful transformation of life and society.

Because religion is belief based it's exclusive. In fact, attempts to remove exclusivity from religion usually amount to a "system" devoid of intellectual and religious integrity. It is not the belief aspect that bothers most in the West, however, it's the group aspect. Many of the rugged individualists in the contemporary West chafe under the restraints of the expectations of the group.

Let's face it, groups are difficult. It's not good when one person makes a mistake, but when a group is in error, the results are often devastating. People are hurt and terrible injustices perpetrated. With that in mind it's interesting that, for Christians, being a part of the group (the church) is clearly God's will.

Spirituality is different. Spirituality is the unique relationship that the individual has with God. Here the focus is not on rules of observance, but rather the I and Thou of relationship; hence the appeal for so many today. Divorced from religion, spirituality frees the individual from anything but the romantic (or should I say romanticized) aspects of a relationship with God. Spirituality is as prone to error as religion. When this happens, the damage to the individual is perhaps greater than in a group dynamic. Could we, in fact, benefit when someone who loves us exposes our error?

The truth is that religion and spirituality were never intended to be kept apart. Jesus is the perfect picture of an integrated life. It's interesting that the religious establishment was so often enraged by him. For Christians involved in the life of the church, it's helpful to keep in mind that the status quo is continually challenged by the presence of Jesus. His involvement, through the spirituality of individuals (the work of the Holy Spirit), serves as a continual correction to the life of the group. Presbyterians would say, "reformed and always reforming."

Humans are prone to error. It's the human condition; the church calls it "sin". Humans together tend to sin bigger, but the converse is also true: humans together can do much greater good than the individual alone is capable of.

Only YOUR Assignment

2010-09-14T22:15:00.003-04:00

I was reading the Lectionary today and came across some interesting verses- Acts 16: 6-9

"They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. When they had come opposite Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; so passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, 'Come over to Macedonia and help up.'"

Paul and Silas were on a missionary journey. Their goal was to proclaim the gospel everywhere and to everyone. In the passage above, however, God's idea was for them to proclaim the gospel in certain places to certain people. After obeying the Holy Spirit, Paul receives a vision directing him to Macedonia. It is there God calls Paul.

What about Asia and Bithynia? The Great Commission calls for the preaching of the gospel to the entire world. From a strategic perspective Asia would seem a better move than Macedonia.
Though logic may argue that we should spend our energies expediently (the most bang for the buck - Asia vs. a tiny part of modern day Turkey), clearly God's plan is specific in terms of timing and who He chooses to send for a job.

It's with the best intentions that many of us want to barge ahead and do some good. We see a need and our desire is to rush in and work to move good things forward - or perhaps stop some evil. If we are aware of something that needs to be done, we reason, then it must be our job to do it. Well... maybe it is and maybe it isn't.

So... if you're facing a decision about where to go and what to do, it's probably a good idea to pause and listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit. If you're hearing a "no" that doesn't make sense to you (given the need), alter your course. God's strategy is sometimes counter intuitive, but His plans are perfect and His timing impeccable.

In His Right Mind

2010-08-31T22:15:00.010-04:00

Have you ever wondered what happened to some of the folks that Jesus encountered in his ministry? In His Right Mind, by Craig McDonald explores the life of the Gadarene demoniac (Mark 5) in the years after his deliverance from a legion of demons. Remember, this man (Simon of the Tombs in the novel) begged Jesus to allow him to join with the disciples, but was refused. Jesus told him, instead, to go and tell of God's compassion.

That is precisely what Simon does. He travels throughout the Decapolis (ten cities) and obeys Jesus' instructions with childlike simplicity. Simon's life is full of gratitude and simple faith, and he shares his story with everyone he meets. The connections he makes have a ripple effect - immediately touching many, and eventually influencing thousands.

I won't tell you any more, I'll simply urge you to read the book. The story is good - and good for you! In His Right Mind explores what happens when we respond with faith to whatever revelation we're given. There is also a very insightful and interesting look at the mixed motives at work in the lives of every person - even the faithful. It is available through Amazon - either on Kindle or in trade paperback.

Our lives count for the Kingdom, and no matter how simple our gifts, God can use them to accomplish His purposes. I don't know about you, but I find that a great comfort and encouragement.

Restored - A Sermon for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

2010-08-22T13:49:00.003-04:00

Scriptures:
Jeremiah 1: 4-10
Luke 13: 10-17

I watched the movie The 3:10 To Yuma the other day. What struck me about the movie is that it’s so hard to tell who the good guy is. Every adult character is either just plain bad, or has been so weighed down by wounds and sorrows from the past that the fabric of their lives is run through with strands of bitterness that colors their actions and motivations. As dark as things in the movie were, however, there was also a strand of redemption and restoration. A father and son’s sacrificial love for one another begin to change things even in the darkest heart.

As I pondered the movie when it was over, I thought that though extreme in their violence, the people portrayed were pretty realistic. There is a lot of suffering and sin in the world and everybody’s touched by it. Sometimes it’s hard to tell who the good guy is. But just as the love of a father and son changed things in The 3:10 To Yuma, the love of our Heavenly Father and His Son bring redemption and restoration to our dark hearts.

We have an interim pastor right now at First Presbyterian, and he’s been giving us three words every week to spark our memory as we meditate on his sermon during the week. It works pretty well for me, so I’d like to give you three words this morning that you can use this week to remember the scriptures we read and think about what God may up to in your life. The first word is brokenness, the second is healing, and the third is restoration.

Brokenness: The woman in the synagogue in Luke 13 was certainly living with brokenness. She’d been “crippled” by a spirit that kept her bent over for eighteen years. She walks around every day facing the ground. Getting a view of anything but people’s feet required a great effort on her part – a craning of her neck. And there she is in the synagogue with Jesus, so used to her condition that she doesn’t think to seek him out and asked to be healed.

Many of us are “bent over” and crippled just like the woman in the synagogue. Weighed down by sins and wounds that we’ve carried for years we must strain to see ahead of us – never mind enjoy the view from above! And sadly, like her, we are so used to our condition that it never occurs to us that we could be free from our brokenness. No one is exempt from this. No matter how together or perfect someone appears, if you look below the surface of anyone’s life, you’ll find some degree of brokenness. And because families, churches, and organizations are made up of broken people, all of those relationships and systems are broken too.

While there’s no direct mention of sin causing the woman’s condition, it’s important to point out that there is a rich interrelationship between sin and brokenness in the Bible. If we do not recognize the ways that we walk away from God and others – sin -- then we cannot truly search for wholeness. All of us are sinners and victims of sin. Only by dealing with our own sin can we be open to God’s grace to make us whole.

Healing: Though the woman does not seek out Jesus for healing, he sees her and calls her over. First he tells her that she is “set free” from her ailment. Then he reaches out and touches her. Jesus could have healed her with merely a word as he did for the man with the withered hand in another Sabbath healing story. But in this case, Jesus reaches out and touches the woman, and then she stands up straight and praises God. The woman’s infirmity – her uncleanness - had isolated her from the community. Jesus, however, calls her a daughter of Abraham, and touches her showing that she is not marginalized but accepted.

You know, it seems to me that brokenness has a way of marginalizing us every bit as much as it did people in the first century. Maybe we’re not shunned by the community, but the effects of our brokenness keep us on the sidelines. Now when you hear the word “brokenness” you may be thinking about the big things like addictions or diseases or mental illness. But the truth is that many of the things that leave us broken are small, unacknowledged things: bitterness, resentment, destructive patterns in our relationships, or negative things we believe about ourselves that are simply untrue. Brokenness is anything that keeps us from living a full, free, and unfettered life in community and before God.

Whether we admit it or not, those burdens that keep us bent over are often a source of shame in our minds. We’d rather folks not know about our fears and insecurities or dysfunction. It’s much better to have it together. But Jesus knows who we are and what we fear even when we appear to have it all together. And he reaches out to touch us too, offering healing. He says that we are sons and daughters of Abraham, fully accepted and loved members of the community, and that he wants to heal us – to make us whole.

Restoration: Jesus restores the woman. He brings her back into her rightful place in the community. Healing miracles in the Bible are signs of the reign of God. Where Jesus is, the Kingdom is. His ministry provides a foretaste of the coming Kingdom where the world and His people will be restored. All of the wrongs will be made right: people made whole, relationships restored, justice and righteousness established forever.

God’s has always blessed His people so that they would be a blessing to others. He redeems and heals us so that we are able to freely partner with Him as He brings restoration to the world. Our lives have a purpose, a calling to partner with God in His work of restoration.

In our Old Testament Lectionary reading from this morning, we read of Jeremiah’s call. God tells Jeremiah that He knows him and formed him. God designed Jeremiah for a purpose. God tells Jeremiah that he has appointed him to “pluck up and pull down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” Some of that doesn’t sound so good – destroying and overthrowing, plucking up and pulling down… But let’s admit it, there are things that need to be destroyed and pulled down: oppression, racism, abuse, and the machinery that makes poverty a way of life for so many. And there is much that should be built up and planted: love, reconciliation, justice, and peace. There is a lot of Kingdom building to be done, and as disciples of Jesus Christ we are to be about doing it.

In this morning’s passage, Jeremiah demurs when he hears God’s call. He’s not up to it. He’s too young. He doesn’t know how to speak. Jeremiah’s fears of inadequacy mirror our own. We never run out of excuses: “I’m too young; I’m too busy with work; with raising a family; I’m too old…” At every stage of our lives we have an excuse. Our sense of brokenness plays into our excuses too: “ I’m afraid; I’m sure I don’t have what it takes; the work will overwhelm me…”

God, however insists that He has a mission for Jeremiah. He will be Jeremiah’s companion on the journey; He’ll put His words in Jeremiah’s mouth; He will deliver Jeremiah. God promises the same for us too. If you’re a Christian and you’re alive, then you have a call on your life to be about the business of restoration. As we reach out and touch those whom God sends to us, we participate with Him in healing, restoring, and Kingdom building. As grateful recipients of God’s love, grace and healing, we become generous dispensers of that which we have received. May God grant us a vision of His work in our lives, the lives of others, and in the world.

All The King's Horses & All The King's Men

2010-07-31T08:58:00.003-04:00

You don't have to look far to observe a lot of brokenness. In fact, it's all around us: in the world, our local communities, our families, and (perhaps most significantly) in ourselves. Psychologists talk about much brokenness coming from one's family of origin and the Bible agrees: "punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand {generations} of those who love me and keep my commandments" (Ex 20: 5-6).

That sounds pretty harsh, but I think it's just common sense. There are definite patterns of behavior that are passed on from generation to generation whether you're talking addictions or dysfunction of other sorts. Children see or hear their grandparents or parents behaving in certain ways and those behaviors seem normal. In some cases (like addictions) genetic predispositions come into play as well.

The result is that brokenness is unavoidable. All of us are victims and perpetrators. Victims because... well because we're humans born into families. Perpetrators because to greater or lesser degrees - as we choose - we live into brokenness rather than wholeness. Remember that God not only promised that children would be punished for the sins of their fathers for three or four generations, but also blessed down to a thousand generations for those who love Him and keep His commandments.

Leaving brokenness behind and moving toward wholeness is a choice - a decision. Many prefer brokenness. It provides an excuse to fail, to mistreat one's self or others, and does not require the hard work of moving toward freedom.

We're all Humpty Dumpty. And although all the king's horses and all the king's men can't put us back together again, the King both can and will. We simply have to ask Him to - and then do whatever is necessary to leave behind our fears, compulsions, sins, etc. It's a long and arduous journey, but one that leads to wholeness, peace, restoration, and glory - yes glory - as we become the people we were always intended to be.

Not In the Strength of The Horse Nor The Speed of The Runner

2010-07-28T08:23:00.002-04:00

Last week I was driving to work feeling like a big zero. My primary vocation is "mother" and I was not feeling terribly successful. In fact I was feeling like I was failing. Parenting teenagers is not for the faint of heart...

On Saturday I went to a presbytery meeting and there were several people "examined" before being approved as ministers of Word and sacrament. One of the questions asked one of the candidates was concerning infant baptism. I thought of my answer (which btw was Martin Luther's originally). When Luther baptised infants, he stood before the congregation with the baby in his arms and quoted the scripture that says, "See what love the Father has for us that we would be called children of God. And so we are."

What Luther was saying is that when you look at a baby it's clear that he or she brings nothing to God. Not their faith, not their works. Nothing. The truth of the matter is that no matter what age you are, you bring nothing to God. Even faith is a gift granted by the grace of God. If you have it, it's only because God has given it to you. Even all of the potential for good embodied in the life of an infant is there as a gift from God (no one can take credit for their intelligence, beauty, etc.).

So riding down the road last week I was brought back to the reality that I may fail in my primary vocation (I hope not), but even if I do, I'm not a big zero. God is not so interested in what I bring to the table in terms of what I can do for Him. Instead, He's seeking one thing: love. Mine and yours. Like the baby being baptized, he loves us because he does. And that's what He hopes to receive back from us. It's really the only thing we have to offer Him.

Psalm 147: 10-11
"His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love."

Resting

2010-07-26T09:20:00.002-04:00

How rested are you? If you're like me maybe you can sing along with James Taylor, "I've been spreading myself thin these days, don't you know." There seems to be no end to demands on our time and attention. It's probably fair to say that most of us are tired. Weary might be a better word...

But it's not simply that we're physically tired is it? We're living in troubled times. The economy provides plenty of fodder for worry. So do the wars abroad and fears of terror at home. Our society's not in the greatest shape either. Hopes that our economic woes would refocus us as a nation (much the way the Great Depression did) have not come to fruition. I've received plenty of emails stirring up a sense of worry about all of these things. For folks my age, there are added family worries: teenagers and aging parents!

In spite of all there is to worry about, Christians are called to rest. In Matthew 11: 28-29 Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. The writer of Hebrews talks about entering God's rest in chapters 3 and 4. Some, the writer says, never enter God's rest? Why? Because of their unbelief.

Was the problem that they didn't believe in God? No. Instead those who never entered God's rest did not believe that God would take care of them. They refused to go into the Promised Land because they didn't believe that the God who plagued the Egyptians, parted the Red Sea, and miraculously provided for their nourishment in the desert could grant them victory in this new venture.

God was calling them to a sort of active passivity. They were to go up into the land BUT trust that God would be the one to do the actual work of bringing victory. The Israelites simply had to do whatever He told them to do.

Usually when I find myself stressed out about something it's because I've forgotten that I'm called to the same kind of active passivity. God calls me to listen for His voice and do my best to be sure, but He also calls me to trust all of the important stuff (outcomes) to him. He's got it. He can handle it. And He's reliable. If we truly take His yoke upon us we will find rest for our souls.

Where'd All The Good People Go?

2010-07-22T20:48:00.002-04:00

I've been seeing lots of commercials for "reality" TV shows lately. The most recent one is called "The Colony". Viewers are promised lots of drama - the breakdown of the society created by the producers. I was pondering why America seems to be so fascinated with these shows on my way to work when Jack Johnson's "Where'd All The Good People Go?" coincidentally played.

I don't watch "reality" TV for two reasons:
1. I'm raising a couple of teenagers by myself. I have all the reality (drama) I can handle. Give me fantasy, adventure or even romance - but spare me the "reality"!

2. I have a friend who has a friend who auditioned for "The Apprentice". The woman was successful and competitive. Sounds like just what the producers are looking for. She had one fatal flaw, however: she was too well adjusted. The producers didn't think she'd make for good TV.

I didn't watch "The Apprentice" (or any other reality show -for reason #1) before I found out that little bit of information, but now I know that it's only a certain kind of "reality" that seems to have entertainment value. So "reality" TV is not really "real". If you're normal, you're not a good candidate to appear on one of those shows.

That's good news! The "good people" are still out there. They're just not on TV.

What Difference Does It Make?

2010-07-11T16:37:00.006-04:00

I gave a "Minute For Worship" this morning. I introduced "Friends Sunday" that we will celebrate in mid September at my church. The idea is that you prayerfully consider whom within your circle of influence you'd like to share faith with, and invite them to church.

I live around 60 miles from Lynchburg, Virginia. Thomas Road Baptist Church (Jerry Falwell) studied the small city where I live and determined that 70% of the residents are unchurched. Their solution was to start a new church (there are already about 140+ churches in this town already).

I'm not certain that what we need is another church. Don't get me wrong. I believe that participation in a communion with fellow followers of Jesus Christ is essential for Christians. The Bible is clear that community is God's will.

It's interesting how loaded a word like "church" is for so many people. It's one thing to be wounded by someone, but when those wounds occur in the context of the church, the hurt seems to be magnified. I mentioned the 140+ churches in the town where I live... Why do you think there are so many of them? Are they filled up and we have to plant new ones just to have room in the pews for all of the worshippers? No... members get mad at each other and instead of working out their differences, they take their marbles and play somewhere else. I love First Presbyterian Church (where I worship), but I am painfully aware of many former members who left because of some hurt they suffered at the hands of someone at church.

I think that most folks who are hostile toward "Christianity" are actually hostile toward Christians. What's not to love about Jesus? You'd have to be crazy to not want to be Jesus' friend. The problem with Jesus in the eyes of many are his friends: us. It's not Jesus that they don't want to hang out with, it's us. The irony is that in 2 Corinthians Paul says that we are ambassadors for Christ. What kind of ambassador are you? What can people tell about the Kingdom you represent from your life and relationships? What difference does Jesus make in your life?

May God grant us the grace to grow in grace and love so that we represent Him well.

Reaping & Sowing

2010-07-04T12:55:00.002-04:00

One of this morning's Lectionary readings is from Galatians:

Galatians 6:7-10 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Years ago I heard Charles Stanley preach a sermon where he said: You reap what you sow, more than what you sow, later than what you sow. It's a principle that holds true in the garden as well as in our lives. If you sow tomatoes, you're not going to get watermelon. If you sow squash, you won't get cucumbers. You reap what you sow.

One tomato plant will yield lots of tomatoes. The same with beans, cucumbers, squash, etc. It's not unusual at this time of the year to be offered the produce from the gardens of your friends and neighbors. They have vegetables a -go-go and have to share just to keep ahead of their garden's production. I think that from year to year gardeners must forget how large the yield from the year before was. Then they're a little surprised when they're swimming in produce. You reap more than what you sow.

Fresh fruit and vegetables is one of the best things about summer. Once the weather gets warm and gardens are planted, I find myself watching - even in restaurants - for things like ripe tomatoes to show up in salads and on hamburgers. We had fresh green beans from my uncle's garden last night for dinner. They were to die for - very tender. Fresh just tastes better. But those beans didn't show up the day after my uncle planted them. Reaping takes time, care, cultivation, sun, and rain. You reap later than what you sow.

According the the Bible, our lives are not unlike a garden.

You reap what you sow. If you sow discord, you're not going to reap peace. That's just good common sense. In the passage above, Paul says that if you sow to please your sinful nature, you'll reap destruction while the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Earlier in Galatians Paul talks about the "works of the flesh" (or sinful nature): immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of rage, selfishness, dissensions, and factions. These are contrasted with the "fruit" of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Which do you want in your life? Seems like a silly question, but if you want the good stuff, you've got to plant the good stuff.

You reap more than what you sow. It's amazing how this works and how surprised we are at the magnitude of the good or bad that comes our way as a consequence of our decisions and/or actions. Those who have sown good seeds are amazed and humbled when their lives are blessed or they are honored. They feel unworthy of the good things that come their way or the words of praise others have for them. They feel that it's disproportionate to anything they've done. Those who've sown bad seeds are also shocked at what they get. They weren't that bad. The consequences seem way more than what they think they've got coming. Life's unfair.

You reap later than what you sow. This statement is either encouraging or cautionary depending on what road you're on. In the passage above, Paul says not to become weary in doing good. You will reap a harvest at the proper time if you don't give up. It's an encouragement to keep on doing what you know you should be doing - even if the seeds haven't sprouted or the fruit is not evident. It's also a warning. If you're doing wrong, don't think that just because you don't see any consequences yet that there are none forthcoming.

The fruit of our lives will ripen and become manifest - whether we are seen to be fruitful and beautiful gardens, or a wasteland of thorns and weeds. By God's grace, let's sow to please the Spirit and reap the harvest of eternal life.

Knowledge Is Power?

2010-07-02T10:39:00.004-04:00

Here's some information that should blow your mind:

From the dawn of time until 2003, approximately 5 exabytes of information were created. An exabyte is 1 billion gigabytes or 1 million terabytes. That's a lot of information, right? Well...
Today we generate that amount of information every two days!

The explosion of Google and other search engines reflects this incredible fact. Do you want to know something? Google it. Information is available at our finger tips in an unprecedented way. It's also easier than ever before to disseminate information. Hence this historic tipping point.

They say that knowledge is power. If so, we are more powerful than ever before in history. Maybe we are.

But in spite of all of this information - this power - we still cannot master ourselves. We are more aware of the obscure details of the universe, and the minute (and dare I say irrelevant) details of people's lives (thanks to Twitter), but we are less self aware than ever. And why not? With all of these distractions, who has time to listen to his heart?

Information does not have the power to change lives. Only God can do that. We are not more compassionate, loving, joyous, generous, wise, or good. We are (if Twitter is any indication) more narcissistic than ever. While all of the small narratives clamor for attention, the Meta Narrative moves inexorably forward.

God seems to prefer mystery. He is not terribly concerned with providing an information dump. I've noticed that He seems to tell me things on a need to know basis - and there is much that I clearly do not need to know.

So... while from a technological perspective we're living in an exciting - and unprecedented time, nothing much has changed if you're concerned about what really matters. The changes that happen in our hearts still take a long time. The transformation of our lives, a lifetime.

What Do You Expect?

2010-06-23T06:41:00.003-04:00

One of my favorite songs from Christine Dente's new album is "I Expect Great Things." It's of God that the great things are expected.

Expectations are very powerful things. I've noticed that people usually get what they expect - whether it's great things of God or mistreatment at the hands of others, "bad breaks", etc.

If you're a Christian, you can be assured of two things:
1. That Love wins in the end. God is now and will be victorious in this epic romance.
2. No matter what happens, God will be victorious in your life. In other words, " In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose"(Rom 8:28). Period.

You can safely expect great things of God.

So what can you expect from the people in your life? I think it's safe to say that you can expect them to be human - just like you. Sometimes they'll far exceed what you ever hoped and sometimes disappoint. Just like you do. Even (maybe especially) in our relationships we seem to get what we're looking for. I hate to refer to two songs in one post, but it fits so well that I'm compelled. In Sara Grove's song "Loving a Person" (just the way they are) she observes, "If we go looking for offense, we're going to find it. If we go looking for real love, we're going to find it."

Mercy and grace and redemption are all around us - in our circumstances, in our relationships, everywhere - if we only have eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to embrace.

So, what do YOU expect?

Focus & Intensity Versus Passion & Joy

2010-06-19T09:55:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I answered phones for a contest we are running at work: Smartphone Fridays. I have to admit that what I do for a living feels like play most of the time anyway, but yesterday I had even more fun than usual. We had a bank of phones set up in a large training room, and when the phone rang, I snatched it up and enthusiastically welcomed the caller to the Prize Line. Giving away prizes in incredibly rewarding!

Our prize line opened at 9 a.m. and closed at 7 p.m.. One of my teammates commented that one of our other co-workers and I were just as excited at 7 p.m. (in spite of our fatigue) as we were when we began the day. And we were. Why? We were having fun. We were filled with joy.

I've already admitted that my work feels more like play. I would say that passion and joy characterize my attitude toward what I do every day. Interestingly, in the company I work for, the words "focus" and "intensity" are often used to describe the qualities desired. There may be times when you're doing something difficult or unpleasant when focus and intensity are the only things that will carry you through. There's a little something negative when you combine those two words in the context of work over the long haul, however. What I picture (and often see in various work groups) are grim faced people striving every day just to get through the day.

Passion and joy take you further - help you to not only do a task or job with excellence, but ensure that at the end of the day you're just as excited as you were at the beginning of it. I don't know about you, but that's how I want to live and work and love.

Plain Speaking

2010-05-22T10:30:00.003-04:00

Communication is an interesting thing. I feel certain that it's always been challenging, but today maybe more so than in the past. The company I work for has a pretty good credo. Part of it says this, "We respect and trust one another, communicating openly, candidly, and directly since any other way is unfair and a waste of time." I think those are words to live by.

It seems to me that much of what passes for communication falls very short of that mark. I have two teenagers at home. A great deal of their communication is via text messaging. In the business world, we say that text messaging is a great way to communicate quickly and discreetly (i.e., if you're in a meeting). That's the good that texting brings. It's also a way to communicate in a passive / aggressive way. Texting, because it's not face to face, emboldens us to say what we would never say if we were standing before someone or speaking with them on the phone.

Facebook, My Space, and Blogs work the same way. Very often over the past few years, my daughter and son have taken shots at unnamed people (who've offended them) via their Facebook status. Maybe it's not that bad. They get to vent and say what's on their mind. But does it really solve anything? How often does what they say hit home to whomever it's directed to? Should it? If it's not something they'd feel comfortable saying to that person's face, probably not. It sure gets their friends talking, though - speculating about who it is and what they did... It stirs the pot of general adolescent poo.

Bad communication goes far beyond the electronic world, however. I was having a conversation with a man in my church last week. He wanted to say something about a situation, but he didn't want to be direct. He was using a code he understood, but I did not. He told me that if I thought about it, that I'd see what he meant. The fact is, that I've thought a lot about the situation in question already, but did not understand what he was trying to say. I finally asked him to spell it out for me (I'm not a mind reader). Beating around the bush or speaking in euphemisms is, I believe, a waste of time - at least if you want to be understood.

Why do we want to say bold things electronically and beat around the bush when we're face to face? What's so hard about speaking plainly and from the heart? I think that we fear vulnerability. If we say what we really think or how we really feel, we have to own those thoughts and feelings and open ourselves to disagreement, conflict, or rejection.

The Bible urges us to speak the truth in love. Sometimes the truth is that we've been hurt or offended. But other times the truth is that we love someone and need to express it. Either way, plain speaking is the best option. It's only communication if the message is sent and received.

Shameless Love - Part II, Fire Insurance

2010-03-27T21:25:00.003-04:00

Sometimes in Christian meetings an interesting question is asked toward the end (before the altar call): "If you were to die tonight, do you know where you'd spend eternity?"

It's interesting because if you think about the redemption meta narrative - and God's yearning, seeking, searching, redeeming love, it's more than a little insulting. Get saved so that you can avoid the flames of hell. Grab a little fire insurance.

From the beginning of the story, God's desire has been to enjoy an intimate relationship with his creatures. This is an incredible honor - an epic condescending! God wants to enjoy us and to be enjoyed by us. It's the desire of a lover for the beloved.

To think that we could respond to this beautiful longing for intimacy with the self serving notion of fire insurance is base and frankly horrible.

Interestingly, God's love is so shameless, that He honors that low impulse, and is willing to embark on a faith journey with those who are "using" Him to avoid hell. His ways are indeed unsearchable and His grace amazing!

Shameless Love - Part I

2010-03-16T19:50:00.003-04:00

It's been a while since I've had anything in particular to say, but this evening, my head and heart feel an impending explosion if I don't take a few minutes to write things down, so here goes...

This Sunday past I heard a sermon on Luke 15: 11-31, commonly referred to the "Parable of the Prodigal (or lost) Son." It would be more correct to call it the "Parable of the Father's Love" or something like that, because the focus of the story is the Father and his astounding - even shameless- love. Interestingly, the father in the story is dreadfully insulted by both sons - not only the one that went away and wasted his inheritance (For a full treatment of the parable see Kenneth Bailey's work).

Shamelessness is a predominant characteristic of God's love throughout the biblical narrative. He is continually forgiving, accepting, offering mercy and grace. Think of the story of Hosea who's told to marry a prostitute. Why? Hosea's life is an analog of God's love and forgiveness for the people of Israel, who continually run after others, rather than remain faithful to God, the rightful husband.

There is a part of each of us (I think) that longs for reconciliation like this - reconciliation with God - and reconciliation with one another. Have you received this kind of shameless love? Have you given it?

I'm NOT referring to neurotic or co-dependant love - the kind that reaches out to the other out of sense of personal neediness. Instead, this is a love for the person alone - not for anything the person brings to the table. I'm afraid that many folks today have no experience of receiving love like this. Not only do others expect us to bring something to a relationship - we expect it of ourselves (I know that I like to think that I bring value into my relationships). How about loving someone just for themselves? How about being loved just because you're you?

When Martin Luther baptized babies, he would hold the infant up in front of the congregation and say, "See what love the Father has for us, that we should be called His children, but so we are." It's perfectly clear the a baby isn't bringing anything to God - not even his or her faith, but God loves and receives the child anyway. He loves and receives you that way too. He's not interested in you because you're beautiful, intelligent, witty, fashionable, rich, or whatever. He doesn't need anything from you (or me). His shameless, searching, redeeming love reaches out to us because for some reason, he loves us - just for us. What incredibly good news!

Try, Try Again

2009-12-12T11:36:00.004-05:00

OK... you may think this is silly... but here goes. Lately I've been playing a solitaire game called FreeCell. I'd heard several people say that it's possible to win every game. At first I did not believe it. It turns out that it's true.

Since I figured out that it is indeed possible to win every game, the way I play has changed. I play until I win the game. Sometimes that means undoing several moves I've made - sometimes all the way back to the beginning. Though it requires patience and perseverance, I can win every game.

It's made me wonder. If I knew that I'd be successful, how would it change the way I live? Would I persist? Would I be willing to scrap all the moves I'd made and begin again? How about you?

Babies and toddlers know how to persevere. They babble until they learn to communicate with words. They scoot, and crawl, and cruise until they learn to walk. They practice every skill they want to learn continually. And they don't seem to mind.

Most of the things that I need to learn these days are soft skills - mostly they're relational. And I'll admit that I often despair that I'll ever get it. But playing FreeCell has reminded me that I shouldn't give up hope.

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

The Green Light At the End of the Dock

2009-09-04T21:15:00.004-04:00

Check out this portion of my daughter's blog:

"baby eyes and an open heart. a free spirit and a longing for adventure.dying to explore this big, big world.i have become the most restless being ever.i'm worse than a ghost caught in a haunted house,a sparrow trapped in a cage.a prisoner with his hands through the bars in his cell. slaves escaping in the dead of night for freedom. where is the relief for such a restless spirit?in this big, big world.

we walk through this life trying to find a light in the dark to guide our stumbling feet. the green light at the end of the dock on the other side of the water. a reason to keep ourselves alive.it seems i haven't found mine yet,but it's somewhere in this big, big world.

it seems i haven't found mine yet,but it's somewhere in this big, big world. am i too occupied, or not occupied enough?i am trapped beneath a life that i know i don't want. the big blue sky is my limit, and i can do anything.i want to reach for it and run for it and jump into it so i don't have to live this mousetrap of a life that i am living. cut the chains, set me free.free to explore this big, big world"

The green light at the end of the dock is an obvious reference to The Great Gatsby. It breaks my heart to read of her longing for something more.

Then I turn to today's Lectionary. The morning Psalm is Psalm 84:

Psalm 84
How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!
My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.

Happy are those who live in your house,ever singing your praise.

Selah

Happy are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.

As they go through the valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools.

They go from strength to strength; the God of gods will be seen in Zion. O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; give ear, O God of Jacob!
Selah

Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed.

For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than live in the tents of wickedness.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield;he bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does the LORD withhold from those who walk uprightly.

O LORD of hosts, happy is everyone who trusts in you.

My daughter is yearning for something more - something bigger. The truth is, all of us need a green light at the end of the dock. Unlike Gatsby, however, the Someone we need most is not beyond our reach. In fact, that Someone reaches out to us with steadfast love, and offers to fulfill our deepest longings.

Puzzling

2009-07-20T08:01:00.002-04:00

Lately I've been into working jigsaw puzzles. My passion for puzzles began when I discovered the on-line daily puzzles on msn games. Each day three fresh puzzles are posted, and I began to work them over breakfast.

It didn't take long for me to decide that maybe I needed to purchase some real puzzles that would take longer than 10 or 15 minutes to put together. So... out I went to Wal-Mart to feed my new found enthusiasm.

Puzzles are relaxing. I also believe they're good for your brain. But there's something else that I'm beginning to understand from puzzles... It has to do with discernment.

When I'm working a puzzle, I like to sort out the pieces that I think will go together into groups. Then as I work on one part of the puzzle or another, the process of finding the right piece is made easier because I don't have to look all over the table. What I find, however, is that sometimes I've sorted a piece into the wrong group. I think, for example that I have a piece of sky, but what I really have is part of a chair...

Invariably there's a point in my puzzle working where I begin to look more closely at each piece of puzzle to discern if I have it in the proper pile. And just as invariably, I find that what I thought was part of one thing is really something very different.

I think that life is very like a jigsaw puzzle (maybe that's why I like them so much). It's a beautiful whole, but broken up into many - sometimes bewildering - pieces. Just when you think you've got everything sorted out, you find a piece that doesn't fit. When it happens in life it's very frustrating, but jigsaw puzzles are teaching me to slow down and look more closely. What doesn't fit in one part of the puzzle fits beautifully into its proper place.

May God grant us eyes that see (discern) and minds that understand how everything in my life and yours fits together to complete a glorious picture of His grace and mercy.

Tripping Together is Better Than Falling Apart

2009-06-26T19:40:00.000-04:00

The title of this blog comes from a line in a Christine Dente song entitled, "Gotta Go Through". It's a song about the pain of living in community. It's not a song that suggests that it's better NOT to live in community - but instead that community life forces to "go through" things that lead us into another place. A better place.

America is a land that prizes individualism. We're also a consumer driven culture. Individualism and consumerism make community life difficult, whether the community in question is a family or a church. When the going gets tough - when life together gets painful, it seems easier to get up and run.

The Trinity is a model of community, existing together in a circle dance of love and mutuality. The relationship in the Godhead is a picture of what life together is meant to be like for us: love, appreciation, support, and collaboration.

God designed us to live in community. Even though our relationships are fraught with pain and difficulty, it is in relationship that we grow and develop into fully actualized people. We do indeed gotta go through. Hang in there. It's worth it.

Doomed To Repeat It

2009-05-13T17:55:00.000-04:00

They say that those who don't learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. Up until the time of the Crusades, Islam peacefully coexisted with Christianity. The violence that characterizes some of Islam today was born out of the brutality meted out on Muslims, Jews, and Christians alike by the crusaders who couldn't really tell one Middle Eastern person from another. It's a sad and shameful chapter in the history of the West.

I (unfortunately) looked as some pictures taken in the Abu Ghraib prison. They show detainees being (allegedly) abused. The story used the word "allegedly" several times. Maybe there's a story behind the story that we're not privy to, but if not, it certainly looks like abuse to me. Most disturbing of all of the pictures were the ones with soldiers smiling over the death or dehumanization of the prisoners. Again... maybe there's a story behind the story. I'm not really sure that I believe there's ever any good reason to dehumanize someone.

I don't know about you, but I want to remember the past and learn from it. I want to avoid the mistakes I've made before. I want to face my sin and brokenness and forgive myself - God has already. When I encounter sin and brokenness in others, or in institutions (including the church) I want to extend grace and forgiveness. This is the only way to live the abundant life. The only way to sing a new song. The only way to avoid being doomed to repeat the past.

The Fellowship of Suffering

2009-05-01T08:01:00.001-04:00

This week my colleagues and I traveled to our region headquarters for a dreaded quarterly review. During the review we recap our results - sales, key performance indicators, etc., and the initiatives we have in place for the upcoming quarter. It doesn't sound too bad, right?

Well trust me, it's no picnic - mainly due to the fact that regardless of what you've accomplished or how hard you've worked, you're in danger of embarrassment or worse from our region's head man. He's the kind of guy that believes in tough love - and that's putting it mildly. We'd all rather have a root canal than a quarterly review.

I was pondering the value of these quarterly exercises on my drive home Wednesday afternoon. We'd heard that we were the only region in our area doing a review this quarter, and I spent some time thinking about the value. It did occur to me that in this economy there's something to be said for keeping your foot on the gas peddle. We do need to be sure we're striving toward the right things and doing the right things in the right way.

But there's a greater value that my colleagues and I realize, and that's the fellowship of suffering. Maybe it sounds crazy, but we've been doing these together for several years. Each time it's excruciating. But something happens between us and among us as we suffer through them together. We bond. In fact, I've never been a part of a team as personally committed to each other as we are. I think that suffering together has a lot to do with it.

Most Americans spend a good deal of time and energy attempting to avoid suffering. I'm guessing that most of the world's people accept suffering as an inevitable part of life. Not Americans. The American Dream is a dream that we have enough of everything - money, health, knowledge, etc. to avoid unpleasantness. Life's better that way - right?

Maybe not. I think there's something to be said for the fellowship of suffering. Years from now when I look back on my life, I'll treasure those days spent in a windowless room toiling and laughing and praying (yes, praying) with my friends as we prepare to give an accounting of our efforts of the previous quarter.

In the same way, maybe our country will look back on these days of economic uncertainty and belt tightening as some of our best times. Times to be together, to learn to watch out for one another, to toil and laugh and pray together for the future - to share our humanity. Let's enjoy this time - these are the good ole days.

Rise Up

2009-04-12T19:25:00.001-04:00

Easter has to be one of my favorite days. After the agony of holy week we get to celebrate the victory of Easter. In the chancel area of our church there's a cross covered with Easter lilies today. I saw crosses outside of other churches covered in flowers too. It's an incredibly beautiful reminder that God is victorious over sin and death through Christ.

The fact that the church chose the cross as its defining symbol makes sense because it was on the cross that Jesus won the decisive victory. But if you think about it from a first century perspective, it's an odd choice. The cross was a symbol of the most shameful kind of death a person could die. It was reserved for those who deserved a humiliating and excruciating end. Isn't it amazing the the Lord of Glory, the Creator and Sustainer of all gave up his life on a cross?!

Churches cover those instruments of torture with flowers on Easter Sunday. Why? Because that terrible symbol of suffering is transformed into a symbol of victory. Death could not hold him. Love wins - and not quietly or subtly - love wins with resounding shouts of victory. It's simply another example of God's exquisite sense of irony. Flowers covering the cross is a fitting picture of a great reversal.

That same victory - over sin and death and pain - is ours today. We all have wounds that have led to death - the death of some area of our lives, or of a relationship. We (like the disciples) may think that the story is over. But God, in Christ, is victorious. He is not content to see any part of you or me left in the tomb. In his resurrection appearances, Jesus' wounds were evidence of God's great power. Likewise, though we will certainly bear scars from many things, our wounds are transformed into evidence of God's great power, victory, and love if we will only allow them to be.

Ben Shive sings a song about the final judgement called "Rise Up". I think it's actually a great reminder that the Easter victory will one day be consummated, and on that day all will be made right:

Every stone that makes you stumble
And cuts you when you fall
Every serpent here that strikes your heel
To curse you when you crawl
The King of Love one day will crush them all

And every sad seduction
And every clever lie
Every word that woos and wounds
The pilgrim children of the sky
The King of Love will break them by and by

And you will rise up in the end
You will rise up in the end
I know the night is cruel
But the day is coming soon
And you will rise up in the end

All praise to the King of Love who's not content to leave us wounded and dead and alone in our shame; but who instead claims, redeems, and heals us; the One who causes those places of death to bloom with new life and beauty.

Dying Alone

2009-04-10T12:13:00.000-04:00

I attended a couple of services yesterday (Maundy Thursday). In the first one the Gethsemane story was read, beginning with Jesus predicting Peter's denial. It is significant that this story appears in all four Gospel accounts. In the evening service I attended, passages from Jesus' final week on earth were read, beginning with the triumphal entry into Jerusalem and ending with Jesus' burial.

I'm struck by several things:

How dramatically and quickly the crowds turned against Jesus. Jesus spent three years preaching, teaching, healing, and befriending those who were left out of traditional "in crowds". In spite of all of the good he did for so many people, when Jesus disappointed their expectations, they turned against him, forgetting every good word and deed. People are fickle. I like to think that I'm a consistent person, but it's only wishful thinking. When things don't turn out like I expect, my constancy fades. How about you?

More surprising is how quickly Jesus' friends let him down. These guys were close to Jesus - sharing meals and travels. If any knew his heart, his worth, it was the disciples. One of them betrayed him, one denied knowing him, and they all deserted him when he was arrested. As I mentioned above, Peter's denial is recorded in all four Gospels. In Luke's account, Jesus not only foretells Peter's denial, says that he will turn back (toward Jesus) and that when he does, he should strengthen his brothers. Incredible words of encouragement for all of us who let our Lord down.

Jesus' face was set toward what he had to do, but he dreaded the suffering he knew he'd have to endure. In Gethsemane he struggled - and his friends slept. Again a description of people who loved Jesus - adored him, but couldn't watch and pray for him for even an hour. I think that these details, like the prediction of Peter's denial, are there for our encouragement. I don't know about you, but I'd have probably fallen asleep too.

I find myself in so many of the characters depicted in the Passion narrative. Jesus died for all of those faithless characters. He died for me too. I'm awed and amazed by the fact that he went through with it - even though he could have chosen not to. He could have come down from the cross instead of enduring the searing physical pain of crucifixion and the emotional pain of the insults hurled in his direction. Instead, he chose to give up his life for his faithless friends and the fickle crowds. For you and me. Thanks be to God!

Building Bikes

2009-04-02T22:01:00.000-04:00

This week I attended a leadership retreat with the company I work for. It's a yearly event where we focus on honing our skills and refocusing on the important task of guiding our company forward. Each year we attend meetings, share ideas and network, and of course, participate in a team building exercise. In the past we've hiked, toured The Biltmore House, done an "iron chef" activity... You get the picture. Fun stuff. Fun stuff designed to build the team.

This year, we did the usual meeting stuff, but the team building was different. We built 21 bicycles for orphans. There were team building exercises all along the way - business lessons - you know, to make us more aware of ourselves and our teams. There was also plenty of fun in the process. But in the end, we had built bikes for kids who needed them. It felt better than anything we'd done as a team before.

We (Americans) spend a lot of time worrying about self actualization in one way or another. Even though we may define it in different ways, we think we owe it to ourselves to be fully developed - fully actualized. It's pretty easy to fall prey to the idea that it's all about us - who we are and what we have. The bike building exercise points out an important truth: we can in fact become better developed people and serve others at the same time. In fact, the greatest leaders are those whose mission it is to serve. No one could say it better than Jesus, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."

Subject to Change

2009-03-15T22:18:00.000-04:00

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

2009-03-05T22:51:00.000-05:00

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

2009-03-03T08:17:00.000-05:00

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."

Reorientation

2009-02-19T12:01:00.000-05:00

"I encounter such constant and widespread lying about reality each day and meet with such skilled and systematic distortion of the truth that I’m always in danger of losing my grip on reality. The reality, of course, is that God is sovereign and Christ is savior. The reality is that prayer is my mother tongue and the Eucharist my basic food. The reality is that baptism, not Myers-Briggs, defines who I am. The reality is, as Leon Bloy so poignantly put it, that 'the only sadness is not to be a saint.'" -- Eugene Peterson

Lately I've had lots of conversations about the current economic crisis. People are scared. How far will it go? How much money will I lose? Will I lose my job, my home, my retirement?

I was talking to my sister earlier today about a financial transaction she was going to do. She'd decided what to do with all but $1,000. She said that she'd been praying about it - what to do with that last bit of her money that she was undecided about... I told her that maybe she should ask God what he wanted her to do with His $1,000.

I talked with a friend of mine yesterday, who just got back from a short term mission in Honduras. She was deeply impacted by the people there and the poverty. She experienced a change in her heart that she wants to last. Her values and presuppositions about what's normal were changed - reoriented.

It's easy to fall into thinking that the way we live and what we have is normal. We forget that the VAST majority of people on the planet do not live the way we do. We worry about missing a meal when many won't eat at all today. My kids both believe that they're entitled to a car to drive (of their own), cell phones, whatever clothes or jewelry, video game, etc. that catches their fancy. Meanwhile there are kids who can't grow hair because they're malnourished.

God blesses us so that we can be a blessing to others. Period. Not so that we can have a McMansion, or a great retirement, the latest gadget, etc. While there is nothing inherently wrong with being rich, we shouldn't think that it's an end in itself. We shouldn't set our heart on it or put our trust in it (as the current financial crisis make abundantly clear). Our hearts should be set on God - knowing Him and making Him known.

Maybe this financial crisis is part of God's heart of love for us - His mercy. Maybe it's an opportunity to reorient our minds and hearts.

No Pain No Gain

2009-01-31T21:12:00.000-05:00

Lately there's a man who has been pretty persistent in asking me out. In fact, just about every time I talk with him there's a none to subtle attempt to see if the door's just a little bit open for him. What I find very interesting about this is that he and his wife just separated in November.
He told me that he'd "finally" gotten through his ordeal. He's ready to get on with his life. Finally? It's only been three months!

I haven't told him yet (but I will when the opportunity presents) that he's not through his ordeal yet. Not by a long shot. This guy was married 20+ years. You don't get over a relationship of that length in 3 months - heck maybe not in 3 years. He doesn't need a date. He needs friends. He needs support. He needs to feel his hurt until he's healed.

Since my divorce I've paid attention in a way I didn't before to the different methods of dealing with emotional or psychic pain. I remember being newly separated. I wanted to be ready to move on - ready to love and be loved again. I thought that I'd grieved the end of my marriage during the years it was dying. Wrong! I've watched others dull the pain of losing a relationship by quickly going into another one, only to find themselves reliving history.

Any situation that causes us to experience emotional, spiritual, or psychic pain and stress takes us to a special place. Maybe it's not divorce, it's the death of someone dear and significant, or a job loss, or an illness. When faced with a time like this, it's tempting to try to avoid processing how we feel about it.

Some times we're forced to continue to perform daily tasks that make it very difficult to work through what's happened to us. I know a guy whose wife left him with several young children to take care of. At the time, he only had the energy to put one foot in front of the other. His situation is very different now. He's remarried and his children are older. Guess what? Just because his circumstances have changed doesn't mean that he still doesn't have some old issues to work through.

It's not really any different from hurting your body. You can cut yourself, break a bone, blow your ACL or any number of other things. The time it takes to heal depends on the type and severity of the injury. What it takes to heal is also determined by the kind of injury too. If you cut yourself maybe you just need a bandaid and some ointment for a couple of days. If you break a bone it's a bit more complicated. If you blow your ACL, you're in for a couple of years of healing and rehab.

Do you remember earlier this year when Shawne Merriman (linebacker for the San Diego Chargers) struggled about whether or not to play this season with two torn ligaments in his knee? He didn't really want to face the fact that he needed surgery - and consequently to sit out the season- in order to get well. He flirted with possibly playing injured and prematurely ending his career by making his injury worse. Why?

I think we Americans don't like to be on the injured reserve list. We'd rather move forward and forget about pain - physical or psychic. Facing pain means facing our vulnerability. Facing pain sometimes means facing our own sinfulness.

I empathize with the guy who's been asking me out. I know how he feels. I've been there myself. If he's like me, he may be afraid that there's no light at the end of the tunnel he's walking through... But there is.

If you're experiencing something difficult, don't numb down. Don't avoid facing things - or facing yourself. Don't be afraid of the injured reserve. The place you fear is, in reality, a place of much blessing and growth. It's a doorway into a wider place. Enter into the experience fully and receive undreamed of blessings from the hand of God.

Alone & Yet Not Alone

2009-01-08T09:16:00.000-05:00

The following requires no commentary:

"In every single one of us there is a place of solitude no human relationship can fill, not even the deepest love between two individuals. Anyone who does not accept this solitude sooner or later revolts against other people and against God himself.

And yet you are never alone. Let yourself be plumbed to the depths, and you will realize that everyone is created for a presence. There, in your heart of hearts, in that place where no two people are alike, Christ is waiting for you. And there the unexpected happens."
-Brother Roger of Taizé, Parable of Community

Choose Your Own Adventure

2008-12-28T15:50:00.000-05:00

Several years ago Bantam published a series of books entitled Choose Your Own Adventure. During my years in the book business I sold a lot of them. Here's how Wikipedia explains the concept:

"Choose Your Own Adventure is a series of children's gamebooks. Each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actions in response to the plot and its outcome.

After an introduction to the story, the reader is asked to determine the protagonist's next course of action. After the reader makes a choice, the plot branches out and unfolds, leading to more decisions and eventually multiple possible endings.

The types of endings that the books featured include:
- At least one, but often several, endings depicting a highly desired resolution, often involving uncovering a handsome monetary reward.
- Endings that result in the death of the protagonist, companions of the main character or both, or other very negative ending, because of a fatal choice of the reader.
- Other endings that may be either satisfactory (but not the most desired ending) or unsatisfactory (but not totally bad).
- Occasionally a particular set of choices will throw the reader into a loop where they repeatedly reach the same page (often with a reference to the situation being familiar). At this point the reader's only option is to restart the adventure.

As the series progressed, the length of the plot threads increased, therefore, the number of endings decreased. The earliest books in the series often contained nearly 40 possible endings, while later entries contained as few as eight."

It sounds a lot like life, doesn't it? As an avid reader, the concept behind the Choose Your Own Adventure series always fascinated me. When the consequences of your choices are only 50 or 75 pages away, you tend to take them seriously - even the ones that seem fairly insignificant.

My children lost their father on October 5 after a 2 1/2 year battle with cancer. It's been a challenging time for them. My daughter (15 years old) is having a particularly difficult time. She wonders why. It's a hard time in life to lose a parent.

In the Choose Your Own Adventure books, there are many things that happen as the plot unfolds. Maybe an alien attacks your spaceship, or bandits come after your wagon train. Things that you may prefer did not happen. But when they do happen, the choices you make are critical. Are you brave or fearful? Do you fight or run. In real life some of those same choices are open to us. Others too. Do you allow doubt or bitterness to overtake you? When the end of the story is not only 50 or so pages away, it's tempting to think that the choices we make in response to things like a death don't matter as much.

They do. Our choices affect the outcome. Even little choices send ripples throughout the rest of our lives changing the options offered later in the story. Choose wisely.

Everybody Needs a Little Fresh Air

2008-12-16T12:49:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking this Advent season of ways to help my children refocus. It's so easy to get sucked into the holiday season as a consumer. My kids, being teenagers, are (of course) thinking a lot about what they want for Christmas. They both realize that there are some people that they must buy a gift for, but by and large, they're thinking about themselves. It's pretty typical given their ages.

There's really not anything they truly need. Whenever my kids need something we go out and buy it. In some ways, it makes gift giving a challenge - what do you buy someone who has everything they need and much of what they want? How do you change a religious holiday -that's been turned into a consumer event -back into a religious holiday for yourself and your family? I think the answer is by looking outside of your family to others who don't have everything they need or want.

There are many ways to do this. The Angel Tree ministry is excellent. Or you could buy a goat or lamb, or chicken for a family in Africa.

If you're in need of a "Fresh" idea, I have one. The Fresh Air Fund (http://www.freshair.org/) makes it possible for inner city children to get out of the city for some fresh air. The kids may attend camp, or be sponsored in a family's home. What's cool about this organization is that there's more than one way your family can get involved.

First, you can donate money. The camps, organizational expenses and transportation don't pay for themselves after all. Money's vital.

Or... your family could host a child who needs to get out of the city for some fresh air. This is gift giving taken to the next level. When you give your time, attention, and affection it's a way of giving yourself as the gift. It's what Christ did for us in the Incarnation.

As Christmas approaches, I hope you're able to be a little less consumer minded and a little more Christ Mass minded. May you offer yourself to others - family, friends, acquaintances - and strangers just as Christ offered himself. That's a truly priceless present.

The Mystery of the Other

2008-12-13T11:20:00.000-05:00

"It is not the person furthest away who is the greatest mystery, but precisely the one closest to us. And that person’s mystery is not lessened by our learning ever more about him or her. On the contrary, in her or his presence that one becomes ever more mysterious. It is the final depth of everything mysterious when two people come so close one to the other that the love each other ... Thus, knowing does not dissolve mystery but deepens it. That the other is close to me, that is the greatest mystery." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

As a young woman I always thought of The Cost of Discipleship when I heard Bonhoeffer's name. He certainly knew a little something about that subject! I'll tell you what, though, Bonhoeffer's got lots of great things to say on many subjects. Case in point, the quote above.

I was talking with one of my sisters earlier this week about relationships in general, and men in particular. She's feeling a bit jaded with respect to men and romance and marriage. I have to begin by confessing that I'm FAR from an expert (experientially speaking) on the subject of that kind of love. However, there are some things that I understand (at least in a theoretical way - and experientially if you expand the category to include family and friends).

Relationships (especially marriage) are intended to mirror the relationship of Christ and the church. That's certainly the ideal, and there is the 5% of highly satisfied marriages that one can look at and say, "Wow! Their relationship is great. It's holy. It's how marriage is intended to be." That leaves 95% that is somewhat less stellar, but not any less a mirror.

Think of the Christians you know. Certainly no more than 5% have a super close, highly satisfying relationship with God. The vast majority are in some kind of continual conflict as they work out their salvation. They're not any less Christian than the 5%, just as the 95% who have to work hard at marriage are no less married.

But back to Bonhoeffer and mystery. I think that what he says about the person closest to us being the greatest mystery is true and very helpful in understanding what makes relationships work well: human relationships and our relationship with God.

There are people who lose the sense of mystery and wonder in their relationships. They assume they know the other so well, that they no longer pay attention. They no longer study the other, no longer truly listen, because they think they already know what the other person's saying. The other person is dismissed. That's a relationship in trouble - whether your talking about lovers, spouses, parents & kids, friends - whomever.

Bonhoeffer's right, though. We never really get to the end of mystery when we're dealing with another person. Heck, don't you even find yourself mysterious sometimes? I do. I also find myself straining after the mystery in my children, my sibling, my mom. There are depths in these others in my life, that I do not yet know. Part of the joy in life and relationship is that the folks we know are so fascinating.

The same applies to God. Now, you may say, "Well duh! That's obvious when you're referring to God." Really? So how much time do you spend with Him, plumbing his depths? Do you still find God fascinating? Are you on the edge of your chair wondering what He'll say to you next? Are you looking for His hand at work in your life and in the lives of others? As great as it is spending a lifetime knowing the people in our lives, it is greater still that we'll never come to the end of knowing the beauty of God in eternity.

Peace! A Sermon for the Second Sunday in Advent

2008-12-06T15:16:00.000-05:00

Isaiah 40: 1-11
Psalm 85: 1-2, 8-13
2 Peter 3: 8-15a

I’m willing to bet that if I picked several of you in the congregation and asked you to define the word peace, I’d get a variety of answers. In fact, I probably wouldn’t hear the same definition twice. We use the word peace to mean lots of different things, don’t we? If I asked you, “What’s the opposite of war, you’d probably answer ‘peace’”. Sometimes mothers are heard to say in a loud voice, “Can I just have some peace?!” And by peace they may mean that they want the TV, video game, or stereo turned down or they may be asking their children to stop bickering. When someone says, “Leave me in peace,” he may feel that too much of his attention, effort or resources are demanded.

I was raised in the 60’s and 70’s which was a time when folks liked to sport peace signs around their necks or as bumper stickers on their cars. It wasn’t uncommon to see people flash the peace sign. Hippies and flower children sprung up during those years advocating peace and love as the antidote to social or political problems. That was a particularly angry time. A time filled with many conflicts. The Vietnam War was being fought and the Civil Rights movement was going strong.

I think most of us would agree that 2008 has been a very challenging year. We’re currently fighting two wars. We just finished a protracted and bitter election year. We’ve struggled with soaring prices for commodities like food and fuel and plummeting home prices. Those of us lucky enough to have retirement accounts have recently suffered serious losses. And just last week it was announced that we are officially in a recession. How’s that make you feel? Peaceful is probably not the word that comes to mind.

The desire for peace hasn’t simply been limited to our times, though. The truth is that throughout history, peace has been a commodity in short supply.
We all want peace. But what is it? Let me read you some definitions of “peace”:
· the state prevailing during the absence of war
· harmonious relations; freedom from disputes; the absence of mental stress or anxiety
· the general security of public places; "he was arrested for disturbing the peace"
· a treaty to cease hostilities; "peace came on November 11th"

The Hebrew word for peace is “shalom”. Shalom is a comprehensive well-being that encompasses the fulfillment of every individual and corporate need, as well as the health and fertility of the natural order. It’s not just the absence of conflict, but the fullness of life.

It is the Shalom sort of peace that Advent calls us to both anticipate for the future and receive as a part of our present reality. Best of all, it’s not a peace that depends on every temporal circumstance being perfect. We can experience Shalom today – in the midst of two wars and a recession; in spite of conflicts at work or within our families. And although peace is a part of what we anticipate during Advent when Christ returns and establishes his Kingdom, it can be a part of our lives every day.

The scripture passages we heard read to us this morning speak of peace, and although a sermon could easily be built around any one of them, I want to point out three things that jump out at me when they are taken together.

The first thing is that real peace is predicated on the love of God: His love for us, and ours for Him. In Isaiah 40 the prophet is told to speak tenderly to Jerusalem. During this time the Israelites were in exile, dejected and feeling forsaken and hopeless. They were there as a result of their own sins. They had not loved God as they should. They had broken covenant again and again, but they were sorry. The Lord is pictured here as a shepherd who will gather his lambs in his arms and gently lead them. God’s loving intention is to restore his people and bring them peace, rest, and comfort.

In Psalm 85 we’re told that the Lord will speak peace to his people. And again to people who have sinned, and been pardoned. In this passage, the vision is carried even further to see a land and a people permeated by God’s own character: steadfast love and faithfulness, righteousness and peace - all dynamically interrelated. This is the future (and if you will, the present) for those who turn to God in their hearts: for those who receive salvation. These qualities become more and more a part of the lives of those who are working out their salvation in fear and trembling.

That sounds nice and theological and theoretical doesn’t it? In your life, have you ever found yourself in a place of much inner turmoil, stress, and strain as a result of your poor choices, your sin? It’s natural to feel forsaken, dejected, and trapped when you find yourself suffering the consequences of your own actions. And I’m not just talking about the big things like breaking the law or committing adultery, or having addictions. How about the relationships that seem enmeshed in a cycle of conflict – or worse, cold silence and indifference? Whatever the situation, the good news of Advent is that God still speaks peace to his people – He speaks peace to you. And remember, God’s peace is not simply the absence of conflict, but the fullness of life – enriching relationships, love and mutuality.

The second thing that jumps out at me from these passages is that real peace springs from a trust in God: His sovereignty, His good plan, and His timing. The exiles in Babylon were given a promise that God would restore them and bring them back. It was a promise that was being worked out in time. The first century Christians addressed in 2 Peter were awaiting a promise too. They were struggling with the delay of Christ’s second coming, which they had firmly believed was imminent. Why was Christ not coming? When would he get there? What should they expect? Will Christ’s Kingdom be worth the wait? What should they do in the meantime?

God has a plan. His plan has a macro element (the plan for the Kingdom of God in history – the big Story) and micro elements (the plan for you and you and you and me). It absolutely astounds me to think of the intricate and elegant way that he moves His macro plan forward and at the same time weaves your story and mine into it. The Story isn’t really about us, but God in His infinite love for us includes us – and uses us to move his plan forward and uses his plan to move us forward.

Let’s be honest. There is much we do not understand. In fact even the things we think we understand we’re probably mistaken about. Why are we in a recession? Why a war? Two wars? Why did this person lose their home in a fire? Why that person his job? How come the diagnosis has to be cancer? Why would God allow that person to die in the prime of her life? Or: Why are you enjoying prosperity? Health? A promotion? You name it. Isn’t it interesting how we think to question the whys of the “bad” things that happen to us and not the “good” things?

Everyone wrestles with troubling questions about the uncertainty of the future, the crises of the present, and the unknowns of the past. All of these things make it clear to us that we're not in control. The irony is that understanding that we’re not in control is really a gift. Only when we understand that can we understand reality. But just because we’re not in control doesn’t mean that life is uncertain. The good news of Advent is that our direction is very sure. God is working out His plan in His time. We don't have to understand all of the whys and wherefores. Our job is to trust God, trust his loving intentions, to trust his timing. 2 Peter makes it clear that God works things out in the fullness of time. There's no delay. There's no wavering. Only God’s patience and love and certain victory.

Finally, it strikes me that as the recipients of God’s peace, we are to be instruments of that same peace wherever we go. Psalm 85 makes it clear that as God’s glory dwells in our midst that we reflect His character: steadfast love and faithfulness, righteousness and peace. All of these qualities interconnected in dependence and symbiosis. 2 Peter also instructs that we should be found at peace and without spot or blemish.

Advent’s a good time to practice peacemaking too. Traffic's terrible. It takes more time to get from point A to point B because everyone is hustling and bustling. Do you let that person in or cut them off? We often encounter others whose fuse is short because they’re out spending money they don’t have and fighting crowds of people doing the same thing, pressured to meet their gift giving obligations. Do you scowl when someone in the mall bumps you or smile?

Advent is often a time when peacemaking comes up in families too. Families are brought together to celebrate, and it’s not uncommon for old wounds to be remembered. Broken family systems and broken relationships that can be put on the back burner the rest of the year must confronted until the celebration is over. And that’s for the families lucky enough to still be in relationship. Sometimes Advent brings to mind relationships were so broken that they no longer exist.

Reflecting the character of God, we are called to be children of peace. Where? Everywhere we go: in marriages, with children, friends, in the church, with co-workers, when we encounter strangers. Under what circumstances? Only when things are hunky dory? Only when others are doing what we want them to do or saying the things we want them to say? No. In every circumstance. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

Many of us think about peace on earth (and in our lives) during Advent. We hear songs about it, receive Christmas cards with idyllic pictures of peaceful winter scenes or images of families together laughing and sharing good times. And that’s good. It’s appropriate. This period of waiting before Christmas is meant to be a time for us to reflect on what life in the Kingdom of God is intended to be. Let’s not leave our desire for peace when the season ends, however. Like hope, love, and joy, peace should characterize our lives in Christ in every time and season.

To God the Father, the Author of peace, to Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, and to the Holy Spirit, whose presence and power in our lives makes the peace of God possible for us, be all glory, honor, and dominion now and forever. Amen.

Six Degrees of Separation Revisited

2008-11-21T08:10:00.000-05:00

Well, what I knew to be true intuitively before - that we are a very interconnected bunch on this planet - I've seen with my own two eyes on Face Book. I've not been a My Space or Face Book devotee up to this point. To tell you the truth I didn't get it at all. However, I joined Face Book this week so that I could demonstrate it on the new Blackberry Storm, and what was immediately apparent is how connected humans are to one another.

Friend lists grow exponentially and it's easy to see how one person can be connected to another they've never seen or heard of by just one or two degrees. Face Book even tells you that you may know so and so, who knows so and so, who you know. It's amazing.

If you've ever wondered if your life affects others - for good or bad - here is evidence that it does. We are like a giant tapestry with threads intertwined this way and that. Each thread is an integral part of the whole - whether adding to the beauty or detracting. I don't know about you, but I want to add to the beauty.

Drinking the Koolaid

2008-11-18T10:05:00.000-05:00

Today marks the 30th anniversary of the tragedy at Jonestown where 900+ people died from cyanide laced grape Koolaid. I watched some videos this morning from that time, and discovered that my kids (ages 15 & 14) had never heard about it.

I had just turned 16 when Jonestown happened and remember it well. I'd say that most of us (of a certain age) remember watching with horror as images from Guyana were aired. How could something like that have happened? What were those people thinking?

Well, it turns out that many of them were not thinking that they wanted to end their lives. From what I learned today, many were injected with cyanide against their will and many others under intense psychological pressure were "led" to the buckets for a drink.

In watching interviews of folks who survived Jonestown, it's clear that many (including Jim Jones' son) who disagreed with much of what went on there. Jones' son still believed he could accomplish something good with the people he loved in spite of his father's abuse and madness. He told reporters that those people were the only folks he'd known his entire life. How could he leave them?

If you're around my age you probably grew up drinking Koolaid. Who didn't? Koolaid, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches was a kid staple. Drinking Koolaid was a good thing - a normal thing. Ironically, it's probably someone around my age who coined the phrase "drinking the Koolaid" to mean something bad - something not normal - and a clear reference to Jonestown. Funny, how things can get turned around...

With that in mind, maybe there's no more appropriate phrase than "drinking the Koolaid." Jim Jone's church began as a good thing. Jones had a vision for racial equality. He wanted to found an authentic, loving community of people. But things went wrong, got out of hand. Jones forgot who he was and who the people were - and to whom they really belonged - and the result was tragic and frightening. It's still frightening, because it's a common story. Everyone (given the proper set of circumstances) is vulnerable to this kind of thing happening. There are warnings in today's Lectionary for leaders:

Luke 17: 1Jesus said to his disciples, "Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to anyone by whom they come! 2It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble. 3Be on your guard!

James 3:1-10: 1Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! 6And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8but no one can tame the tongue?a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. 10From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so.

Enough said.

Having Answers

2008-11-07T11:16:00.000-05:00

"The vocation of pastor does not permit trafficking in either miracles or answers. Pastors are in the awkward position of refusing to give what a great many people assume it is our assigned job to give… We are asked to pray for an appropriate miracle, we are called upon to declare an authoritative answer. But our calling equips us for neither. In fact, it forbids us to engage in either the miracle business or the answer business." -Eugene Peterson

The longer I live the less equipped I feel to do certain things. I am not equipped to give answers to the big questions others have about specific things in their lives. I am not often equipped to pray for certain outcomes because life teaches that God's will may encompass an outcome very different (and infinitely better) than what we think or imagine.

Even when I think of my own life and walk with God, there is so much more that I don't know than that I do know. I don't mean Theological issues. I mean life issues. I do not fully understand the trajectory of my life. I think I understand some things, but would not be surprised to learn when I get to heaven that I was completely wrong. If and when that happens I expect to laugh about it.

What I do know is that God is good. He is fully in control. His plan is perfect. His intentions are loving. He is completely trustworthy. So...although I am less and less equipped to give one kind of answer, I am more and more equipped to give (and receive) answers of another kind.

You Know It When You See It

2008-11-04T06:53:00.001-05:00

Here in South Central Virginia we are enjoying the peak of Autumn. Over the last few weeks I've looked around and wondered, "So, are the leaves at their peak?" Sometimes I'd think yes and sometimes no, but I was never sure. Now that the leaves are actually at their peak colors, there is no doubt in my mind at all. I can say with certainty that we're seeing the peak.

It's funny. This is not my first Autumn, and it's not the first time I've found myself wondering if the leaves were yet at their peak only to discover later that once they are, it is very obvious. There's no wondering involved - only the glorious obviousness of the beauty. You definitely know it when you see it.

Hearing God's voice seems to be the same for me. There are times when I wonder if God is saying something to me. I ponder and wonder and muse. But then God actually does speak, and there is no doubt at all. God has a way of making his voice very obvious so that there's no doubt, no wondering - only certainty.

Interesting how, just as I wonder about the leaves after experiencing many Autumns, I wonder about hearing God speak after walking with Him for so long and knowing His voice.

6 Degrees of Separation

2008-09-30T20:42:00.000-04:00

You've probably heard of the game The Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon... How you can link Kevin Bacon in six degrees of separation to any other actor... Well I was reading somewhere recently (someplace reliable, but I don't remember where) that there is research that proves that we are truly that closely interrelated - but not just to other actors like in the game, but to any other person on the planet. It's actually 6.5 degrees of separation between you and any other person on the planet.

If that doesn't make you say, "Wow!" I don't know what would. It's pretty amazing to think that you know someone who knows someone, who knows someone... well you get the point. It's not very far from any one of us to any other. So I guess, if you want to meet someone, you should just make it known that you want to meet them. Chances are you do know someone who knows someone- and probably in fewer degrees of separation than six. Hmmmm....

In The Shack, Sarayu (the Holy Spirit) talks about patterns - she calls them fractals. She tells Mack, the protagonist that she loves fractals. Mack is looking at a garden (which turns out to be a symbol for himself) and he sees a mess. Sarayu takes it as a great compliment. Then he begins to perceive patterns. She tells him that they're fractals. Fractals are self-similar structures whose geometrical and topographical features are recapitulated in miniature on finer and finer scales. It's a fancy, mathematical term for a pattern. Sarayu tells Mack at some point in the book that lives look like that - like fractals. She meant individual lives, but I wonder about patterns as they relate to our interconnectedness.

We're so individualistic in this country. We think that we live our lives in relative isolation and that our concerns are our concerns. But that's really not true. Whether it's your neighbor next door or across town or across the world, we are connected. Jesus asked who's your neighbor? When we understand how closely (by degrees) we are interrelated to everyone, we understand clearly that every other person is our neighbor.

So... Hello Neighbor! Maybe one day we'll meet. For sure I know someone, who knows someone, who knows someone who knows you.

Remembering

2008-09-21T16:14:00.000-04:00

I chaperoned the high school marching band competition yesterday. It was a great trip for our city's band - they won every category in their division. But during the debrief of the performance, the band director said that one of the judges' criticisms was that the the members did not by their movements and facial expressions convey the mood of the music.

The music the band performs this year has a Spanish theme. There is throughout the performance the sound of castanets, and at one point in the performance the band members stop and stop their feet like Flamenco dancers.

For some reason I awoke at about 3 a.m. thinking about what the band should do to convey the right message. I thought about the posture and attitude of Flamenco dancers and bull fighters...
How do I know about such things? Well, that took me down memory lane in the middle of the night...

Although we say we're Cuban, my grandfather immigrated from Spain to Cuba as a teen. In fact when Castro came to power, my grandparents fled to their home in Spain, not the U.S.. I have seen many Flamenco dances and even had a doll that was a Flamenco dancer. I have also watched more than my share of bullfights (not something I ever enjoyed). My grandfather watched bull fighting on TV the way most kids' grandfathers watched baseball.

More later...

Great Contemporary Literature

2008-09-13T09:47:00.000-04:00

Typically when I think of great stories, I think of books written 100+ years ago. Marilynne Robinson's books are perhaps the exceptions that prove the rule. I'm not saying that hers are the only truly fine contemporary novels. However, all three that she's written are very fine. Very fine indeed.

Yesterday afternoon I finished Home. There were tears in my eyes. Tears for Jack and Glory and Della. Especially tears for Jack, who's convinced that he is outside of the grace of God. But there were also tears of sadness because the book was over. Robinson's prose is stunning. I sit and shake my head because I'd like to say more, but lack words to elaborate. Just read it.

Home covers the same time period as Gilead - and the same characters, from a different perspective. I thought I would pick Gilead back up and read through it in light of what I know about Jack and Glory from Home. I had no particular thought about when I'd do it, however, until I went to the PCUSA's site to pull off today's Lectionary on-line and noticed several quotes from Gilead in the daily quotations section. So I reached for Gilead to see if I had the same passages marked - yes marked. These are the kind of novels with passages that demand to be marked so that they can be easily found.

This one's not on the PCUSA's site but is not only underlined in my copy, but underlined with a squiggly line (meaning that I especially liked it). This passage is found on page 124 of the hard cover edition:

"When you encounter another person, when you have dealings with anyone at all, it is as if a question is being put to you. So you must think, What is the Lord asking of me in this moment, this situation? If you confront insult or antagonism, your first impulse will be to respond in kind. But if you think, as it were, This is an emissary sent from the Lord, and some benefit is intended for me, first of all the occasion to demonstrate my faithfulness, the chance to show that I do in some small degree participate in the grace that saved me, you are free to act otherwise than the circumstances would seem to dictate. You are free to act by your own lights. You are freed at the same time of the impulse of to hate or resent that person. He would probably laugh at the thought that the Lord sent him to you for your benefit (and his), but that is the perfection of the disguise, his own ignorance of it....

Calvin says somewhere that each of us is an actor on a stage and God is the audience. That metaphor has always interested me, because it makes us artists of our behavior, and the reaction of God to us might be thought of as aesthetic rather than morally judgmental in the ordinary sense. How well do we understand our role? With how much assurance do we perform it?...I do like Calvin's image... because it suggests how God might actually enjoy us."

The above is not an example of the stunning prose that I referred to earlier, but is a very interesting thought. Don't you agree?

Stealing Music

2008-09-08T20:49:00.000-04:00

I'm in Charleston SC (my FAVORITE city) on business. I've been visiting locations and talking with sales reps. I did the same thing last week in Raleigh, and discovered that lots of people think nothing about stealing music off of the internet. I was asking sales reps what they thought of a partnership that the company I work for has with Rhapsody - attempting to find out if they're selling it and what their roadblocks are.

I shared with them how much I love it and what a great value I think it is - three devices for $14.99. Every one of them looked at me like I was crazy. They don't pay for music. Why would they when they can pull whatever they want from the internet for free?

I pointed out very plainly that what they're doing is stealing. Taking some one's artistic and intellectual property without paying. None of them seem to have any qualms of conscience about this at all. I asked them how they'd feel if it was their music that was being stolen. Most of them said that they'd be happy with concert sales and ringtones. Yeah, right. I believe that psychologists call that rationalization.

Where am I going with this? I don't know. I know that we all rationalize some things at some times. I hope that when I rationalize that someone is kind enough to point it out so that I can stop it. No matter what, there are some things that are wrong - and wrong under any circumstance. I want to know when I'm wrong - especially when my error hurts someone else.

Buck: A Cautionary Tale

2008-09-06T12:19:00.000-04:00

I want to begin this morning by telling you about a man I met a couple of weeks ago in Eastern North Carolina. I had a strange encounter with a man during a business lunch. It’s the business lunch part that makes this conversation a bit weird. I was meeting with a couple of older gentlemen who wanted to talk about a potential business opportunity with my company. Toward the end of lunch one of them was called away for a few minutes. During that time, the other man, for reasons beyond my understanding, decided to tell me some things about his life story. I’ve been pondering what he said in light of today’s Lectionary ever since then. It’s been instructive for me, and maybe it will be for you too.

This man (we’ll call him Buck) is truly a scoundrel. He made that fact clear to me by many of the things he said throughout the lunch about his current business life. His business partner is the good guy, and he’s, well…. The scoundrel. But it’s what he told me about his personal life that touched me particularly, and it’s that part that I want to share with you.
Before he retired the first time, Buck sold tobacco farming equipment throughout the South and portions of the Mid Atlantic states for thirty years. He told me that he was the thirteenth of fourteen children – ten of them boys. Buck said that during growing up years that he had no idea that his family was poor. But that once he reached manhood, he could see that his father and his brothers were working themselves to death and just barely getting by. He couldn’t see himself doing that, so he went into sales.

Buck was highly motivated, and enjoyed great success. He married and had two children – a girl and a boy. Buck was on the road a lot. He looked across the table at me and said, “You know what that means.” I did. It means that he met a lot of ladies. Buck says that he fancied himself a ladies man. His wife knew about his philandering and tried everything she could think of to get him to stop – to be faithful to her. But Buck was having too much fun. Besides, he wasn’t really sure he had ever loved his wife.

After 25 years of marriage, Buck left home and never went back. He told me that he represented himself in the divorce, and that even without an attorney was able to stay a step ahead of his wife and her attorney. He left the marriage with his finances in tact. Buck says that to retaliate his wife turned their children against him. At least, that’s his interpretation. You’d have to figure that after 25 years of marriage that their kids would be grown or almost grown, right? I found it sad that Buck didn’t see that it was his own behavior that changed his relationship with his children.

Ironically, once he was divorced, Buck didn’t run around with the ladies nearly as much. He said that it wasn’t as much fun once it was okay to do it. See what I mean?… a scoundrel…. Buck said that, though his wife has remarried and is happy, he’s still estranged from his children. In fact, he hasn’t seen his daughter in 10 years (ever since his son got married) and didn’t talk to her then. I asked him if he attended his daughter’s wedding. He said that though he was invited, he didn’t go. He said, “I don’t know what she (meaning his daughter) wants. I told him what I thought she wanted, and suggested that if he didn’t feel comfortable calling her, that maybe he could drop her a note.

Buck shook his head sadly and said, “I’m a very independent person.” By that he meant, I think, that he’s a very proud person. Too proud to reach out to his daughter. Too proud to admit his errors – his guilt. He’d rather be estranged. I told Buck that no one was going to stand over his casket and praise his independence, but that they might still be possible for them to praise his love of his kids…

Earlier in the conversation Buck told me that he’d tried to retire, but retirement wasn’t for him. Now I understood why. He had no meaningful and fulfilling relationships. He’d had plenty of “fun” earlier in life, but none of it set him up for long term happiness.

When I met Buck, I’d already been reading the Lectionary for today, because I knew that I was preaching this Sunday and I like to ponder the Scriptures over time. Well, Buck brought the passages Romans and Matthew to the forefront of my mind. Both of them give advice on human relationships. In fact, the Bible is full of advice on relationships isn’t it? We’re told in many and various ways how to relate to God and how to relate to one another.

Our relational nature is one of the ways we bear the image of God. God is in perpetual, loving and harmonious relationship in the persons of the Trinity. Ideally our relationships would look something like His – mutuality and perfect love – the joy of knowing and being known. You may remember a couple of weeks ago Chuck mentioning a book entitled The Shack. That book is a great read – even if all you get from it is a picture of the relationship that exists between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

In the passage read to us from Romans, we hear Paul remind us of something that Jesus said in the Gospels – that love fulfills the law. “Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet’; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.”

It’s pretty simple advice isn’t it? Simple, yes - but not easy. In the drudgery of day to day living pettiness and selfishness creep in and make it hard to love. Someone leaves the lid off the toothpaste or doesn’t replace the empty roll of toilet paper. We’re annoyed. How inconsiderate! Or maybe we feel that our needs aren’t being met in some way. We’re not loved or appreciated the way we feel we deserve to be. It’s interesting to me that with all the relationship advice we’re given in the Bible, the focus isn’t how others should be treating us, but on how we should be treating others.

In fact, even when a serious wrong has been done, the focus is on what we should do. We’re not told that we should wrap our injury around us like a cloak or use it like a weapon – demanding that the person who wronged us come crawling back in humiliation.

Instead, Jesus tells us in Matthew that if someone sins against you, you should attempt to reconcile. He says to go to the person, and if that doesn’t work go again with a friend or two, and if that doesn’t work, try with a group. His point is that we should do everything we possibly can to remain in relationship. To mend what’s broken, to heal what’s hurt. If all of our efforts fail, it’s okay to let the person go, but first we need to try.

And that’s exactly what God does for us. He loves and pursues us with mercy and grace and forgiveness. We’ve wronged God, but He pursues us desiring relationship and reconciliation. All of us who have experienced salvation know exactly what it means to be loved and loved well. As undeserving recipients of love and grace and forgiveness we should be generous dispensers of it. God’s desire is for the church to be chalked full of great lovers and strong relationships.

My thoughts go back to Buck. I pray that he’ll find his way. Buck’s life is instructive to me and I hope to you too. Let’s choose to love family and friends well. Let’s choose love and relationship over everything. Let’s keep faith with everyone God has placed in our lives. Let’s reach out in reconciliation to those who have wronged us. At the end of our lives, what’s left is our relationships: our relationship to God and our relationships with others. I told Buck that no one would stand over his casket and praise his independence. They won’t do that for me or you either. In the end, may it be said of us all that we were great lovers and generous dispensers of grace – just like our heavenly Father.

On Learning to Drive

2008-08-31T21:53:00.000-04:00

My daughter recently obtained her learners permit and is learning to drive. At the DMV, both of us were very nervous - my daughter was worried about failing, and I was worried about her passing...

Yesterday I traded my Windstar and bought her a Kia Rio. One of my sisters complimented me on my generosity, but the truth is that I didn't want her driving my Ford Edge. My daughter felt that she'd do better in something smaller, and I have to say that I agree.

Children open our eyes to lots of things that we take for granted. When you have a baby or toddler, you tend to see things anew through their eyes. It's a time to regain a sense of wonder at this amazing world we live it. Babies and toddlers have a lot more to teach too. They are very willing to try, and try again, and then again and again - however long it takes to learn a new skill. Young children are great practicers.

Practice is what my daughter needs. Driving practice. The first time I took her out, it wouldn't have surprised me to come home, look in the mirror, and discover that every hair on my head was grey. But it's getting better for both of us. My daughter is getting better, and I'm trying to relax.

Today I let her drive to church and then out to lunch. I was reminded of how many complex actions go into driving from one place to another. Simply merging from an entrance ramp onto the road requires some pretty fancy moves and a keen awareness of what's around you and at what rate of speed others are driving at.

I'm basically an easy going person, not aggressive at all. Not until I get behind the wheel of a car, that is. I like to drive a little on the fast side, and can be a bit impatient with those on the road who prefer to move slower. Here's the thing. I want my daughter to move at the speed limit or slower. When I'm in the car with her, the drivers on the road who are like me (a little aggressive) make me really nervous. I'm thinking, "This is a new driver here! Slow down! What if you cause her to wreck?!"

This part of the learning to drive experience has been a great reminder to me. Rather than feeling impatience, maybe I need to be more aware of others - maybe they're learning to drive. Maybe they're old and having difficulties. Maybe they're simply having a bad day. The last thing they need is some aggressive driver breathing down their backs.

It's not just when I'm behind the wheel that I need to be aware of others. There are other kinds of wrecks we can have as we navigate the roads of life. Whatever the situation, I don't want to be responsible for someone having a wreck of any kind. How about you?

True That!

2008-08-26T06:58:00.000-04:00

The trouble with America isn't that the poetry of life has turned to prose, but that it has turned to advertising copy.
-Louis Kronenberger

On Secret Identities

2008-08-16T08:40:00.000-04:00

I have a secret identity. I guess if I'm putting it here in black and white it's not so secret.... My nieces and nephews know me as the Queen of Fun. If there's fun or adventure to be had, I'll likely find it and if possible, make it accessible to them. As secret identities go, I think being the Queen of Fun is a pretty good one.

A secret identity is a pretty common device in certain kinds of stories. Peter Parker seems like a nice guy - maybe a little wimpy - but in reality he's Spider Man. Clark Kent is the geeky newspaper guy who (it appears) wouldn't hurt a fly, but when there's a crisis, he's Super Man. But there are other's with secret identities too. Sinister ones. The Joker, for instance. Surely he doesn't walk around all the time in his clown make-up. It seems like he'd be easy to catch if that was the case.

George McDonald wrote a wonderful book called The Princess and Curdie where Curdie (the protagonist) is given a special ability: he's able to discern the secret identity of those he meets by shaking their hands. Curdie puts his hands into some flaming rose petals and his hands are made very sensitive. This is how he knows the good guys from the bad guys. If he shakes a hand and feels the talon of a bird of prey, for example, he knows not to trust that person.
It seems like that could be a handy thing - to know who you're dealing with, whether friend or foe.

I think we all have a secret identity. We can go off on our own and choose one. When we do, it's going to be something like what Curdie encountered. Even if we start off with good intentions, we'll end up as one of the bad guys. Or.. we could accept the one designed for us from the foundations of the world. The one known only to God. If we choose that way, we may not be aware of what our secret identity is until the end of the story, but when it's revealed we'll be glad we did. My God given secret identity is probably not "Queen of Fun", although I think it would be pretty darn cool if it was...

It Depends On How You Define It

2008-07-26T11:05:00.000-04:00

Sermon for July 27
Lectionary Readings:
Genesis 29:15-28
Psalm 105:1-11, 45b or Psalm 128:1-6
Romans 8:26-39
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

Do any of you remember that series from the 1980s called The A Team? It was about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces who work as soldiers of fortune while being on the run from the military for a "crime they didn't commit". Remember, they’d put together elaborate plans to help the good guys… George Peppard who played the older leader of the group would rub his hands together and say, “I love it when a plan comes together.” Remember that?

Jacob was a guy who liked a good plan. He was one of those guys who instinctively knew how to spot opportunities and arrange circumstances to be most advantageous to himself. He managed to trade a bowl of soup for a birthright. He tricked his father into bestowing the better blessing on him than on his older brother. And in his relationship with his uncle Laban, managed to breed goats in a way that enriched himself beyond his uncle’s plans or desires. By the way, do you remember what Jacob was doing living with his Uncle Laban? He was on the run from his brother Esau whom he tricked out of birthright and blessing.

In our Lectionary reading from the Old Testament this morning we find Jacob rubbing his hands together and saying to himself, “I love it when a plan comes together.” He’d made a deal with his uncle Laban to work for seven years in exchange for his cousin Rachel’s hand in marriage. Genesis tells us that Jacob loved Rachel so much that those seven years seemed to him to be just a few days. He was motivated! He had a plan.

And yet…. the joke’s on Jacob. Jacob wakes up the morning after his wedding and finds Leah next to him. What?! For God was rubbing His hands together too. And when God has a plan – watch out! Things may not work out as you expect. I think it’s tempting to look at this story and say to yourself, “Boy, that Laban was as tricky as Jacob. He sure got the best of him.” But be careful that you don’t miss God’s hand in the story.

Remember, Jacob wanted to be The Guy. The Guy that carried the promise. If not, why would he bother stealing Esau’s birthright or blessing. And when you’re The Guy, you have to expect that your life takes on a significance beyond the ordinary. A Kingdom significance. Now the Patriarchs weren’t thinking about the Kingdom of God. But Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were aware that God had promised something special to their family. God was going to make from them a great nation – and had plans to bless the whole earth through them.

Now we know that Abraham had one child with Sarah. And Isaac had two children with Rebecca. Well it appears that with Jacob, God decides to get the reproduction party started. Let’s take a minute to look at how things played out for Jacob. We know that Jacob preferred Rachel. Well, Rachel was not exactly fertile Myrtle. In the end, Leah bears 6 sons for Jacob, Rachel 2, and their maidservants 4.

OK, so Leah was more prolific and the goal was to create a great nation. But there’s more… One of Leah’s sons was named Judah. And guess who’s genealogy he’s a part of? That’s right – fast forward a couple thousand years and Jesus is born! Jacob’s understanding was limited. His vision was narrow. Jacob focused simply on marrying the girl of his dreams, but God was doing the work of the Kingdom in his life.

Jesus spoke often about this Kingdom. In the Gospel reading this morning he tells us that the Kingdom of God is mysterious – it grows in unexpected ways, it spreads like yeast through dough, and above all, it is a treasure beyond value. In fact, it’s so valuable, that it’s worth selling all you have to possess. Our smaller stories are not worth considering when seen in light of the Kingdom.

Paul understood the wisdom of the Kingdom. Paul was a guy who’d had his plans changed. In fact, the trajectory of his life was dramatically altered. He went from the persecutor to the persecuted. Everywhere Paul went trouble seemed to find him. But listen again to his words in Romans:

"28We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. 29For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. 30And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
31What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? 33Who will bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. 34Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. 35Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered." 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. "

If you look at Paul, you see a man who’s sold all that he has for the pearl of great price – and he knows the good of it. Here’s a man living the abundant life, the Kingdom life. Here’s a guy who’d been rubbing his hands together as he planned his persecution of the young church. But again… God had other plans. They were life changing, Kingdom shaping plans.

Are you a person who loves it when a plan comes together? It’s natural to hope for our plans to come to fruition with no surprises. Usually that’s the way it happens. But sometimes, God has surprises for us. Sometimes He’s smiling as we anticipate a particular outcome because He knows the joke’s on us. The trajectory of our life will change. Indeed, “Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it so much as dawned on man what God has prepared for those who love him.”

The threads of our lives are intertwined with one another here in this place, throughout the world, and across time to form a tapestry – breathtaking in its beauty. Though right now, we only see the back side of that tapestry – which can appear as a jumbled mess, we have the witness of Scripture to assure us God is creating a thing of beauty.

Most of us would agree that the prosperity Gospel is a false Gospel. But maybe that depends on how you define it. If you define prosperity as everything going your way without a hitch – as blue skies and placid seas, then no, the Gospel won’t promise you that. But if you define prosperity as the privilege of taking part in God’s plans for His Kingdom, then, yes! No matter how young or old you are – no matter your stage in life – God has plans for you. Sometimes they include surprises. May our Gracious God grant us eyes to see His Kingdom, ears to hear His voice, and hearts to embrace His plans – even when they include surprises. Amen

The Shack - Part 2

2008-07-16T08:01:00.000-04:00

Psalm 147: 10-11
"His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love."

One of the things that God says numerous times in The Shack is, "I am especially fond of ________." God is especially fond of Mack the protagonist. But also especially fond of many others mentioned in the novel.

Most of us can imagine certain humans that we believe God might be especially fond of. If you're like me they would be people like Mother Teresa or Billy Graham or others who seem to have something extraordinary to offer Him. The striking thing in The Shack is that God is fond of those who have nothing especially to offer. Mack's a nice guy, but certainly not extraordinary from a human perspective. In fact, he's a mess.

The Lectionary has focused on the final 5 Psalms for the last couple of months. Every morning one of them is the morning Psalm. The PCUSA web site (apparently receiving some complaints about it) has even offered an alternative morning Psalm reading for those who are sick of reading these same 5 Psalms over and over. I figure that maybe God has something to say to me in those 5 Psalms that I need to hear over and over to get... Psalm 147 has become one of my favorite recently. I have indeed read it lots and lots lately. The first half of it was in today's Lectionary and the last half will be in tomorrows. I have some favorite verses in both halves. I especially like the verses that began this post.

I like to say that I know that God loves us unconditionally. Though I give an intellectual assent to it, however, I usually feel I still should have something to offer to God. That maybe I could please Him more by my good behavior or nice thoughts, or by some personal excellence or whatever. But the truth is that God is especially fond of me. Regardless of my strength or speed or anything else that I foolishly believe I have to offer... He's especially fond of you too.

Another of the wonderful things about The Shack is that it makes clear that what God desires is intimate fellowship with you and me. Not because we have anything that God needs, but because he is especially fond of us.

Romans 11:33-36 "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! 'For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?'
'Or who has given a gift to him, to receive a gift in return?' For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen. "

The Shack - Part 1

2008-07-12T11:56:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it's taken me a couple of weeks after reading The Shack to post any thoughts about it! Once I began reading I couldn't put it down. The picture of the Trinity that Paul Young paints is fabulous! God is always surprising. The Bible should make us expect God to act in ways that are contrary to what seems right to us...

Here's one of the many great quotes from the book. In this one, the Holy Spirit is explaining to Mack (the protagonist) that she (don't let this detail throw you off - you'll get it if you read the book) is far more interested in verbs than nouns:

"Let's use the example of friendship and how removing the element of life from a noun can drastically alter a relationship. Mack, if you and I are friends, there is an expectancy that exists within our relationship. When we see each other or are apart, there is expectancy of being together, of laughing and talking. That expectancy has no concrete definition; it is alive and dynamic and everything that emerges from our being together is a unique gift shared by no one else. But what happens if I change that 'expectancy' to an 'expectation' - spoken or unspoken? Suddenly law has entered into our relationship. You are now expected to perform in a way that meets my expectations. Our living friendship rapidly deteriorates into a dead thing with rules and requirements. It is no longer about you and me, but about what friends are supposed to do, or about the responsibilities of a good friend."

Wow! The truth of that paragraph seems clear to me when describing human relationships - friendships or marriages. If you know folks in a lifeless or unhappy marriage I'd be willing to bet dollars to donuts that in most cases its unfulfilled expectations that are at the root of much of the unhappiness. Those unfulfilled expectations turn to resentments and all of the joy is removed from the relationship. They get to the point where they don't want to talk to one another or be in the same room. When you ponder their courtship and romance you wonder where they went wrong. They used to love to be together...

How about our relationship with God? One of the things critics of The Shack say is that God is portrayed as too nice. What? You mean to tell me that God is not interested in expectations and responsibility? What did Jesus say when he was asked which of the commandments were the greatest?: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And love your neighbor as yourself. I think it's really cool that God desires our relationships (with Him and others) to be characterized by expectancy and responsiveness rather than expectations and responsibilities.

Realpolitik

2008-07-09T23:48:00.000-04:00

"The breakdown of authority gives way to Realpolitik. Persons and groups that feel deprived look for redress of their grievances, not by persuasive argument or by appeal to authority – authority of the whole church as a community of faith confesses – but by manipulating the levers of power to secure their rights. Elected officials, rather than conveying a word of authority inherent in the gospel, function as brokers of special interest groups. The result is factionalism, mutual suspicion, and a kind of guerilla warfare." -Carl Braaten, Mother Church

I was reading in World Magazine about proceedings in the General Assembly of the PCSUA (my denomination). As usual, the homosexual contingent pushed their agenda, and though they did not succeed in the sanctioning of ordination of homosexuals, they did make inroads regarding the requirement to live in fidelity in marriage or chastity outside of it. Don't get me wrong. I'm not one of those who says, "God hates fags." But I am weary of the homosexual agenda absorbing so much energy and debate.

As an ruling elder I'm bothered by the fact that we're spending so much time on this issue. Call me crazy, but when I think of the roll of church leadership, I think the focus should be on the spiritual development of the congregation with a missional focus.

Realpolitik in my denomination and in other mainline denominations does not contribute to the vitality of the church or its mission. It's no wonder that our brothers and sisters from around the globe are sending missionaries to the USA.

Wild Wonderful West Virginia Part II

2008-07-06T22:10:00.000-04:00

OK, so we're visiting West Virginia. Though I was born there, I mainly grew up in South Florida - Miami in fact. But we visited WVA a lot, and as it turns out, I actually lived in three different houses there. On Saturday my sister Jeanette (soul sister as well as natural sister) wanted to drive around and look at the ones she lived in (2 of the 3, as I'm 16 months older than her).

So... we drove to the houses we lived in as well as my Mom's family place. We always just called it The Hill - because it was at the top - you guessed it - of a hill. Interestingly, the houses we lived in looked pretty much the same, only smaller. But The Hill.... The Hill is not the same place at all.

The Hill was my childish idea of paradise for many reasons. The house itself is log. Not one of those prefab sort of log homes. This one was the real deal, built by my Mom's family. As I mentioned, it sat atop of a hill. Around it was just the right amount of lawn - maybe an acre. On the acre were out buildings: an office, a woodworking room, a barn (with a loft to jump out of), and across from the barn a chicken coop. Oh yeah, and there was a barbecue built out of stone. Very cool. Very mountainy. Very West Virginia.

You could walk down a path and over the hill a bit and come to an orchard. Or... you could play in THE WOODS!!! Can you tell that was my favorite part of all?! Well, OK, the woods and the barn were equally my favorites. I still dream about the barn.

But today the only thing up there is the log house, and even it's been changed. Changed in subtle but disappointing ways. The only thing that's been improved is the front porch, which has been made sturdier. All around the base of The Hill are houses. It didn't used to be that way. We could run through the woods like wild Indians as kids, without a bunch of pesky houses being in the way...

Today before we left we went by my uncles house - the one who's now in a nursing home. He's been living in the house my grandmother spent the last 20 or so years of her life in. It is also a house I knew well and have very specific memories about. Guess what? It's not at all the same place either.

When we left it occurred to me that it's easier to see people and places deteriorate slowly over time. It's less of a shock. The changes in these places and people remind me of Chris Rice's song Tick Tock. The past is locked. The future is, well, the future. So the only sensible thing to do is to live now. Today. In the present. We will carry the past with us in to the future, but today is what God gifts us with.

In Wild Wonderful West Virginia

2008-07-05T23:40:00.000-04:00

Romans 8:18-25 : I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

I visited West Virgina this weekend and encountered my Uncle Max today for the first time in a couple of years. He's 82, and due to various health issues is in a nursing home. He is much changed. About 100 lbs lighter and very feeble. He reminds me very much of my grandma Maribelle when she was in her eighties. He seems to have a stream of consciousness that runs along the same lines as Grandma did. When conversing with her one was never quite sure that she was hearing or understanding the sense of what was being said. She heard the words all right (for the most part), but was frequently on a different wave length.

Uncle Max is very like her. He is understandably demoralized by his increasing decrepitude and dependence. We were talking about children. He asked me a couple of times about mine, as his short term memory isn't the sharpest. Then he spoke of his own son with tears. Uncle Max regrets that he didn't spend as much time with his son as he would have liked. My cousin is also mentally ill, a condition that tears Uncle Max up.

Thinking of Uncle Max, Grandma and others that have suffered through the aging process makes me think of these verses (above) from Romans. We all groan inwardly or outwardly along with all of creation until all things are put right. And they will be put right. Thanks be to God!

Musings

2008-05-30T07:01:00.000-04:00

#1. My sister and I went to see James Taylor in concert last night in Charlotte. It was interesting to observe the crowd. It's fun for me to be in a group of people who are in the main, older than I. I remember listening again and again to Mud Slide Slim when I was a mere slip of a girl. Clearly many in the audience were in high school or college during the Mud Slide Slim days. JT put on a really fine show and I was struck by his humility and humor. JT's looking and moving sort of like an old man (which I suppose he's becoming). It's pretty cool that JT still draws a big crowd despite his age and the fact that he's avoided the celebrity spotlight. You don't hear about his life, only his music.

#2. This probably should have been #1, but the concert was fresh in my mind... My cousin Bill preached at my church last Sunday (designated Mission Sunday). Bill founded The Open Arms Foundation in Medellin Columbia. For the last 18 years Bill and his wife Wanda have been rescuing street children. Bill gave some startling statistics:

- The USA is the third largest mission field in the world (behind China and India). That's right. Missionaries from around the world are being sent here to evangelize.

- While it was previously believed that 40% of Americans self identify as Christians and attend church regularly, a new study shows the figure to be closer to 15% - 20%.

- The growth of the Mega church has not been primarily from converts, but by the ecrection of members from other churches. So... the pews in regular churches are emptying, while the pews in mega churches are filling.

- The mega church appeals to our consumeristic tendencies. One can attend and witness a slick performance, frequently on a stage. There may be audio visual effects and professional performances. My sister attends a church in Charlotte with satellite campuses and the main pastors sermon is usually broadcast there... Did you know that 85% of Christians believe that the church exists to meet their needs?

Bill made the pretty obvious (to me) point that the church exists to serve Jesus Christ. Think of a battle ship or aircraft carrier in WWII being built and commissioned and sent off to fight, only to turn into a cruise liner... Where would be be had that happened during WWII? In order to be what it was intended to be the church must be missional. It must be continually reaching out to the lost and the marginalized.

That's all for now.

Humble Apologetics

2008-05-24T09:31:00.000-04:00

“Authentic Christian apologetics also implies providing, in Christ-like humility and in Christ-like vulnerability, the conditions that make it possible for others to perceive and recognize Jesus as Christ the Lord.” — Kwame Bediako

I was reading the blog of a pastor (I think in Oklahoma or South Dakota or someplace like that) last night. His entry from earlier in the week asked folks to pray for the Steven Curtis Chapman family and it contained a link to a story that told of the tragic death of Chapman's youngest daughter. I followed the link and found the story - as well as some responses by readers. There were many kind notes of condolence and assurances that the Chapman family was indeed in the prayers of many. There were also many angry notes criticising the "piety", hypocrisy, and false "pie in the sky in the sweet by and by" hope of Christians.

It's kind of odd and interesting that there are people who are so angry at Christians that they would use this very sad story about a family's loss to rail against Christians, but there you have it... What I find equally interesting is that the Christians felt the need to respond to the comments, scolding the posters for their insensitivity and illogic (one of them referred to the death of children in Iraq) as though God isn't perfectly capable of defending Himself. Isn't it weird that a simple human interest story would turn into a platform to debate this kind of thing?

The thing about debate is that it's pretty pointless. Whether the subject is politics or social issues or religion (especially religion), debating is just a forum for people to espouse their views. I wonder that a single mind or heart is ever changed through a debate. Mine never would be.

Kwame Bediako hits it on the head when he says that Christian apologetics must be accompanied by Christ-like humility and vulnerability. No one needs to be hit over the head with the claims of Jesus Christ on their life. Is it even possible to deal with those claims without first apprehending the great and very personal love of Jesus?

God certainly seems to favor doing things the hard way. He is clearly aware that His children (though they should be the best and most generous lovers of all) prefer to bop people over the head to loving them... May God forgive us, and help us to me more like His Son: Matt. 12: 18- 21 "Here is my servant, whom I have chosen, my beloved, with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not wrangle or cry aloud, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. He will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick until he brings justice to victory. And in his name the Gentiles will hope."

A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever

2008-05-23T23:21:00.000-04:00

My daughter is a flautist. That is, she plays the flute.

Tonight I attended the high school orchestra concert at her school. In the spring they do a pops concert which is very enjoyable. This evening they played some John Williams and Andrew Lloyd Webber pieces (music from Hook, Cats, and Phantom of the Opera). The music was gorgeous! Isn't it amazing that certain combinations of sound can touch us deeply - into the core of our being.

As the orchestra began playing the music from Hook, I found myself praising God. Though the music was written as a movie score and not necessarily to bring glory to God, it's beautiful. When anyone composes a beautiful piece of music or paints a masterpiece, or writes a great poem or novel he or she is glorifying God.

I say this because God is the Author of beauty. Beauty resonates in our hearts because when we create it or perform it or appreciate it, we reflect His image. Praise be to God for beauty of every kind!

Conspiracy of Love

2008-05-05T07:22:00.000-04:00

—“Conspiracy, lovely word of forgotten origins. Conspire, inspire-with, breathe with someone, together. Conspirators: they breathe the same air. Jesus and his disciples, eating the bread and drinking the wine, breathed the same air.” — Rubem Alves

Funny how the word conspiracy has taken on the negative connotation it has, isn't it? The thing about conspirators is that they're in it (whatever it is) together. Committed. The Lord has been speaking much to me lately of community - and my need of it. We do need to breath with someone together. To breath the same air.

Wendell Berry might call this kind of community the "room of love." It seems to me that the room of love can be shared by husband and wife, brothers & sisters, parents, friends, and certainly one's children. Berry says the room of love contains the longing of all things to be together and to be at rest together. Here, he says, giving and taking are the same. TO BE CONTINUED.

The Membership

2008-04-26T10:11:00.000-04:00

Sermon for Sunday, April 27
Scripture: Psalm 133 & Romans 12:1-16

There are some sayings that you hear all your life and often don’t know who’s being quoted. “How do I love thee, let me count the ways…” That’s Elizabeth Barrett Browning – and not by the way, the best line of that particular poem. Here’s another one for you: “No man is an island.” Do you know who said it?------------- It was the poet John Donne – but not in one of his poems. “No man is an island.”

These words are profoundly true, but in our age, we frequently forget them. We live in an age of extreme, almost militant individualism. I have my rights. I ‘ve got to live my life in the way I think best. I want to live my dreams. We’ve all heard sentiments like that. Maybe some of us have said them or thought them.

The statement “No man is an island” stands in sharp contrast to notions like those. How about this statement: “It is not good for man to be alone.” In the opening chapters of Genesis, we find God intentionally creating community. No man is an island. It is not good for man to be alone.

I’ve been reading the novels of Wendell Berry lately, and they have spoken powerfully to me about community. Wendell Berry would refer to the notion of community as being a part of a “membership”. Berry writes about life in rural Kentucky in a farming community. In his stories there are moms and dads and children. They rely on one another. But the membership is bigger than that too. Families rely on the help and support of other families in the community. These folks pitch in to help on the farms of course. But it’s more than that too. They care about one another at the deepest levels. They are there for friendship. They’re there in illness and death. They celebrate together weddings and births. They support one another along all of life’s pilgrimage.

This morning’s scripture readings affirm the blessings of community. In one of the pilgrims psalms sung on the way to Jerusalem to keep festival we hear, “ Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, upon the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord had commanded the blessing, life forevermore!”

Now it’s not everyone’s experience that brothers dwell together in unity, is it? Lots of families are filled with sibling rivalry. I imagine lots of churches are too. Sometimes rubbing up against other people makes us uncomfortable and even angry. Community of any size: marriage, family, neighborhoods, friendships, and churches is hard (sometimes arduous) work. It requires energy and attention and forgiveness and humor. But the end result is blessing – life forevermore.

There is a priestly element in our community. In the Psalm, oil (a symbol of God’s presence – His Spirit) is pictured flowing down the beard of Aaron. This is a reference to Exodus 29 where Aaron was ordained as a priest to the people of Israel. Living together in community means seeing the oil flow over the head, down the face, through the beard, onto the shoulders of the other – and when I see that, I know that my brother, my sister is my priest. We are set apart for service to one another. We mediate to one another the mysteries of God (Peterson, p. 175).

In Romans 12 Paul uses the analogy of the body to drive home the point that we belong to one another. He urges each person to fulfill his or her own place in the membership. Whatever God has gifted you to do, you should do. Your motivation should be the benefit of the whole and you should do it in self-forgetting love. The one we serve, Paul says, is the Lord. It’s the Lord who has given us the gifts we have, and it’s the Lord who requires us to put those gifts at the disposal of our brothers and sisters – to build up the body, the membership.

No, no man is an island. Let me read to you a few more lines from John Donne’s meditation:
“The church is catholic, universal, so are all her actions; all that she does belongs to all. When she baptizes a child, that action concerns me; for that child is thereby connected to that head which is my head too, and ingrafted into the body whereof I am a member. And when she buries a man, that action concerns me: all mankind is of one author and is one volume; when one man dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language; and every chapter must be so translated. God employs several translators; some pieces are translated by age, some by sickness, some by war, some by justice; but God's hand is in every translation, and his hand shall bind up all our scattered leaves again for that library where every book shall lie open to one another…. No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.”

I’ve been pondering my memberships the last couple of weeks: I have my own little family at home where I’m the mom. I’m part of an extended family where I’m a daughter and a sister. I have friends – colleagues at work whom I count as friends, and friends outside of work. I have a church family. There are layers and layers of connection and community in my life.

How about you? What are your memberships? Who’s counting on you? Who do you count on? How are thing going in your memberships? Celebrate your communities. Is there someone who needs a phone call, a card, a visit – maybe a gift? Let these special people know how special they are to you. God has placed you in connection to certain others: to care for them – and to be cared for by them. It is in these relationships, these connections, that God has ordained blessings for you – life forevermore.

Is It Microwavable?

2008-04-18T21:34:00.001-04:00

I admit that I'm part of the microwave generation. I don't typically cook in the microwave (in fact mine is broken right now), but they are handy for heating things up quickly - and in a pinch, you can, if you choose, cook your dinner in one.

It's not just microwaves, though. My generation is accustomed to fast food, jiffy lubes, quick drying fingernail polish, etc. We want it and we want it as quickly as possible.

Now that I'm getting older, all kinds of things are happening that I'd like to have a quick fix for. My children (both in their teens) are more challenging than ever to raise. They're faced with situations and decisions that I'd like to be able to make quickly for them. Sometimes I can - and do. But other times I have to wait to see what'll happen. I hate that.

My mom is getting older. Her health isn't the best, and my siblings and I have had to deal with the fact that she isn't going to be around forever. We've had wait for her to make decisions that we'd rather make for her (I guess turn about's fair play...).

My ex-husband is dying of cancer. So far it's been an excruciating two year battle for him and his new wife. My kids have a lot ahead of them to deal with. Grief that I can only imagine as both of my parents are still alive. I'd like the fast food version of grief for them. I'd like them to process all of this quickly - for the pain to be over soon. But it doesn't work that way.

My brother in law has lost three of the four people who were most responsible for his up-bringing and stability in the last six or nine months. On top of that, he just found out that he probably has Parkinson's Disease. On top of that, he's still processing the break-up of his first family (my sister's his second wife). It's a lot to deal with. Can't a guy catch a break?! It's a bunch of stuff that you want to just get through, so that you can move on, feel joy again.

I'm pretty sure that all these experiences are common occurrences in the lives of folks in their mid forties. Your parents are aging, you're aging yourself, your kids are growing. Life gets more complicated. I wonder if the generations before the microwave generation dealt with this stuff more realistically? I wonder if they knew intuitively that there's no getting over or around or above it? Did they know they had to go through and that their issues were not "microwavable?"

I've spent the last couple of years wishing that there was an easier way. There's not. Sometimes you have to be willing to sit silently in the dust and ashes and wait. Sometimes you have to slog your way through to the end. That's the way life is. If you want to live well, if you want to live faithfully and meaningfully, you have to be willing to walk slowly through the times of your life - all of them. Thankfully you don't have to do it by yourself. God's in it with you. Your family and friends are all fellow pilgrims - all on a similar journey. We can share together the fellowship of travelers along pleasant paths and arduous ones. Thanks be to God!

Your Vision Is So Clear You Don't See What Is Not

2008-03-31T20:56:00.000-04:00

I was talking to my teenage daughter and her friend the other day about perception. We were discussing a young man of their acquaintance who never doubts his own perceptions. It never enters his mind that he may be mistaken. It's a common mistake for gobs of people - especially young ones - believing that one understands what is going on and the reasons behind circumstances.

Most of us who've been around the block a few times see the error of that belief when we look at young people. Because we've been there, we know that what they think is the end of the world really isn't, or what they think is supremely important will be forgotten tomorrow, or what is of no account is really critically important...

I told my daughter and her friend that at 45 I know that my perceptions are colored by my brokenness and my education and my life experiences. I told them that I know that I still perceive things wrongly. And it's true. On one level I am fully aware of the fact that I have many mis-perceptions... On another level, however, I continually live bound my own mis-perceptions.

How do I know when it's happening? When what I perceive doesn't jive with what I'm told is true in the Scriptures. When your default is performanced based, or feeling judged (rather than loved) by God or whatever... and you assent that your feeling is correct rather than what God tells you is true... then you know it's happening. I can live this way for a while without even being aware of it - only acutely aware that I'm not living abundantly.

The antidote to this poison is the reality check of what the Scriptures have to say to me. It's pretty easy for me to preach to my kids about what's true or preach to a congregation of Presbyterians about what's true. The bottom line is that sometimes I need to get back in touch with what is true myself. That's about it. I haven't had a lot to say in the last month because I've been in this place - the place of mis-perceptions. Thanks be to God for reality checks!

The Beginning of the End for the Vandals?

2008-02-19T19:05:00.001-05:00

Fidel Castro announced today that he's stepping down. His brother Raul will take formal control of Cuba, but one wonders if this could finally be the beginning of the end.

My father was at university in Havana at the same time as Fidel. Papi was in medical school and Fidel in law school. My father describes Fidel and his band of revolutionaries as vandals. He claims that they are not united as much in Socialist ideology as they are in their desire to rape Cuba. While that may sound a bit extreme, Castro is the 7th wealthiest head of state - worth about 900 million dollars, even though he's taken a personal vow of poverty.

A Cuban friend of mine told me a few years ago that he'd heard of prophesies coming out of the church in Latin America about the end of Castro's regime and a subsequent out pouring of the Holy Spirit on Cuba. I hope the prophesies are true.

Much can be said about spiritual darkness in Cuba - and among many Cuban Americans who practice Santeria. The Cuban people have also suffered from crippling pride. My sisters were in Havana a few years back and saw a statue of Satan shaking his fist toward heaven. I believe that these attitudes led to the destruction of the country and the exile of many from their homeland.

On my drive home from work this evening I heard Gloria Estefan singing 90 Millas - a song of hope for a free Cuba. 90 miles isn't too far as the crow flies but it may as well be on the moon. May the God of second chances give Cuba and Cubans another chance. May he send His Spirit to draw the hearts of the people to Himself. The truth is, that we are only truly free if the Son frees us.

Atonement

2008-02-18T20:42:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend I saw the movie Atonement. It was good on many levels, but what struck me the most was the chain of events set off by the careless use of words - one word in particular. I won't repeat the word -it may be my least favorite word in the English language.

The protagonist, Robbie, would never have used it purposely to communicate his feelings and desires. Robbie was, in fact, struggling to express himself when he composed a note in jest - expressing in vulgar language his desires. Rather than tearing it up immediately he set it down by the typewriter as he wrote the words he really wanted his love interest to read. Unfortunately, he picked up the wrong letter on his way out.

Not only did Celia (the love interest) read the vulgar note, but so did her younger sister Briony. Robbie's careless words led to his arrest for rape, conscription in the army, and death.

The movie makes me wonder how the trajectory of my life has been altered - for good and bad - as a result of words. The careful use of words builds bridges, expresses love and concern, brings in the Kingdom. God used words to create the universe. The careless use of words wounds, destroys, creates barriers - as the Apostle Paul would say, "the dividing walls of hostility."

Atonement made me think about words. I pray that God will give me the grace to use my words for building up and not tearing down (unless I'm tearing down the dividing walls of hostility). If you're reading this, I pray that He'll give you the same grace.

God's Counterintuitive Ways

2008-02-17T20:17:00.000-05:00

Daily Lectionary:
Morning: Psalm 150:1-6
Genesis 48:8-22
Romans 8:11-25
John 6:27-40
Evening: Psalm 32:1-11
Second Sunday in Lent Lectionary:
Genesis 12:1-4a
Psalm 121:1-8
Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
John 3:1-17

In Genesis 48 we read the account of Jacob blessing Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh. Joseph lines them up 'properly' so that Jacob's right hand will rest on Manasseh and his left on Ephraim. But Jacob crosses his hands to give Ephraim (the younger son) the greater blessing. Joseph protests, but Jacob insists - Ephraim is the greater and thus should receive the greater blessing.

Interesting that Jacob, who practiced deception to gain the blessing of the first born, is ready to freely bestow his patriarchal blessing in a counter intuitive way. It looks like he learned some things about God and His ways during his long life.

God delights in working with unexpected people or through unexpected means. He loves barren women (Sarah, Hannah, Elizabeth...), younger sons (Jacob, David), outcasts, and very unlikely heros (Gideon). His ways are certainly not our ways.

So... if it appears that God is leading in a direction that doesn't seem to make sense, maybe that's not a bad thing. Glory belongs to God alone, and it could be that the road He leads you down is the one designed to make it clear that He's the Author of the story as well as the Protagonist.

Brass Tacks

2008-02-16T14:41:00.000-05:00

During dinner the other night, my friend Patrick was relating stories about his recent experiences in LaFayette, TN (in TN they pronounce it la FAY ette). He was there the first three days last week as part of our company's disaster response team. LaFayette is where devastating tornados blew through recently.

Patrick had some heart wrenching stories of folks that lost all of their possessions, folks that were severly injured, and worst of all, those who'd lost family members. One young woman was huddled in the bath tub with her husband and son who were both carried away. She alone survived.

Those who had lost only their possessions were, Patrick said, profoundly grateful simply to be alive. No one said, "Why me." They were happy to be alive, and happy to do simple things (Patrick was there allowing them to use the phone).

When you get down to brass tacks - or as my hero Nacho Libre says, "neeetty greeetty" - mere survival is a big deal. Sometimes, like spoiled children, we feel in the mood to complain. We take for granted the rich blessings the Father has poured into our lives. When disaster strikes, what really matters is crystal clear. May God help us to count our blessings every day - especially the blessing of our loved ones.

The 5%

2008-02-14T20:55:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentines Day!

I was in Nashville this week on business, and got a chance (last night) to have dinner with my friend Patrick and his wife Melissa. I've known Patrick for almost 10 years. We've worked together off and on over that period of time, and for the last few years been on the same team. What I do in Eastern NC and SC, Patrick does in TN.

When I first met Patrick, he was getting over a long term (7 year) relationship with a woman who was an alcoholic. He'd broken off the relationship, gone to therapy to figure out why he'd subjected himself to that misery for so long, and was moving on with his life. About 5 years ago Patrick met Melissa, and in her, met his match.

These are two terrific people! When you talk to either of them alone, they are full of praise for the other. There is genuine love, respect, appreciation, and admiration between them. They are in the 5%.

Usually, when one thinks of percentages, he thinks that bigger is better... In the 95% typically means at the top. But when the subject is marriage, sometimes it's better to be in the smaller group. Here's what I learned in my Pastoral Counselling class: 20% of marriages are hard work / low payoff, 75% of marriages require effort but yield some happiness, and 5% of marriages are light on effort and high in happiness and fulfillment.

Having dinner last night with Patrick and Melissa was a terrific pre-Valentine event for me. I do not have a Valentine, but the Morgans fill me with happiness all the same. It's great to see healthy love between two fantastic people. Praise God for the 5%!

Rock of Love

2008-02-10T20:54:00.000-05:00

OK. I know I'm getting up there in terms of age, but as a rule, I think I'm pretty much with it. There are some things, however, that I just don't get. I walked through the den a minute ago and Rock of Love was on. Brett Michaels, the lead singer of Poison is trying to find "love" on TV. He's choosing between a bunch of women that live together in a house... You know the drill... because it's the same one as The Bachelor and Shot at Love...

Now I'll admit that my romantic love IQ probably isn't the highest. I'm could be a mite too idealistic for my own good - or maybe not. I don't understand why any woman would want to have intimacy - emotional or physical - with a man who was also sharing the same intimacies with a bunch of other women at the same time. Where is their self respect? Where is their common sense? Yuck!

I've been single for six years. Though I'd like to think that God has a special man for me in the future, I'm OK with being single. Not just single, though - chaste. If there is someone special for me, I'd like to save all of myself for that person, and hope (though I know I'm idealistic) that he would do the same for me.

So back to the "love" reality shows. Why are men and women lining up to expose themselves to various possibilities - maybe love (however unlikely), maybe emotional wounding, or even STDs? Is their thirst for love so great that they're willing to roll the dice no matter how bad the odds? That appears to be the case.

God puts a desire for love, companionship, and fellowship into our hearts. It's a very good desire and is one of the ways we bear the image of God. The relationship that exists between the persons of the Trinity is (I believe) the sort of intimacy that we as humans are longing for. John of Damascus developed a pretty cool theological word to describe this relationship: Perichoresis-

"Such is the fellowship in the Godhead that the Father and the Son not only embrace each other, but they also enter into each other, permeate each other, and dwell in each other. One in being, they are also always one in the intimacy of their friendship. This intimacy is unique to family. As the Holy Family, the Father and the Son enter into each other and dwell, not only with, but also in each other." In other words, the Trinity is in a circle dance of love!

I'm certain that if I ever marry again, that I'm seeking the kind of intimacy pictured in the Trinity. There are couples who know something of it. I think that the sometimes desperate search for love that we see in people we know and on TV shows like Rock of Love is really a search for
the divine kind of intimacy pictured in perichoresis. You can't find it on a reality TV show. You can't find it in a bar. The more of yourself you give away before you find it, the less of yourself you have to give the Real McCoy. Love and intimacy like this is a gift of the only One who created us for Himself and already experiences it fully.

Turning 15

2008-02-02T10:14:00.000-05:00

My daughter's turning 15 next week. People of a Latin persuasion celebrate 15 instead of 16. It got me thinking of my own 15th birthday. We did not throw a big party. Instead, my Mom and her best friend Yola took me, my sister Jeanette, and Yola's son Philip (our best friend at the time) to Benihana (sp?) for dinner and then to the Playboy club for Shirley Temples. I was recounting it for my Mom the other night on the phone, and she did not remember doing it...

I've got to tell you, that night made a big impression on me. I'm not sure how Mom and Yola decided on our night's agenda. I'd never heard of a Japanese steak house and I don't think I was aware of the Playboy Club's existence either. In retrospect it seems carefully planned by Mom and Yola to be special and memorable. Only Mom doesn't remember it...I do.

Mom probably doesn't remember the other very memorable (to me) outing together. I'm the oldest of five kids. My sister Jeanette is only 16 months younger than I. In fact by 1969 my mom had 5 kids ages 6 and under! Consequently I didn't get many times alone with her. But once, after a doctor's appointment, mom took me to lunch. Just me. I don't remember anything about it except the special feeling to be sitting at a table alone with my mom having conversation.

I have one special memory of my Dad too, that he probably wouldn't remember. One night he took me (alone) to see The Hiding Place. I felt like a princess. Come to think of it, that may be the only time in my life when I felt like a princess...

It occurs to me that we don't always know what's going to be very important to another person. We could be totally unaware that we're creating for them a special memory or a once-in-a-life-time feeling. What an incredible privilege! In 2008 let's make many good memories. Let's love people in a way that communicates how delightful they are, and gives them a life-shaping memory.

Homeostasis

2008-01-27T16:15:00.001-05:00

Homeostasis is one of those words you can use in a variety of settings. When used in a medical context it basically means metabolic equilibrium. A good thing, right? When used in the context of systems theory (family or organizational) it means maintaining the status quo. Maybe not such a good thing...

If you're in an unhealthy system - relating in negative or harmful ways with those you're in relationship with, homeostasis should be the last thing you desire. Unfortunately, it often happens that folks get caught up in maintaining the patterns of relationship they've experienced over and over with the same people or different ones. Patterns like these effect relationships in families, churches, businesses, etc.

Sometimes we get used to viewing someone in a particular light, and are unable or unwilling to let our opinions change. I recently read a review of Kevin Max's new CD The Blood. It was not flattering. I read the review after purchasing the CD and deciding that I like it. The reviewer did not, claiming that KM was (as usual) trying to innovate, and in this case failed. The truth is I have not heard the other versions of the songs that the reviewer talked about. Maybe he's right, and I only like the music because I haven't heard the other.

One thing I like about The Blood is that it seems to me that it's a departure from Max's usual fare. Like his other work it definitely has Max's unique sound, but (to me) it lacks the self consciousness that flawed his other albums. This album is about the blood of Jesus. K Max doesn't sound like a troubled man or a lost soul on this album like he does on the others.

Could it be that the reviewer (whose name I did not take note of) doesn't want to see Kevin Max in a new light? I admit that it's hard to like someone who's taking themselves too seriously, and KM has taken himself way too seriously in the past. I don't know whether or not The Blood's tone is indicative of a change for him or not, but I like to think that it is. If so, shouldn't Max be given the benefit of the doubt? A charitable hearing?

I've been involved in addressing performance issues with the choir director of our church. She is a very sweet lady who has had some health issues that have probably effected her performance. I think that before she had to deal with the pain associated with her back problems, she was astute enough to cover up some of the deficiencies of her work ethic.

The work issues she must address are very objective, and very fixable. One of the three choirs at church raised the issues. I wonder if they can accept her back into their good graces even if she fixes her performance issues. Hopefully she will not continue to bear the brunt of their criticism and dissatisfaction if she improves.

While I hope that I'm able to enjoy the healthful (medical) type of homeostasis, I want to avoid the rut living of the status quo. I strive to keep my relationships healthy. I strive to grow as a person. May God grant me the grace to understand, acknowledge, and celebrate the fact that those around me are growing too.

The Real McCoy

2008-01-25T17:33:00.000-05:00

I have a church friend named Ina. Until recently I did not have a natural opportunity to get to know her very well. But we've been serving on a committee together and hence seen each other quite a bit lately.

In a meeting one evening earlier this week I had to tell her. She's the real McCoy. The genuine article. A bonafide, authentic Southern Lady. In every situation she has responded - without fail- as a class act. So I had to tell her so - and publicly with the rest of the committee present.

Sometimes I tend to hold back on expressing love or admiration. I don't want to be misconstrued or misunderstood. It can be easier to tell others about what we think or how we feel about someone that it is to tell the person him or herself. But I think it's important to say it to the person who deserves the compliment.

"Better is open rebuke than hidden love." Proverbs 27:5 encourages us to express our love and appreciation of people we know. God delights in us, and takes great pains to tell us so - and remind us when we forget. One thing I want to do more in 2008 is to participate with Him in open, honest delight in the wonderful people that He has put in my life.

Why I Love Football

2008-01-21T19:22:00.001-05:00

I know that it's terribly unfeminine of me, but I love football. The fact that I'm a Cuban woman makes my love of this men's game even more heinous, but there it is. I can't help myself.

So, why am I, as a woman, so enamoured of the game? For starters, I like the discipline required of the players. Their conditioning is critically important. They begin practice during the summer months and then work hard through the end of the season. Not only is their physical condition important, however, they have to be mentally tough and able to perform under pressure in front of huge crowds of sometimes hostile fans.

Football offers the players an opportunity to execute a plan in a very concrete way. Those guys are out there having a battle - sometimes in very adverse (hot or cold) circumstances. Their jobs require them to master body and mind in equal measures. Their success depends on the efforts of so many ....

It's not so very different from living the Christian life - individually and as the church. Would that the church could figure out the importance of playing as a team - that we can only win as a team, and that our conditioning (both physical an spiritual) affects the team's performance.

We're fighting a battle that actually has significance, but we frequently approach our lives with an inexcusable casualness. I don't mean that we should be serious all the time, but we should be serious about things that matter. And we should be ready to celebrate our victories - not strutting around and pounding our chests or doing some stupid looking dance in the end zone, but congratulating our teammates for sure.

So I guess that's why I love football. It reminds me that it's good to work hard, it's good to sweat, it's right to give my all again and again for the sake of the team - and especially for the Coach.

I think I'll go see what's playing on the NFL Channel...

There's No Accounting for Taste

2008-01-18T11:34:00.001-05:00

I'm in Myrtle Beach, SC on business now. Actually, Myrtle Beach is not a place that I'd likely come for pleasure. Probably because I grew up in Miami, a commercialized beach is the last place I want to hang out. My idea of a great beach is one where there's not much to do except hang out on the beach. I prefer to eat in, play cards, read aloud from some great book, etc.

But clearly there are folks - and LOTS of them, that dig a place like Myrtle Beach. There's lots to do here if you like doing stuff with crowds of people around you... Of course in the middle of January, one doesn't run into that problem as much, hence my presence in MB now...

I don't mean to imply that my way is the right way to enjoy the beach. I'm not a beach snob. Whatever rings your bell, go for it.

I think that church music falls into the same category as beaches. There's no morality (or even dare I say Theology) behind high or low church music. There are to be sure better song or hymn lyrics from a theological perspective, but the music itself really isn't theological (though I'm aware that there are still people who try to argue that it is). I'm in the midst of a church music 'discussion' at the moment. I'm chairman of the worship committee and we're having issues with our choir director. Some of them involve things like planning and punctuality (in my mind clearly employment behaviors that must be addressed), but others have to do with her musicality- specifically how she plays the organ.

We apparently have an amazing organ. This particular choir director can't play it the way it 'deserves' to be played. I have to smile when I hear sentiments like that. I guess because like with beaches, there's no accounting for taste. I don't mind the organ, but I'd rather hear the piano... I guess I'm a little low brow...

Problems arise when anyone (myself included) believe that what we like is the most God honoring, worship enhancing music, liturgy, style... fill in the blank.... Of course we want to do our best in worship. I frequently lead the liturgical portion of the service. I prepare for it so that I can do it well. The idea is to not draw attention to myself by stumbling over words. Those things can distract the congregation from what they're supposed to be doing - whether it's saying the liturgy, singing, whatever.

Music and preaching essentially strive to do the same - be "performed" or preached in such a way that the attention of the congregation is not diverted from the worship of God. When mistakes are made, folks can be distracted...

BUT...and this is a BIG BUT... ultimately, worship is not about the worshippers' experience at all. In worship, God is the audience (maybe it's going to far to say He's the 'consumer' or 'customer' or maybe not). God is not distracted by our mistakes or our lack of virtuosity. He's more concerned with the state of our hearts and motivations than with our taste or abilities. I'd venture to say that when we think we've 'performed' perfectly, He's smiling. Not derisively, but smiling nevertheless at our silliness.

So... high church, low church. Organ or piano. Polished performances or mediocre...with the right heart, it's all good.

Juno

2008-01-12T10:11:00.000-05:00

I took my kids to see Juno last night. World Magazine gave it a good review, as did the critics, and I wanted my kids to see it. It was everything that I anticipated - and none of what my kids were expecting :). They were totally unaware that the movie was about teen pregnancy. As we exited the theater, I heard other kids say that they'd no idea that the movie was about a pregnant teen.

This is the third movie I've seen this year with a pro-life message, Bella being by far the best, and Knocked Up (one of my few movie mistakes) the worst. My 14 year old daughter saw all three with me and they've been good opportunities (even Knocked Up) for good, frank discussion about sexuality and life.

In Juno, a couple of smart kids - best friends- get bored and have sex (I wonder if and how often that happens?!). I don't know who played Juno, but she did a great job. The boy was played by the "nice" kid from Superbad (one of my other movie mistakes - 2 in one year! When has that ever happened? I must be slipping.). Juno lets him know that she's pregnant, but she's going to 'take care of it.'

However, at the abortion clinic she meets a lone protester - a girl she knows from school. The girl tells her that her baby already has fingernails. Once inside, Juno seems to hear nothing but fingernails - clicking, scratching, etc. She can't go through with it. She decides to find adoptive parents, which she does in the Pennysaver (a small part of the exquisite humor of this movie), and give the child up for adoption.

Juno's family is fairly supportive, though her father tells her that he thought she was the kind of girl who knew when to say when...(to which she replies, "I don't know what kind of girl I am." - What 16 girl really does? Juno's step-mom tells her father that out of this terrible mess, Jesus will bring a miracle to a family that wants a baby. How's that for Hollywood?!

I talk openly with my kids about sex. I've told them that I would prefer for them not to be sexually active. I've told them why. I've modeled chaste living in our home. But I know that they may make decisions that I do not agree with. I pray that they'll have the strength and good sense to resist temptation when it comes, and I know that it will come. Olivia and Alex can escape the pain and wounds of having sex outside of God's designs. That's my fervent wish and prayer. But I also know that whether they deal with pregnancy or woundedness or whatever, that God will somehow make it part of His story of redemption.

Epiphany

2008-01-06T16:46:00.001-05:00

Today is Epiphany or Three Kings. It's the end of the Christmas season, and the day when we celebrate the visit of the three kings or wise men from the East. If you read the Lectionary, then you know that for the last several days the focus has been on Christ as a light to the nations. Isaiah had a lot to say on the subject, notably:

Isaiah 66:18-21
For I know their works and their thoughts, and I am coming to gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and shall see my glory...the coastlands far away that have not heard of my fame or seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations. They shall bring all your kindred from all the nations as an offering to the LORD, on horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and on mules, and on dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says the LORD, just as the Israelites bring a grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the LORD. And I will also take some of them as priests and as Levites, says the LORD.

And:
Isaiah 49:6-7
"It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth."
Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the slave of rulers, "Kings shall see and stand up, princes, and they shall prostrate themselves, because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you."

The Israelites are God's chosen people, but not merely chosen to enjoy the favor of God, but to be a light to the nations. God told Abraham that all the nations of the earth would be blessed in him. Israel never really grasped God's vision drawing everyone to Himself. Old and New Testament alike is filled with stories of God's people not getting it.

Often the Church is not very different from Israel. Jesus' behavior would likely scandalize good church folk as surely as it did the Jews of Jesus' time. It's human nature to want to exclude based on some litmus test of our own choosing. I don't mean that all roads lead to God. Orthodox Christianity is exclusive in nature from a broad theological perspective. But we don't want to stop with what's essential. We like to add peripheral things.... like how a person looks or behaves or worships.

Broken people make us look bad. They make God look bad. Don't they? The problem is, we're all broken people. All of us walk around with lots of 'stuff.' We just find our own 'stuff' easier to accept that the 'stuff' other people walk around with. Sometimes we forget that God's love of us is scandalous and shameful.

Epiphany reminds us that God's plans are bigger than our imaginations. His heart is bigger than our puny ones which only want to love those who look, act, and live like we do. It reminds us that just as we have been the recipients of lavish grace, so we should be generous dispensers of the same.

Commercials I Like

2008-01-04T20:25:00.001-05:00

I've been watching a lot of the bowl games and the playoff and Superbowl are right around the corner. Commercials just get better during these times.

Allstate has some good commercials right now. I love the one with the kicker on the college football team. He's in class and a really cute girl asks him if he's going to the game. He's like, "Yes, I'm on the team." She smiles and responds, "Good one." The coach of the football team calls him into the game in the final, crucial seconds. Even the coach doesn't know his name, but he tells the kid that if he makes the kick, everyone will know who he is. He kicks the game winning field goal and is carried off on the shoulders of his teammates. I love that one!

Allstate has another commercial where different people are in the middle of the road - on a playground, in their living rooms, etc. The announcer says, "Maybe we should treat others on the road as if they're guests in our house, rather than in the way." It's great. I don't do business with Allstate, but based on these two commercials alone, I'd consider it.

I'm not a beer drinker, but I love the commercial where the guy says "Dude" in a variety of funny settings. This one doesn't make me want to develop a taste for beer, but I love when it comes on.

The Fantasy Football commercials have all been enjoyable. I'm not exactly sure what they're promoting, but I like them. I also like the commercial for the sleeping pill where characters from the guy's dreams are saying they miss him. Good stuff.

There are other commercials that totally turn me off. I don't eat fast food, but if I did, I would not eat at Hardees based on how much I detest their ads. Maybe they appeal to men, I'm not sure, but I find them offensive. Wendys is not offending me, but their latest commercials are beyond stupid.

Some commercials are memorable but incomprehensible. The one with Peyton Manning in the hallway of what looks like a hotel trying to find someone to pass to is an example. I still don't know what the ad is for.

In some ways, Christians are like living commercials for Christ. I want to be a funny one or a compelling one or both. I certainly don't want to be offensive or stupid. And I hope that on some level my life is comprehensible to others - not in a sermonizing way, but as a whiff of grace, mercy, and good humor.

River's Bend

2008-01-03T08:54:00.000-05:00

River's Bend

At a bend in the Tygart river are two trees
Leaning, straining out over the water
Roots exposed, reaching deep into the soil
Like the fingers of a great hand grasping the earth.

It is this soil, this land, from these people that I spring-
Leaning, straining like the tree over life's river,
With roots going deep, holding fast.
Firmly rooted in these mountains.

Before the days of political correctness my siblings and I would tell people that we were spick-hicks. It was a short, pithy way of explaining our heritage, and in some ways our family culture. I wrote the poem above after a visit to the WVA mountains for a reunion with my mother's people. I thought about the verses a day or so ago. Maybe I'll work on the Latina side too...