Jesus asked the right question, "Do you want to be healed?" The man heard it through his own filters and thought his answer was contingent on his preconceptions of getting in the water. That was not the case. Right question, wrong answer, but Jesus did not give up and the man was healed.
" Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked."
"Now that day was the Sabbath."
John 5:2-9 ESV
The last statement brings up a whole different subject and yet, the main subject of the story - how we get locked in by our limited thinking and the boxes in which we try to fit God.
On this day, August 13, in 1099 – Raniero is elected as Pope Paschal II, who would become deeply entangled in the Investiture Controversy.
This controversy was a prime example, from nearly a thousand years ago, of entanglement of church and state over questions of temporal and ecclesiastic power.
It was essentially an argument at the top of the food chain among people who wore ostentatious clothes, lived in palaces, drank fine wine, and ordered many people around.
It had very little to do with anything related to discipleship or following Jesus.
It was a pretty good example for what happens when we start fighting for power, prestige, influence, and wealth in the church or in society.
Paschall II was also responsible for taking the church further down the road to militarization.
Raniero started out as a humble monk, probably very devout and committed to a life of humble service. He rose through the ranks, skipping most of the increments and became one of the most powerful men in Western world at odds with other powerful men in that world.
The past is the past; let's just not let it spoil the present by forgetting it.
------------------------------------------
The Servetus Matter
Just a reminder of what can happen when there is a theocracy, even if it is led by a respected theologian. The Reformation did not immediately correct the core fallacy of church history since Constantine. It was the intertwining of the powers of church and state and confusion of their roles.
It is not about God being in control or not. Most monotheistic religions believe that God's power is absolute and not subject to our leadership or influence. It is about people of God or even just people who claim to represent God, wielding power over matters of conscience, religion, state, speech, or assembly in such a way that one has the opportunity to oppress, repress, and restrict the other.
“The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” - Psalm 24:1
Everything belongs to God. We have known this most of our lives as a theological truth. It is in the dimension of application that we are challenged to confront our ignorance on this subject. We have constructed exception clauses to make room for self-ownership and control over this and that. We want to think that some little ditty of a thing is ours and that we can have power over it. To this deception, the voice of God speaks clearly and forcefully, “No. It is mine. It always was and always will be.”
“For he hath founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods.” - Psalm 24:2
For starters, it is all His because it was His idea from the drawing board to the factory. He thought of everything, planned everything, made everything, and retains sovereignty over – you guessed it – everything. He made the world and all that it contains and filled it with wonder and surprise. He is the owner, but that is not the whole story. He is a generous God who shares all that He has and is with us and invites us to discover the wonder of it all and celebrate creation with Him.
“Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? ” - Psalm 24:3
When a soul discovers the wonders of God and His Sovereignty in creation and stands amazed at the glory of His Lord, there is but one response that rings true: worship. “I must worship this great God,” is the heart cry of the honest seeker,” I must know Him! I must come into His presence! I must some how get connected with the source and object of my being.” And things, brings for the question of the ages, “Who can come before Him? Can I?” You can, but you must come His way.
The People Who Worship
“He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.” - Psalm 24:4
There is a lifestyle connection to worship. We cannot tolerate inconsistency in our lives that draws an arbitrary wall of separation between our relationship with God and those that we maintain with others. Nor can we divide our loyalties between false gods that give us temporary gratification and the only True God who has rightful claim to the world and all that is. Our hands are dirty and our hearts are divided. We are in dire need of the mercy and grace of God and His power to transform us into worshippers.
“He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. ” - Psalm 24:5
When one is qualified by God through grace to enter His presence, a blessing follows. In a moment of immediate transformation, we are fashioned into pure hearted worshippers with clean hands, and we enter a new era of our lives that makes all that came before moot. God’s vindication covers our record, and we simply stand before Him in awe. Our voices are lifted in worthy praise, and we are blessed.
“This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah. ” - Psalm 24:6
There is something powerful that happens in our lives when we seek God. Jesus promised that all those who truly seek will find Him. This requires an open heart. Purity of heart and cleanliness of hands means that we bring no other motive or agenda, nothing in our hands or hearts, save the yearning to know God and worship Him in His fullness. Seek His face today as you begin and as you continue. In every face you encounter, seek His, in every circumstance, in every thought, word, and deed.
The Way We Worship
“Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.” - Psalm 24:7
Expectancy calls for preparation. If our awareness of God’s glory is deep and our desire to worship, desperate, we will be anxious to lift up our heads to behold His face, to open the gates of our hearts for His anticipated entry. We will welcome Him wholeheartedly into the center of our lives and will exalt in His coming. The spirit of celebration and joy characterizes Old Testament worship, likewise, authentic Christian worship. The presence of God calls for singing and dancing. Lift up your heads!
“Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle.” - Psalm 24:8
“Who is this King of glory?” We tend to grow smug as we “mature” in the grace and knowledge of God. We hear the questions that we ought to be posing ourselves and point to the pages where we answered them in our notebooks years ago. We have gone shallow and are settling for yesterday’s encounter with God. If we think we really have a grasp on God, we are far, far away. Let us keep seeking and, as we seek, meet God in worship where the encounter is always new.
“Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.” - Psalm 24:9
It is a refrain, and we could simply overlook it and move to the next verse for commentary, but that would be an exercise in shallow worship. Something has changed in the last few days. We have a new way of singing this song, a fresh encounter with the Living God. We have deeper insights into what it means to lift our heads and open the gates. We have a more intimate relationship with the King of Glory having sought Him. We can never sing the same song twice the same way and call it worship.
“Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah. ” - Psalm 24:10
Don’t assume that you know the answer just because you read a few sentences of devotional comment or thought the matter over. The Lord is Almighty – we shall never begin to fathom the riches of who He is or plumb the depths of His character and love. Glory annotates weight – a weight so heavy that is transcends gravity and displaces everything that comes across its path. He defies definition and demands reverence. When given the choice between shallowness and depth today, choose to go deep.
Popular television shows aside, we are all looking for a view, viewpoint, or overview that begets perspective on lives that are otherwise, quite confusing.
What do we do? What do we think? How do we filter in the essential and out the extraneous?
If everything matters, does nothing truly matter? If nothing matters, why bother?
Well, everything does matter and some things matter more in the moment and the secret is to discern the moment and to be in it.
Then, other moments will gather around the appropriate poles like magnetic dust and form a picture. And wherever you are, the view will be clear.
Jesus said, "Seek and ye shall find."
Your task is to find the moments to abandon all tasks and seek.
Just seek. Seekers find. Non-seekers stumble. Grace often intervenes and surprises them - probably because there is something inside all of us that is always seeking. But folks with their eyes and hearts open stand a better chance than the rest of grasping the view at the right moment.
S - Some seek secretly -- and that is OK.
Deuteronomy 29;29 says that "the secret things belong to the Lord, our God. but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law."
Psalm 44.:;21 says that God knows the secrets of the heart. Jesus instructs us to pray in secret. it is there that we can be totally open, honest, and free. No one judges us there and God has no reason to judge us when we are seeking Him.
E - Embrace the essential eagerness of expectancy. Live on tiptoes. In I Corinthians 12:31,
Paul admonished his friends to eagerly seek the greater gifts, but to go beyond even that and seek love. It is love that we seek most earnestly and desperately. It is the source of love for which our hearts long. Embrace that eagerness because it is essential to who you are. In other words, that eagerness to love and be loved is the essence of who you are as a child of God.
E - Entertain everyone and everything without expectations. As you take in ideas, thoughts, people, and events, don't hold anything too tightly and do not be bound by what you expect them to "say" to you. God has surprises for you in life as you seek. Seek in and through whatever comes your way, but without predjudice. Like the psalmist in Psalm 27;4, desire most to seek and gaze. Keep your gaze loose. You will not grow weary or lack good things according to Psalm 34:10.
K - Knock. That is part of the "seek and find' promise.
Along with it comes asking. If something seems resistant to giving up its hidden knowldge, persist, wait, tap on the door, ask questions, and keep probing. Sometimes you are closer to the unfolding of a mystery than you can imagine, but you grow impatient and move on. If you must move on, keep one eyeball on the prize. You have more than two seeking eyes. You have as many as you need. And you have knuckles enough to nag the nobs off of any closed door. Keep seeking.
What is the view from your vantage? It is the advantage of being wherever you are, acknowledging your presence in that place and moment, and availing yourself of the opportunity to seek - then and there in the here and now.
Don't fret over what you do not, as yet, understand. Let some sunshine in and enjoy the view.
I am not very patient with myself if I perceive I am being lazy. I do not like to be thought of as lazy. I do not like to be lazy.
But, I also do not like to fail.
I have collected a few thoughts, meditations on the topic, too lazy to bring them into one cohesive essay, I readily admit they are disjointed and I fear inserting the joints because of a stilted sort of perfectionism.
This is an exercise in overcoming both moods and letting you and God sort it all out
Sitting Here
We sit and wait for something to move us.
But nothing does.
We wait some more.
Nothing.
Then it occurs to us that maybe, just maybe, we have to move ourselves.
Then, in moving, we figure out what we are doing and where we are going.
It is really hard to move anything with the brakes on.
It is time to get up and get going.
"The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth!" Proverbs 19:20
"When the desire is too much to bear, we often bury it beneath frenzied thoughts and activities or escape it by dulling our immediate consciousness of living. It is possible to run away from the desire for years, even decades, at a time, but we cannot eradicate it entirely. It keeps touching us in little glimpses and hints in our dreams, our hopes, our unguarded moments." Gerald F. May, , The Awakened Heart
The Journey Is the Destination
" I see Him walking on the waves, no shore in sight, no success, no goal, just the absolute certainty that it is all right because I see Him walking on the sea. It is the process, not the end, which is glorifying to God. " - from "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers.
We are all at sea. We are all vulnerable to waves and apparent chaos. He comes walking toward us and we ask, "Where are we going if we follow you?"
It is, perhaps, the wrong question.
"God's end is to enable me to see that He can walk on the chaos of my life just now." - Chambers
So, we walk on it with Him ... and the journey is the destination.
"The life that intends to be wholly obedient, wholly submissive, wholly listening, is astonishing in its completeness. Its joys are ravishing, its peace profound, its humility the deepest, its power world-shaking, its love enveloping, its simplicity that of a trusting child." - Thomas Kelly
So Much Goes Wrong.
"And even though it all went wrong
I'll stand before the lord of song
With nothing on my tongue but hallelujah." - L. Cohen
Who Is the Boss?
The Kingdom of God is the reign of God.
It is no more and no less.
It is that reign in human hearts and in concentric circles of community.
It is that reign in societies and in the cosmos.
Finally, ultimately and initially,, it is that reign in Heaven now and through eternity.
The Kingdom of God is God's reign.
But I Might Fail the Boss.
"Those who try to do something and fail are infinitely better than those who try to do nothing and succeed."
- Lloyd Jones
It Will Not Destroy God or God's Plan if You Fail.
"The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah" Psalm 46:6-7 English Standard Version
There are some things you can seem to count on that will be going on all the time somewhere.
There will be raging of nations. There will be kingdoms tottering. Somewhere, the earth will be melting. Always and everywhere, the Lord of hosts is with us. Always and everywhere, the God of Jacob is our fortress.
A Major Mask - Perfectionism often Disguises Its Paralysis As Laziness.
We are afraid to do anything for sake of the greater fear of getting it wrong.
Perfectionism is a set-up because
(1) it usually revolves around our limited understanding of perfection which is inordinately influenced by someone else's limited understanding of perfection and even deeper misunderstanding of us, and
(2) generally just imperfect because perfection is essentially completion and if our vision of the finished product is flawed our outcome will be even more flawed.
"The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." -by Anna Quindlen
The road to perfection is allowing God to make us who we truly are and were made to be.
"We must obey God rather than any human authority."
I have learned to avoid over-applying any one text of scripture, especially the report of a quote from a conversation that never claimed divine inspiration --- But it is propelling and insightful that when the choice was absolutely clear and based upon truth, we can gain much from it.
So, it may not be a one-size-fits-all doctrine, but it points to a principle that is sound and true.
God's will, work, and directives come first. Ignore the threats of those who think they rule over the universe or determine our fates. Truth over power. Love over hate. Freedom over oppression.
When it came down to the draw. an unlikely voice of reason emerged and they continued to exercise the freedom that was in them to proclaim to good news of Jesus and God's Kingdom.
Acts 5:27-42:
When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, saying, "We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man's blood on us."
But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than any human authority. The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."
When they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them.
But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, respected by all the people, stood up and ordered the men to be put outside for a short time. Then he said to them, "Fellow Israelites, consider carefully what you propose to do to these men. For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him; but he was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and disappeared. After him Judas the Galilean rose up at the time of the census and got people to follow him; he also perished, and all who followed him were scattered. So in the present case, I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone; because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them-- in that case you may even be found fighting against God!"
They were convinced by him, and when they had called in the apostles, they had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. As they left the council, they rejoiced that they were considered worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name.
And every day in the temple and at home they did not cease to teach and proclaim Jesus as the Messiah.
Don't over-think this one; it will lose its impact.
The prevailing mood of the early church, in the matter of needy members, was generosity, but it was not mandated. Truthful transparency, however, was expected. Lying to God is an indication that you are already dead inside.
One of the characteristics of the new believers in the Jerusalem church was their generous hearts.
They did not consider their time, possessions or personal gifts their own. Whatever they had, they submitted to God an it became available for the Kingdom.
The church was not an economic utopia, but a body of Christians, freely associating and freely giving themselves to God through Jesus Christ.
Our lives are more complicated today. We have financial advisors and career paths, personal assets and discretionary time. Our day planners are filled with events that we must juggle to “make time” for ourselves.
We have carefully detailed maps of our futures and we wonder where the wonder went.
There was a freshness and awe in the early church that came from the loose fist.
Those believers did not hold things tightly in their hands and God was able to use their flexibility and generosity. So He can and will use us today if we will rediscover the wonder.
----------------------------------------------------------- Here is the scripture:
Acts 4:32-5:11 (NRSV):
Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common.
With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.
There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.
There was a Levite, a native of Cyprus, Joseph, to whom the apostles gave the name Barnabas (which means "son of encouragement"). He sold a field that belonged to him, then brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet.
But a man named Ananias, with the consent of his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property; with his wife's knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles' feet.
"Ananias," Peter asked, "why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, were not the proceeds at your disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You did not lie to us but to God!"
Now when Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard of it. The young men came and wrapped up his body, then carried him out and buried him.
After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. Peter said to her, "Tell me whether you and your husband sold the land for such and such a price."
And she said, "Yes, that was the price."
Then Peter said to her, "How is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out."
Immediately she fell down at his feet and died. When the young men came in they found her dead, so they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. And great fear seized the whole church and all who heard of these things.
Any kind of supremacy of one people over another denies Christ.
I am struggling with an emotion that is rare for me when applied to people and their frailties: disappointment.
It is rare because I am both realistic and naive.
My realism is powered by a healthy understanding of sin and it widens my embrace, acceptance, and understanding of human frailties and flaws. Mostly, it causes me to welcome, into the arms of friendship, people like me who struggle with broken places in their lives.
My naivete stems from a less Calvinistic attitude, that there is a pervasive stream of well-meaning compassion in most people, especially Christians.
It is an assumption that when push comes to shove, people who love Jesus, love their fellow human beings from up close and from afar.
It has made it hard for me to accept that more than a few Christians can be cruel, cold, harsh, and judgmental when confronted with human suffering.
It has led me to believe that when confronted with the Bible on one and hand and facts on the other, truth will be embraced and attitudes such as racism, superiority, and indifference will start to disappear. They will stop using their warped theology and crippled hermeneutical tools to justify supremacy, suspicion, or superiority over people who ancestry, heritage, beliefs, cultures, histories, countries of origin, languages, or skin color is different from their.
They would acknowledge our heritage of injustice against the children of enslaved peoples from Africa, original citizens of our continent, Asian workers who built our railroads, Japanese detainees during WWII, immigrants, refugees, people of Latin descent, and on and on and on.
It seems that I may have been wrong and it is disappointing.
I am still trying the figure out the dissonance.
I will zero in on racism because I was raised in an time and environment where its stench was strong and putrid while its basic premises were being challenged. I had hoped it would have dissipated into a fog of forgetfulness by now, but with explicit, implicit, and complicit consent, it is showing itself and revealing that it never went away.
I have observed this: It takes a large minority and sometimes a majority to perpetuate racism. That will always include some people who ought to know better and do better.
The three ways it happens are telling and to of them leave people wiggle room to plausible deniability, distance, and self-justification.
Explicit participation in racism is where we initiate the words, deeds, or attitudes plainly and without ambiguity. This is where many people stop in defining what is racist.
Implicit participation in racism is more subtle. It is sometime ambiguous. We imply and support attitudes, deeds, and words that have racist effect and undertones, but we assign them different motives. We support the darkest expressions of racism by defending indirectly.
Complicit participation in racism can involve a range of words, attitudes, and actions. It can be giving material support to racist causes or simply and blindly benefiting from those systems without questioning them. It can also be silence. We support through silence and out of some misguided attitude of neutrality.
The first step toward overcoming this will be a desire to do so and a recognition of the sin of racism. The next step will be honesty and inclusion of oneself in whatever category of participation fits. The next will be confession to whomever confession is due. The final step will be a process of ongoing repentance and accountability.
In the meantime, we must all be vigilant to ruthlessly expose it as the insidious evil it is and name it as it raises its ugly head.
I never said it would be easy, but don't disappoint me.
I hate racial slurs. They make my skin crawl. I do not use them or allow them in my presence. Yet, even living in a non-homogeneous home, I have heard them.
Frankly, I do not respond very well.
Has this happened to you?
After a lifetime a modeling acceptance, respect, and racial justice, you hear a kid you've raised using terms on the phone or video game to refer to people that you would have never allowed to be used - terms that would gotten you in serious trouble as a youngster.
Immediately, you intervene and the conversation gets very serious.You are horrified."Where did you learn this? Why did you say it? Don't you know that ... ?"
Let me say, it is not just race, but characterizations of people with disabilities or other identities.
The truth is that the child or teen could have learned it anywhere -- but it came out of the culture, free-floating, peer-driven, sin-infested.
I know know some kids get it from their parents. I am not talking about them.
Nor am I talking about those fully infected with bigotry.
I am talking about culture and communal sin.
Everyone wants to fit in, especially kids. The warped nature inside of us demands that, in order for us to fit in, someone must be excluded. We pick pick those folks that are most vulnerable or under-represented and exclude them.
That is the root of systemic racism, class-ism, and every other form of exclusive-ism.
One group benefits; the other pays.
When it emerges with all of its ugliness, we want to sort it out individually by determining who is or is not a racist or some other form of "exceptionalist."
For instance, a recent event in the news shows young people taunting an older man. Other footage is introduced to suggest he provoked it. Still other footage indicates that he did that after a prior provocation. Still other reports claim it was all a media set-up.
Now people are defending by attacking the older man and the younger man, trying to determine their motives or culpability.
I suggest that it is not the point and somewhat regret seizing upon that incident to make the point as if it depended on one anecdotal incident.
The issue is not who is and who is not.
The issue is that it is.
Racism is systemic. The language, assumptions, attitudes, systems, patterns, biases, and emotions are out there and even land in good homes where tolerance has always lived.
I am far more concerned with the environment where it can happen and when it does, with the sides we choose to defend, ignore, or condemn.
That does not exclude our need for self-examination and personal repentance.
In the same way, I don't want to see some kids become the symbol of the sin and get locked into it as their identity. Kids all have a lot of growing to do and can change quickly with perspective.
Nor do I want to see a respected elder defined by a moment.
I really do not want to talk about the people. I want to talk about the environment where this can happen.
One draw-back, theologically, is the rugged individualism thread that runs through our interpretation of sin, redemption, and forgiveness and focused on the individual heart. I do believe in that theology, but not only in that theology.
Many, who are not personally, or individually, consciously, racist, still drink from the common wells of racism and participate in its systemic evil.
Corporate sin infects corporate thinking and acting.
That is the opportunity for conversation that memes sometimes introduce.
It is unfortunate that we have to get stuck on the circumstance and I take my share of responsibility for that.
But the question remains: What kind of culture do we want to shape?
In the same Psalm, 119, the same singer can say, "My flesh trembles with dread of you; I am afraid of your judgments," and also, "I do not shrink from your judgments, because you yourself have taught me."
I would say, "Dichotomy" and "Look that up in your Funk and Wagnalls," but the latter went out of business. So, here is the Oxford definition:
"a division or contrast between two things that are or are represented as being opposed or entirely different."
The answer is in the balance and the tension and both are found within the heart of the singer of songs.
They are balanced by love, love of God which arises from the furnace of fear and reverence for God, purified and sanctified as well as love of the law. Both are refined by awe, wonder, and jaw-dropping amazement that is described by and experienced as fear.
Yet, it is not a fear that paralyzes nor repels. It beckons. It draws. It is an irresistible invitation to the love of God that the psalmist describes throughout the cantata that is Psalm 119.
Thus, he can resolve the dichotomy with these lyrics, "How sweet are your words to my taste!, they are sweeter than honey to my mouth."
He exclaims, "Oh, how I love your law! All the day long it is in my mind."
Is this disingenuous then?
"My flesh trembles with dread of you; I am afraid of your judgments."
Is it a contradiction? Is it a symptom of ambivalence? It is a disconnection and reconnection cycle with the realities of one's own emotions?
No. It is balance.
It is the capacity to travel along the circle of truth and view it from degrees, but also, to step back and view the whole. The whole is love and welcome, and well being.
One cannot chart one's path in life from one degree of present circumstances and experience, It requires light from beyond ourselves.
I can say, "I am deeply troubled," and then pray, in the same breath, "preserve my life, O Lord, according to your word."
Why? Because:
"Your word is a lantern to my feet and a light upon my path."
So much can be said about the hiring process, writing the, knowing what you need, getting the timing right, writing the job description, reading resumes, selecting finalists, arranging interviews, evaluating interviews, narrowing your search, and negotiating.
No wonder so many organizations contract with outside agencies to do much of the leg work and filtering.
However, you alone and your organization, know who and what you need.
Mostly you need doers, but you also need motivators, leaders, administrators, thinkers, and dreamers.
Sometimes, you need a voice.
You are looming for a look, a sound, a style, a face. You are looking for someone relatable whose greatest gifts are taking your ideas, your corporate culture, your values, and your message and communicating them to the world.
Where do you find such a person?
Good question, but that is not the hard part. The hard part is sorting through all the possibilities to find the person who can believe in your organization and be trusted by the public. You need someone who can fit into your culture every day and not simply be a performer.
You need a participant and a partner. You need sincerity and a purpose driven team member whose ego will not supersede the mission.
You may not need the person in my spoof. In fact, you likely do not, at least not on every point.
He is a caricature I observed after a night of watching YouTube videos. But if you dig deeper than the obvious sexism and other characteristics, you will find some keys.
That person sounds like someone who is aware the subject being addressed. The guy in the videos pronounced the words correctly and spoke with comfort.
The person puts everyone at ease. Style is easy. Vocal tone is pleasant. Speaking is conversational. It invites listening.
Facial expressions are pleasant and welcoming. This does not have to be a fashion model or a movies star in appearance. In fact, anyone can dress up their face with the right kinds of smiles.
There is a dignity in the way this person moves and speaks. There is poise and good posture.
This person dresses the part, respectfully, tastefully, and modestly.
These are things you can observe quickly. You can even arrange auditions that do not look like auditions. That is what interviews are.
Ask a lot of questions. This is a good time to check references. Ask the public if this person has already had a track record of working with or speaking to the public. Do your research. Read what your candidate has written for other organizations. Listen to recordings of candid meetings.
Most important will be your casual conversations with this individual. This is often a "what you see is what you get" person for a a position where that is needed.
Take your time and get the right public face and voice for your organization. That person will be part of your branding for the duration of his or her employment.
The Rolling Stones, in the 60s, captured a universal emotion in a song, “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction.”
Do you need a reminder of it?
Jesus addressed the same notion in John 6:35:
“I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst…“
In Exodus 16, there are thousands of Hebrew refugees from Egypt in the desert wanting food. They wanted it and needed it.
In II Samuel 11 and 12, we see David, who wanted Bathsheba. His wants had some basis in need, but it was a misplaced desire for satisfaction.
Later, David wants and needs grace. His prayer ascends in Psalm 51.
In Ephesians 4, Paul reminds us of the satisfaction that comes from being part of a family of faith in Jesus that lives a life of genuine humility, community, and giftedness, exercising those gifts in service to God and one another.
Jesus is the Bread of Life without whom we slowly whither into lifeless shells of animated emptiness. He is the food that sustains. He is the source of our energy, the giver of nurture, and the fount of health. He feeds us and we grow.
He has always been the bread of life. Through him, the Father created all things and through him, all things have come into existence and continue to exist.
And he is the bread that is broken for us. Not only does he impart life to us, but he lays down his very life for us.
He is the Bread of Life.
Jesus Christ is the true source of fulfillment.
Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. - John 6:34
In Bible-talk, bread is food. It is the full spectrum of nutrition we need to live and the spiritual food that keeps us going within.
Jesus taught much about bread, verbally, symbolically, even miraculously.
He multiplied bread and fed the multitudes.
He said he had bread to eat of which others were not aware. It was the bread of his mission that was satisfying and filling. His life work was his bread.
He taught about leaven.
He taught that he was the Bread of Life.
He passed out bread at the table and associated the breaking of that bread with the breaking of his body in sacrifice.
He told us to eat our bread in remembrance of him.
Bread is common, but Jesus used it to teach uncommon truths.
"For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world."
When the disciples began to understand this lesson, they pleaded with him, "Lord, evermore give us this bread."
They knew they needed it, and therefore, they wanted it. They craved it. They yearned for it. They knew that they would starve without it. They would whither. They would fall. Theirs was the deepest sort of hunger.
When our yearning is that deep, we shall be filled.
Hungry, I come, my God, to your table. Empty I come, ready to eat. Famished, I offer what I am not able To give. So, I fall at your feet.
Christ is the bread for which I am craving. Christ is the food that alone makes me whole. Christ is the life and my life needs saving. I come to Christ to eat. Oh, fill my soul.
John 6:24-35 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.
When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?”
Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.”
Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”
Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us, then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Jesus takes us further and deeper. He does this in answer to their very shallow questions. They ask for signs. Jesus points to Himself.
He is the source of satisfaction.
He is the source of purpose.
He is the source of soul nurture.
He gives eternal life.
Looking at both of these passages, and slightly ahead, the observation can be made as an acronym for BREAD.
B - Behavior flows from being and believing. It is Jesus' being and our believe in who He is that transforms who we are and how we behave/work.
R - Receiving the gift indicates that He has received us. Jesus is the Father's gift to us and we are the Father's gift to Jesus. When we receive him, he receives us and never loses us. They asked for him to give them the bread, but after he explained it, they were not so sure about receiving it.
E - Eating is what we do with bread. There will be more on this next week. However, today, the message is that we taste eternity and are nourished by our relationship with Jesus to the extent to which we eat, which is to say, internalize his presence in our lives.
A - Agree with Him as to who He is. Attend to His words. Anticipate his promises. Announce them. In so doing, we will be involved with him in His work. If we are what we eat, in this case, it means total alignment with Jesus Christ.
D - Decide that Jesus is the bread of life and that He is all the food you need for living life in the Spirit in the midst of time.
Those are some glimpses and thoughts to propel your own insights into Jesus, the Bread of Life
"Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval." - John 6:27, (NIV)
" Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness' - Isaiah 55:1-2
Then said they unto him, "What shall we do, that we might work the works of God" Jesus answered and said unto them, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." - John 6:28-29
Either work is easy, or belief is hard work.
I am going to presume that both are true.
Belief-work is what produces lasting satisfaction in our lives. This is the preface to Jesus' teachings on the bread of life. Because people are hungering for more, Jesus is addressing that hunger and providing himself as the source of "food that endures to eternal life."
So far, they have labored with frustration and only temporary satisfaction. There is a need in every human to produce something of lasting value. Futility is the fruit of meaningless work. Jesus offers more.
Belief is not a passive thing. The word for "believe here is "pisteuhte," translated, "to keep on believing." I have always been intrigued that the root of the word is used for our modern word, "pistol."
Pistols launch projectiles into open space and belief launches our lives and efforts to a place beyond ourselves.
The work of God is to believe. Once we accept that, we can begin to learn what it means to believe. We can be taught by God what the implications of living faith really are. We can begin to be shaped by our beliefs as they take shape within us.
As a starting point (as well as an ending point), Jesus gives us focus, to believe in him whom the Father has sent.
After a miraculous meal, the crowds worked very hard to find Jesus.
He gently questioned their motives to get them to do the same about themselves.
Your harried, frantic efforts to feed yourselves are futilely flawed, he seems to suggest.
Everything in which you invest your time, energy, and resources is already in the process of spoiling.
There is, however, a food that produces eternal satisfaction.
Place your focus there.
Thus, Jesus introduces a lengthy discussion of the bread of life. He started by stimulating their hunger and thirst to hear more.
What does it take for God to make us aware of our profound hunger for more?
Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images
What does faith say about human dignity, liberation, the value of each person and each people group? does it condone or condemn bondage, manipulation, and exploitation?
Does it create a ruckus because it liberates people? Does it threaten power structures and tyrants? If so, that is a good sign.
When Paul's entourage showed up in one village, they found a girl being used as a fortune teller and abused as a means of wealth by some greedy men. They spoke a word of liberation to her soul and with her new found freedom, she became useless to them. This enraged them.
Pimps do not like that sort of thing.
"When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.”
The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods."
This little slave girl had powers, but she was powerless. Paul and Silas spoke deliverance to her and she was released from the powers that possessed her. That did not sit well with those who profited by keeping her in bondage.
She had special "gifts" that brought them benefits, but it was at her expense. Now she was free and they did not like that.
There are people in the world who profit, knowingly or, sometimes, unknowingly, from the oppression of others who are in bondage.
When the message of faith, as good news, starts to liberate people, the systems that oppress go into spasm.
It is not universally popular to set people free. It has economic consequences that threaten the oppressors.
This has been a reality from day-1 and has its manifestation in every generation and context.
The details change, but the reality is always the same.
"Quick question," my friends say as a preface. Absolutely. Ask away, but here is a warning, "Have you ever known me to give a quick answer?
For instance, "Where do you want that box?"
"Hmmm ... there are multiple shades of meaning to the question and numerous possibilities available with multiplied consequences not to mention the unknown unintended ones. Let us explore ...."
"Yawn, never mind."
But I come to God this morning with such quick questions and quick prayers and He really understands all of these contingencies, possibilities, opportunities, consequences, and unfolding repercussions resonating from one stroke of a tuning fork of choice. And I want a quick answer to a quick question with a quick fix.
Slow down, Tom! Are you a "laborer together with God (read: partner)" or are you just looking for a handout or a mindless assignment?
God has called us to participate in His kingdom and I would suggest that such participation might require allowing some time on my calendar for a few longer meetings.
Thank God He is open to quick questions and answers because He is so patient with me. He gave us Psalm 100, but He also gave us Psalm 119.
As I have taught some of my bible study students to say and do when they get a chew-able biblical vitamin:
We are thinkers and doers. Our doing must be informed and evaluated by our thinking. Otherwise, it is, by definition, thoughtless.
We are also led by thinkers and we are leaders as well.
Most of our unwise actions can be traced to unwise thinking.
We can and should criticize leaders. Whatever our or their affiliations/convictions, I believe they all believe most of them want what is best for the country. Granted, we all have a mix of motivations — some of which we are not aware.
Perhaps my time could be best spent praying for them, encouraging them to do their best, and believing that they will look each other in the eye and see the best in one another on the road to agreement.
At the same time, I have my own challenges and so do you.
How about your own decision making challenges?
What about your need to lead?
Every day we must wrestle with questions of truth, integrity, and credibility. I have used the THINK acronym before. I think it is time to pull it out again.
How to Think Critically and Strategically
T
Topic – We must have something to think about.
Technique – We must cultivate processing skills.
Timeliness – We must think in the context of our times.
H
Hours – It takes time to think strategically.
Honesty - With truth as the object, brutal honesty is required.
Holistic – Our thinking must embrace multiple concerns.
I
Intellect – Thinking always engages the mind. Mental capacity must be nurtured.
Integration – Ideas, convictions, and paradoxes must be incorporated in the stew.
Inspiration – The spiritual dimension is necessary. The Spirit illumines our thinking.
N
Negation Mechanism – We need to weed out irrelevancies.
Need-Based – We are thinking in order to solve a problem.
Next – Strategic thinking takes us to the next level.
K
Knowledge – It is primarily a tool more than an outcome.
Koinonia - Fellowship is seen in collaborative thinking.
Kerygma – It must come under the authority of ultimate truth.
I have a longer version of this and a webinar to go with it, but I think you can take it and do something with it --- if you THINK about it.
" The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord strengthened King Eglon of Moab against Israel, because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord." - Judges 3:12:
Don't single out the Israelite family based on this scripture and history.
They are simply a prototype of all of us.
We are given this record so that we can relate and so that we can track the mercy of God to take a people of purpose and keep forgiving. restoring, and recommissioning consistently, persistently, and repeatedly through time.
This is the story of the relentless love of God. Judgment is not the flip side of this. It is included in it - not as a paradox, but as an exclamation mark because, throughout the Hebrew scriptures, God's judgment of His people was designed to lead to repentance and renewal of the covenant.
For that reason, we ought to shun sin and embrace the discipline of a God who passionately and sacrificially draws us into a relationship that is on His terms, knowing that His terms ooze with love, grace, and mercy ... even when it hurts.
Judges 3:12:
" The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord strengthened King Eglon of Moab against Israel, because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord."
What causes a thought, in passing, to linger and influence our thinking for a day, a year, or a lifetime?
What slows it down so that it can have an impact? How do we harness those thoughts to propel deeper and broader thinking on almost any subject? Do we sit with it a while? Do we look under the rug? Do we mull it over? Do we ask it questions?
Through the years I have collected short topics, quotes, excerpts from myself and others. Social media posts, notes on napkins, little reminders of words, triggers, and ideas have been inscribed with pen, pencil, or digital tools to remember, reflect, and renew my thinking.
Some days, like today, I pull them out, put them in a document, look them over, share and reshare, recollect, and redistribute.
Is there anything here that triggers anything for you?
Never assume that two unrelated thoughts are unrelated. Never assume randomness. Explore and connect, Be astounded.
"Why fit in when you were born to stand out?" - Dr. Suess
“It’s the job that’s never started as takes longest to finish.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Lord of the Rings"
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Lord of the Rings"
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door…You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Lord of the Rings"
“A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.” - C.S. Lewis
"God isn't an editor, He's a creator. He's not looking for typos in our lives, He celebrates our joy in them." - Bob Goff
"Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness." - Desmond Tutu
"Peace is not a destination; it is a way. Not an end, but a cause." - Nicole Lewis
"Every positive change begins with a clear, unequivocal decision that you are going to either do something or stop doing something" - John Assaraf
"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do" —Leonardo da Vinci
The single greatest -people skill' is a highly developed and authentic interest in the *other* person." - Bob Burg
"I dwell in possibility." - Emily Dickinson
"Emotional maturity is the ability to keep your focus on the other's feelings even as you acknowledge and honor your own." - Bob Burg
"Worship... is not something a person experiences, it is something we do, regardless of how we feel about it." - Eugene Peterson
" Have regard for the covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence. Let not the downtrodden turn back in shame; let the poor and needy praise your name." -Psalm 74:20-21 ESV
"Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent." - Psalm 71:9 ESV
"...I fear that for too many Christians, 'personal salvation' has become another personal consumer product (like personal computers, a personal journal, personal time, etc.) and Christianity has become its marketing program." - -Brian Mclaren, "A Generous Orthodoxy
"Forgiveness without conviction is not forgiveness; it is irresponsible toleration. It doesn't lead to reconciliation and peace; it leads to chaos." -Brian Mclaren, "A Generous Orthodoxy
"The Cross of Christ means that the salvation of God goes deeper down than the deepest depths of iniquity man can commit. No man can get beyond the reach of Jesus: He made a way back to the throne of God from the very heart of hell by His tremendous Atonement." --Oswald Chambers
"You can accept Jesus, you can reject Jesus, but you cannot reasonably ignore him." - M. Scott Peck
“No man can adequately reach and explain a single word of God with all his words.” --Brennan Manning
"When you are offended at any man's fault, turn to yourself and study your own failings. Then you will forget your anger" — Epictetus
-----------------------
The only thing that is consistently predictable in the universe is the consistent persistence of chaos...
And in that, we behold the emergence of divine order at a magnitude that stretches our minds ...
Beyond their capacity.
-----------------------
Just when you think you have stomped out and snuffed out the good, God has the last word.
"God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified." - Acts 2:36b
-----------------------
When you pray and work for peace, you might actually get some. Take what you can get and keep praying and working. You may be able to partner with God for a generation or two.
And the land had rest forty years." - Judges 5:31
-----------------------
One day God did something new, dramatic, and unexplainable.
That means, there was not a box to put it in with a neat little definition to label it.
The response divided the onlookers into amazed gawkers and name-callers.
Now, the gawkers had all sorts of possibilities going forward, with a full range of options, choices, and opportunities.
The name-callers had few. They were staking our their territory through fear, contempt, or prejudice to one end: that by defining the new group and movement and by explaining its motivation and empowerment, they could shut off all chances of understanding it or embracing the truth of it.
I don't suppose this could happen today; could it?
" And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking said, “'They are filled with new wine.'” -Acts 2:12-13 ESV
-----------------------
Incarnation is hard. Incarnational ministry and presence is harder still.
It was hard for Jesus.
It is hard for us.
Our eyes must adjust to seeing from everyone's point of view, feeling the pain of all sides, calling forth intercession, glimpsing divine and eternal perspective, knowing that others do not and cannot know and feel what you know and feel.
God did it and does it and invites us to share a piece of the action.
That depolarizes us and unnerves us and takes away all sorts of safe hiding places where we might retreat. Jesus had no name that any could understand to define or confine him, so he most often called himself, "Son of Man."
That is incarnation and it calls for identification with all suffering and allows for no comfort zone with which to label oneself.
-----------------------
What is common ground and why do we need to cultivate it? Finding common ground never means having to surrender the ground where you feel you must stand based upon principle. It is finding and recognizing the ground you share that overlaps the irreducible minimums of core beliefs. More so, it is recognizing and respecting the human beings who share that ground and finding language to communicate commonalities as well as uniqueness.
For the "good-news-ist" (evangelist) it means finding and exercising an opportunity, with integrity, to communicate our good news and listening to the message of the other. The antithesis is answering questions our neighbor has not asked or assuming presuppositions that they do not hold. Our words fall on deaf ears and interactions create an atmosphere that is opposite of the Kingdom of God.
-----------------------
God of hope in the midst of explosive sounds around us, may we refuse to be broken by breaking news.
May we only be broken by Your tender touch upon our hearts and the brokenness of those for whom You are broken.
In our own brokenness, may we not be shaken.
As we are dismantled by time and circumstance, may we be reassembled as a people who are useful in your mission of healing and grace.
May we remain pliable and reliable, gracious and sweet even when the world around us is filled with bitterness and the stench of decay.
We would be all that we can be and more that Your reputation for putting people together would continue to be a testament of grace and possibility.
-----------------------
There is no substitute for thinking.
Feelings pass; urges do what urges do
And are gone.
How and what we think is cumulative and
Restorative
and
Transformative
and
Alive in ways we cannot describe.
We think and we are as the Frenchman said.
We put on a mind greater than our own a Romans Rabbi once said
and
We think on things that are wholesome and good.
Think
Because, in thinking, we begin to know
and
In knowing, we begin to grow
and
In growing we begin to become
and
In becoming, we beget more
and
We are fully alive.
The idea is the logos and it is from the beginning
What causes a thought, in passing, to linger and influence our thinking for a day, a year, or a lifetime?
What slows it down so that it can have an impact? How do we harness those thoughts to propel deeper and broader thinking on almost any subject? Do we sit with it a while? Do we look under the rug? Do we mull it over? Do we ask it questions?
Through the years I have collected short topics, quotes, excerpts from myself and others. Social media posts, notes on napkins, little reminders of words, triggers, and ideas have been inscribed with pen, pencil, or digital tools to remember, reflect, and renew my thinking.
Some days, like today, I pull them out, put them in a document, look them over, share and reshare, recollect, and redistribute.
Is there anything here that triggers anything for you?
Never assume that two unrelated thoughts are unrelated. Never assume randomness. Explore and connect, Be astounded.
"Why fit in when you were born to stand out?" - Dr. Suess
“It’s the job that’s never started as takes longest to finish.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Lord of the Rings"
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Lord of the Rings"
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door…You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.” - J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Lord of the Rings"
“A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.” - C.S. Lewis
"God isn't an editor, He's a creator. He's not looking for typos in our lives, He celebrates our joy in them." - Bob Goff
"Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness." - Desmond Tutu
"Peace is not a destination; it is a way. Not an end, but a cause." - Nicole Lewis
"Every positive change begins with a clear, unequivocal decision that you are going to either do something or stop doing something" - John Assaraf
"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do" —Leonardo da Vinci
The single greatest -people skill' is a highly developed and authentic interest in the *other* person." - Bob Burg
"I dwell in possibility." - Emily Dickinson
"Emotional maturity is the ability to keep your focus on the other's feelings even as you acknowledge and honor your own." - Bob Burg
"Worship... is not something a person experiences, it is something we do, regardless of how we feel about it." - Eugene Peterson
" Have regard for the covenant, for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence. Let not the downtrodden turn back in shame; let the poor and needy praise your name." -Psalm 74:20-21 ESV
"Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent." - Psalm 71:9 ESV
"...I fear that for too many Christians, 'personal salvation' has become another personal consumer product (like personal computers, a personal journal, personal time, etc.) and Christianity has become its marketing program." - -Brian Mclaren, "A Generous Orthodoxy
"Forgiveness without conviction is not forgiveness; it is irresponsible toleration. It doesn't lead to reconciliation and peace; it leads to chaos." -Brian Mclaren, "A Generous Orthodoxy
"The Cross of Christ means that the salvation of God goes deeper down than the deepest depths of iniquity man can commit. No man can get beyond the reach of Jesus: He made a way back to the throne of God from the very heart of hell by His tremendous Atonement." --Oswald Chambers
"You can accept Jesus, you can reject Jesus, but you cannot reasonably ignore him." - M. Scott Peck
“No man can adequately reach and explain a single word of God with all his words.” --Brennan Manning
"When you are offended at any man's fault, turn to yourself and study your own failings. Then you will forget your anger" — Epictetus
-----------------------
The only thing that is consistently predictable in the universe is the consistent persistence of chaos...
And in that, we behold the emergence of divine order at a magnitude that stretches our minds ...
Beyond their capacity.
-----------------------
Just when you think you have stomped out and snuffed out the good, God has the last word.
"God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified." - Acts 2:36b
-----------------------
When you pray and work for peace, you might actually get some. Take what you can get and keep praying and working. You may be able to partner with God for a generation or two.
And the land had rest forty years." - Judges 5:31
-----------------------
One day God did something new, dramatic, and unexplainable.
That means, there was not a box to put it in with a neat little definition to label it.
The response divided the onlookers into amazed gawkers and name-callers.
Now, the gawkers had all sorts of possibilities going forward, with a full range of options, choices, and opportunities.
The name-callers had few. They were staking our their territory through fear, contempt, or prejudice to one end: that by defining the new group and movement and by explaining its motivation and empowerment, they could shut off all chances of understanding it or embracing the truth of it.
I don't suppose this could happen today; could it?
" And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking said, “'They are filled with new wine.'” -Acts 2:12-13 ESV
-----------------------
Incarnation is hard. Incarnational ministry and presence is harder still.
It was hard for Jesus.
It is hard for us.
Our eyes must adjust to seeing from everyone's point of view, feeling the pain of all sides, calling forth intercession, glimpsing divine and eternal perspective, knowing that others do not and cannot know and feel what you know and feel.
God did it and does it and invites us to share a piece of the action.
That depolarizes us and unnerves us and takes away all sorts of safe hiding places where we might retreat. Jesus had no name that any could understand to define or confine him, so he most often called himself, "Son of Man."
That is incarnation and it calls for identification with all suffering and allows for no comfort zone with which to label oneself.
-----------------------
What is common ground and why do we need to cultivate it? Finding common ground never means having to surrender the ground where you feel you must stand based upon principle. It is finding and recognizing the ground you share that overlaps the irreducible minimums of core beliefs. More so, it is recognizing and respecting the human beings who share that ground and finding language to communicate commonalities as well as uniqueness.
For the "good-news-ist" (evangelist) it means finding and exercising an opportunity, with integrity, to communicate our good news and listening to the message of the other. The antithesis is answering questions our neighbor has not asked or assuming presuppositions that they do not hold. Our words fall on deaf ears and interactions create an atmosphere that is opposite of the Kingdom of God.
-----------------------
God of hope in the midst of explosive sounds around us, may we refuse to be broken by breaking news.
May we only be broken by Your tender touch upon our hearts and the brokenness of those for whom You are broken.
In our own brokenness, may we not be shaken.
As we are dismantled by time and circumstance, may we be reassembled as a people who are useful in your mission of healing and grace.
May we remain pliable and reliable, gracious and sweet even when the world around us is filled with bitterness and the stench of decay.
We would be all that we can be and more that Your reputation for putting people together would continue to be a testament of grace and possibility.
-----------------------
There is no substitute for thinking.
Feelings pass; urges do what urges do
And are gone.
How and what we think is cumulative and
Restorative
and
Transformative
and
Alive in ways we cannot describe.
We think and we are as the Frenchman said.
We put on a mind greater than our own a Romans Rabbi once said
and
We think on things that are wholesome and good.
Think
Because, in thinking, we begin to know
and
In knowing, we begin to grow
and
In growing we begin to become
and
In becoming, we beget more
and
We are fully alive.
The idea is the logos and it is from the beginning
The adjective, רַבָּֽה׃ informs the verb for being moved and the adverb, "not," creating a sense that while we might be shaken, we shall not fall completely over. We may lose our balance a bit, but we regain it. Our rock and salvation are strong even when we are not.
"For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken." - Psalm 62:1-2 ESV
God is described in contrast to the outer turmoil and oppression we face in the world. Against the character and activity of God, our attackers are immobilized and neutralized.
God is my rock and my salvation,
God is my stronghold.
God is my safety.
God is my honor.
God is my refuge.
God is my hope.
God is the fullness of steadfast love.
Everything else that is in opposition is terminal and , ultimately, impotent. The enemies of human souls will soon have their taunts silenced. Their arrows will fall to the earth. Their ability to kill and rob people of life will end at the grave. Life and love shall prevail over death and hatred.
Riches will fail.
We've lived long enough to know that power can be stripped bare and become as lowly as the fleeting breath of the ordinary soul.
Power, wealth, position, and prestige are rather frail.
The ability to buy favor will fade.
Riches do not last. Major companies, power-brokers of influence, and empires turn to dust daily and file papers declaring themselves bankrupt.
Trust in the power to extort will disappoint.
Vain hope will devastate.
Riches will fail.
Set not you hearts on them.
" Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath. Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them." - Psalm 62:9-10 ESV
Let us return to where we began:
First, we get quiet.
Then, in the silence, we wait.
It is for God, alone, we wait.
Why must I be silent?
For one thing, I must be silent to hear. The cacophony of sounds in my head and heart are drowning out the whispers of God to my spirit. I need to shut up and listen patiently to the silence and in the silence.
To teach myself patience and allow God to teach me patience, I wait silently. I wait while God is silent, in the silence, with God. I am listening, observing, and settling my soul.
I am silent because I have nothing to say,. I have nothing to add to the subject. I am silent because any noise I make at this time will be a distraction just like the distractions around me. I am silent because anything I say right now will be either speculation or irrelevant. At worse, it could be completely false.
I am silent because I believe that God will speak and act and settle what needs to be settled.
I am silent because I am confident that God gets the last word no matter what I say or do and not matter what any enemy says or does.
I am silent and I will not be shaken.
For God alone my soul in silence waits; * from him comes my salvation.
He alone is my rock and my salvation, * my stronghold, so that I shall not be greatly shaken.
How long will you assail me to crush me, all of you together, * as if you were a leaning fence, a toppling wall?
They seek only to bring me down from my place of honor; * lies are their chief delight.
They bless with their lips, * but in their hearts they curse.
For God alone my soul in silence waits; * truly, my hope is in him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation, * my stronghold, so that I shall not be shaken.
In God is my safety and my honor; * God is my strong rock and my refuge.
Put your trust in him always, O people, * pour out your hearts before him, for God is our refuge.
Those of high degree are but a fleeting breath, * even those of low estate cannot be trusted.
On the scales they are lighter than a breath, * all of them together.
Put no trust in extortion; in robbery take no empty pride; * though wealth increase, set not your heart upon it.
God has spoken once, twice have I heard it, * that power belongs to God.
Steadfast love is yours, O Lord, * for you repay everyone according to his deeds.
Something inevitable happens when the good news liberates people from their bondage. The profits of their masters dry up and the masters cry out. If God's people are bringing liberation to the lives of people, powers that be and industries of oppressive commerce will declare,
"These men ... are disturbing our city."
And they will be correct .... hopefully.
"But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city." (Acts 16:19-20 ESV)
When I think of my early ministry, I am embarrassed by the extent to which I associated "busy-ness" with holiness or discipleship. That embarrassment is dwarfed by the extent to which controlling, imposing pastors and churches, I have observed, have sought to regulate every aspect of their members' thinking, behavior, and calendars.
Do not get me wrong: I desire each of these things to come under the direct Lordship of Jesus through the Holy Spirit's guidance in my life. I am talking about control by leaders and human institutions.
Contrast that level of dysfunctional, cult-like control with the attitude of the Jerusalem church not to overburden the new converts to the Jesus Movement who were coming from among the Gentiles.
They would not have to submit to centuries of traditions that were not their own. They would not have to go through the rituals of becoming part of a distinct people group or culture in order to follow Jesus.
Those traditions would be, for them, the backdrop of the good news they were receiving. they would be meaningful, instructive, and rich. They were to be appreciated and the sensitivities of their brothers and sisters would demand respect.
Yet, they were free and unburdened by any burden except that of the one whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light.
That is the message I receive today from:
Acts 15:22-35
Then the apostles and the elders, with the consent of the whole church, decided to choose men from among their members and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers, with the following letter: "The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the believers of Gentile origin in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings. Since we have heard that certain persons who have gone out from us, though with no instructions from us, have said things to disturb you and have unsettled your minds, we have decided unanimously to choose representatives and send them to you, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth. For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to impose on you no further burden than these essentials: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell." So they were sent off and went down to Antioch. When they gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter. When its members read it, they rejoiced at the exhortation. Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers. After they had been there for some time, they were sent off in peace by the believers to those who had sent them. But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, and there, with many others, they taught and proclaimed the word of the Lord.
They come when they come. While we can sometimes create them, that is not always true. Furthermore, we miss most of the opportunities that pass our way.
Since an opportunity might arise from the mist and materialize, catching us off-guard, we must be ready.
Our readiness may take a lifetime to develop. We train for that one moment where we can make an historical difference.
A great example is the life and legacy of Jesse Owens.
Sometimes I brood over inconsequential trivia. Sometimes I wrestle with big questions, issues, and calling. I cannot lead someone else's tribe. I cannot even throw stones at it or its leaders. I really will not because stones are always reciprocated back and forth and, as they fall, they only build walls. I think we ought to be walking in the direction of more projectiles that can hurt us with nothing in our hands. Authentic church is not about protecting ourselves from attack.
Authentic church welcomes outside criticism and neutralizes it with love and truth.
That takes courage and conviction.
Authentic church is about being the body of Jesus in the world the way Jesus was and is in the world. I can criticize my tribe because they are my stewardship, because they listen, because I love them, and because I believe in what they can be.
So --- I may have a word to say about decaying and declining elements of culture, but understand me --- they are the backdrop of our discipleship. We are not shaped into who we must be , we cannot be shaped, by our reactions to culture.
What we are becoming, by grace, if we are so becoming, is what we were becoming yesterday and the day before. The contrasts look different depending upon the shapes and colors in the background, but we are who we are becoming ... not just what we are and were.
We --- the people of God, individually and in community.
Now ... my brood :
How do I get that across and involve more people in being authentic church and shaping our lives by the example, presence, redemption, and life-giving power of God in Jesus Christ?
Easy answers --- not needed ... simple intention, affirmed .....
“As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions.” — Romans 14:1, ESV
We sometimes pounce on the weak with our own opinions.
They are struggling to believe, to find their places in God’s purpose, to discover some definition of themselves in Him, and to understand His calling.
Then we start scratching at some area of weakness or prodding at some point of contention, sanding the rough spots of their growing edges. We discourage them with our quarreling and crush their spirits with our compulsion for absolute accuracy over every fine point.
It is as if we do not believe that the one who began a good work in them is capable of completing it.. Paul says that we should embrace a spirit of welcome, especially for the weak of faith.
Is the weak one welcome in our community?
For each of us here, the word, “welcome” is a preview of a great welcome to come.
WELCOME
W for We
When we are here, we are we and our we is expanding. There is no limit to our width or our depth of being as one. There is room to grow and a spirit of inclusion.
E for Everyone
The word everyone means everyone. It means all are welcome. There are no human barriers we cannot overcome in the fellowship of Christ. If you wonder if we mean thus and so when we say this, the answer is probably, “Yes.”
L for Love
Agape love is unconditional. Phileo love is affection. Every definition of love is wrapped up into one package of God’s love for us and our love for one another. If the Ecclesia of Jesus is not a place of unconditional love, then it has left Jesus out of the equation.
C for Community
Community is commonality and it must be built, nurtured, valued, protected, and expanded. It does not have to be perfect to be real. In fact, it is imperfect, but, nevertheless, very real.
O for One
All for one and one for all. When one hurts, all hurt. When one rejoices, all rejoice. When one struggles, we enter into that struggle with them. We are One in Christ.
M for Mother
The church is often referred to with the feminine pronoun because she is pictured as the Bride of Christ. In culture, churches are often referred to as “mother churches” because they nurture, comfort, provide guidance, and exude warmth.
E for Engage
We strive toward the ideals above by engaging in the process, engaging in relationships, and engaging in a common mission to embrace the people of god’s world and draw them to Jesus.
Engagement is not entanglement or false dependency. It is involvement, not manipulative indoctrination. It is full participation, not empty affiliation. It is equality, not autocracy. It is accountability, not abuse. It is acceptance, not conformity to anything but Jesus. It is individuality, not cookie cutter cloning.
Sarah Bernhardt as Mary Magdalene (1887), painting by Alfred Stevens. Oil on canvas, 111.8 cm × 77.3 cm (44 in × 30.4 in). Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent
I will get this one thing out of the way:
Mary Magdalen did not look like a beautiful blond, 19th century, American actress named Sarah Bernhardt. However, the portrait by Stevens captures her vulnerability, love, humanity, and inner beauty.
Now, we can move on. This is Mary's feast day and it merits a dive into some of the history, biblical thought, and resources around her life so that you can do your own study and write your own commentary.
In any life, there are lessons. I encourage you to find the lessons of her life.
As darkness faded into dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came, bereft, to the tomb, sensing that she would never again call any man, "Teacher," or "Master."
Those days had passed with all of their possibilities, hopes, and assurances that life made sense because her teacher had made sense to her ...
... to her heart.
“Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.” - John 13:13
“… The Master is come, and calleth for thee.” - John 11:28
“If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet.” - John 13:14
“Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.” - John 20:16
As the sun broke through the veil of night, Jesus, the Light, suddenly stood before her, unrecognized and ordinary like a gardener.
It was in speaking that it all came back together. It was in speaking simple questions and calling her name. Hope arose again. He had risen from the dead.
He is our Master Teacher, who so identifies Himself. But He is also the Master who calls us by name and washes our feet as a lesson to us that the true master is he who serves. He is our Master and Lord and example. If any could demand mindless obedience, it is He.
From the beginning of His ministry as He began to call out disciples, He was recognized as the Master-Teacher of life. When He came to Bethany for Lazarus and called for His sisters, it was as the Master. When He gathered with His friends in the upper room (for He had come to call them friends), it was the Master who bent down to perform the role of a slave. Then, at the garden tomb, the one who had endured the indignity and pain of the cross called for Mary. And she recognized Him as Master.
It is not our knowledge of Him or recognition of His position that makes Him the Master, but His knowledge of us and His call in our lives. The Risen Christ stands before you. He is calling your name. Can you see Him? Can you hear Him? What shall you call Him?
Acknowledge Him today as the only rightful Master of your life.
This is the Feast Day of St. Mary Magdalene.
Scripture Readings at the end of this post.
Much has been speculated about her, but what we k now is rich and propelling as the scripture records her role as a disciple of Jesus.
"Modern Protestants honor her as a disciple and friend of Jesus. Anglican Christians refer to her as a saint and may follow her example of repentance.... The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America honors Mary Magdalene on July 22 as an apostle.... Presbyterians honor her as the "apostle to the apostles" and, in the book Methodist Theology, Kenneth Wilson describes her as, "in effect", one of the "first missionaries"." - excerpted from Wikipedia
From "Lives of the Saints" - https://web.archive.org/web/20181024131800/http://www.u.arizona.edu/~aversa/magdalen.pdf Here are some resources for a deeper historical and biblical study for those who want to take this a step further,.
Who Was Mary Magdalene in the Bible? - https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/who-was-mary-magdalene.html#google_vignette
Was Mary Magdalene a Former Prostitute? By Clement Harrold (St. Paul Center) - https://stpaulcenter.com/was-mary-magdalene-a-former-prostitute/
Wikipedia - Especially for the footnotes and art - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Magdalene
Second Synagogue Found in Hometown of Mary Magdalene - https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2021-12-15/ty-article/israel-second-synagogue-found-in-hometown-of-mary-magdalene/0000017f-e819-d62c-a1ff-fc7be7310000 and https://ancientneareast.tripod.com/Magdala.html
As I recall, there is a great falafel place across the street from the diggings.
The Byzantine composer Kassia wrote the only penitential hymn for Mary Magdalene, Kyrie hē en pollais.
Marc-Antoine Charpentier: Magdalena lugens voce sola cum symphonia, H.343 & H.343 a, motet for 1 voice, 2 treble instruments and continuo (1686–1687).
For Mary Magdalene, H.373, motet for 2 voices, 2 flutes and continuo (date unknown). Magdalena lugens, H.388, motet for 3 voices and continuo (date unknown). Dialogus inter Magdalena et Jesum 2 vocibus Canto e Alto cum organo, H.423, for 2 voices and continuo (date unknown). American recording artist
Lady Gaga assumes the role of Mary Magdalene, whom she found a "feminine force", in her 2011 song "Bloody Mary".
English singer-songwriter FKA Twigs released album Magdalene in 2019, saying that she related to the way Mary Magdalene's narrative was revised.[252]
PSALM 42:1-7
As the deer longs for the water-brooks, *
so longs my soul for you, O God.
My soul is athirst for God, athirst for the living God; *
when shall I come to appear before the presence of God?
My tears have been my food day and night, *
while all day long they say to me, “Where now is your God?”
I pour out my soul when I think on these things; *
how I went with the multitude and led them into the house of God,
With the voice of praise and thanksgiving, *
among those who keep holy-day.
Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul? *
and why are you so disquieted within me?
Put your trust in God; *
for I will yet give thanks to him, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.
II CORINTHIANS 5:14-18
For the love of Christ urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them. From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation;
JOHN 20:11-18
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet.
They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?"
She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him."
When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?"
Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away."
Jesus said to her, "Mary!"
She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher).
Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord" and she told them that he had said these things to her.
“At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid.” — John 19:41
It was early in the morning, very early indeed. There was no alarm to awaken them. They dutifully arose and still asleep, walked silently to the place they had no desire to be to do the thing they had no desire to do.
It was a lovely, lonely garden, tucked away, with nothing much in bloom – It was a cave hewn away from a hill, a hole in a rock, a room of gloom and doom. Every fragrance from a flower was tucked into a jar of glass, Collected, condensed, and compacted, waiting for the death-knell days to pass. Came Friday, Saturday, Saturday, Friday, Sat-ur-day. The last time in a garden, they had gone away to pray. But now, there was no use, no hope, no call to come, no one to care – It was just a dead and dying garden and death itself, and the dead, without a prayer.
Life began in a garden and there it seemed to end. Yet, it was there, in a garden that it began anew.
There is some controversy about the exact location of the garden tomb. There is little controversy about the report that Joseph’s tomb was in a garden and that he lent it to the Teacher.
Mary met one she supposed to be a gardener there. He was a gardener, and more.
She and others had come to anoint His body and grieve His loss and meditate upon the meaning of a meaningless future without Him. They had brought incense and spice to compensate for the putridity of the lifeless garden, to sanctify the empty shell, and preserve, for a moment, the decaying flesh for the one who had animated that body and animated life itself.
How often, He had taken His band of brothers to the gardens to pray. He made gardens of hope wherever He went. The wilderness could blossom. Deserts exploded with beauty. That’s the way He was and was no more.
That would change. It would change with such a tidal wave of unexpected hope and surprising light that the eyes of their hearts would have to refocus on His resurrected presence before they could begin to realize that He was again among them.
In a moment, everything changed and they had not anticipated it. They had been taught to hope, but they had not learned how. They had no frame of reference for such appalling and audacious hope. They did not know how to respond.
C. Austin Miles tells his story of a personal journey to such a garden of his own heart,
“I read…the story of the greatest morn in history: ‘The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, while it was yet very dark, unto the sepulcher.’ Instantly, completely, there unfolded in my mind the scenes of the garden of Joseph….Out of the mists of the garden comes a form, halting, hesitating, tearful, seeking, turning from side to side in bewildering amazement. Falteringly, bearing grief in every accent, with tear-dimmed eyes, she whispers, ‘If thou hast borne him hence’… ‘He speaks, and the sound of His voice is so sweet the birds hush their singing.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ Just one word from his lips, and forgotten the heartaches, the long dreary hours….all the past blotted out in the presence of the Living Present and the Eternal Future.”
So, he wrote the devastatingly beautiful hymn, “In the Garden.”
I know little about your garden, whether it be a budding garden of emerging beauty or a dormant patch of ground, whether it is a garden of intimate prayer or a garden of sorrow. I only know of this one garden that is the source of all seeds of life. It is the garden of resurrection.
An earthquake rattled the ground and shook the foundations. A stone rolled away and a cold, death hole in the rock took a deep breath of fresh air and out walked Life Himself.
And in He walks into our worlds of despair and hopelessness. Along the road to Emmaus, He walks with us. Into our upper rooms of seclusion and fear, He walks. Into the dark gardens of our personal Gethsemanes, He walks. Wherever we walk or fall, He comes and when He comes, we often mistake Him for just another gardener until He speaks or breaks the bread of life.
Our hearts burn within us. There is a rekindling of the fire of possibility. We are rattled to the core and the sun rises on a new day, a Sun-day!
There was nothing intrinsically attractive about the garden tomb. There is nothing intrinsically attractive about our barren circumstances. We wallow in our defeats; we hover under the stress of our worst nightmares; we wander aimlessly from the village to the tomb and back again without any sense of direction pondering the meaning of that which is meaningless.
And then …
And then, we hear someone calling our name as clearly as we have ever heard it. It is the voice of One who not only knows our name, but knows us in all of our pain, failure, sin, and sorrow. It is the voice of One who loves and accepts us. It is a credible voice. It is the voice of life. It is the voice of resurrection. It is the voice of Jesus.
He says things like …
“Because I live, you shall live also …”
“I am with you always …”
“I will never leave you or forsake you …”
“Go therefore and make disciples …”
“Be steadfast …. Your labor is not in vain …”
“Rejoice and be exceeding glad …”
“I go to prepare a place for you …”
“I am the way, the truth, and the life …”
“I am the resurrection and the life …. Do you believe this?”
Do you believe this?
Do you?
Grab your Easter basket, put on your Easter bonnet with all the frills upon it, and don your Easter duds. Hop in your car and head to the nearest church, but stop a moment along the way and reflect. You can go through all the motions of Easter and fill yourself with Easter goodies and still be carrying perfume to a hole in a rock if you do not believe that this celebration is more than a seasonal exercise in dead ritual.
Life began and ended in a garden and it is in a garden that life began again. It can for you today as well! The tomb is empty and the earth is full of the glory of God. Messages and indicators of death surround us, but this day, and all who have met Him alive in the garden testify to this reality: Life overcomes death
Come to the garden!
Another Devotional — Two Marys
“Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? … Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.”(Excerpted from John 20:15- 16)
Once, there were two Marys, one from Nazareth and one from Magdala, a Christmas Mary and an Easter Mary. Their lives and their journeys overlapped. Each found Jesus in the midst of crisis. Each submitted to the Master in humble consecration. Each loved Him with pure and sincere love.
Mary, the mother of Jesus received an angelic announcement of Jesus’ coming. Mary Magdalene received such an announcement of His resurrection — and then, she saw Him! Mary of Nazareth submitted her life as the handmaid of the Lord; Mary of Magdala as a disciple.
Both Marys were shocked and dismayed by their circumstances. Both came to the place of rejoicing and praise through encounter with the Lord. It is always Easter at Christmas for the Christian and always Christmas at Easter. In our dismay and bewilderment with the circumstances of our lives, we receive the Jesus message as a whole package and we submit our lives to Him.
Mary of Nazareth began her journey with Jesus before He was born and followed Him to the cross and beyond to the empty tomb. Mary Magdalene joined Him later in the journey, but had the same quality of encounter with Him. It is the encounter that we must have.
Come to Mary’s house today and let Jesus be conceived in your heart. Come to the manger and rejoice at His birth. Come to the cross and let His blood wash away your sins. Come to the empty tomb and receive His life eternal Come to Jesus today, and worship Him.
It’s Christmas! Happy Easter!
Why Are You Weeping?
"Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her" - John 20:18
The sequence is familiar. The characters are well known. The story is dear to our hearts. It was the first day of the week. It was early in the morning. Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been removed. It was the stone that was placed to prevent theft of the body of Jesus.
It was early in the morning. She ran and went to Simon and the other disciple, most likely, John. She was distressed and disturbed. She assumed that the body of Jesus had been stolen. It was all that they had left of Jesus.
The two disciples ran. The one with the special relationship with Jesus ran ahead and reached the tomb first. He bent down, and saw the wrappings lying there, but he didn't go in. Simon followed and entered the tomb. Then the other disciple went into the tomb.
John tells us that he saw, and he believed. What did he see? What did he believe?
He saw, and he believed, that the tomb was empty. Today we continue to confess that the tomb is empty. But none of them really knew what that meant because they were yet to understand the scriptures and how the scriptures taught that Jesus must rise from the dead.
Mary was outside the tomb. She was weeping. She is the first person after the resurrection that Jesus spoke with.
Why are you weeping?
She replied that they had taken her Lord and she did not know where they had placed him. Then she turned around and she saw the man with whom she had been speaking. But she did not recognize Jesus. She thought he was the
When Jesus called her name, Mary, the lights came on for her. There's something about Jesus calling your name. Have you heard him in the dark corridors of your life? Have you encountered him among the gravestones calling your name?
She knew him. In Aramaic, she called him “Teacher.”
After a bit more conversation, Jesus gave her a job. She was to go and tell Jesus’ brothers that he was alive. And she did. This Easter, is there a greater message that you can convey?
We learn lessons every time there is a catastrophe or potential catastrophe like this. I say that we learn them, but I mean that we could learn them if we would pay attention, reflect, consider, plan, execute, and anticipate.
Lessons we would all acknowledge, but we cannot say we have learned until we implement strategies are:
1. We are vulnerable and getting more vulnerable daily because we are growing more dependent upon technology.
2. We have sources and resources for protection. They cost time and money, but they can help eliminate, ameliorate, or minimize great loss.
3. The old Cold War notion of the domino effect applies to our digital world and networks today. When one sector goes down, all are potentially effected.
4. The suffering that is possible when the network crashes does not simply plague the powerful; it touches the most vulnerable. It is human suffering.
5. The time to plan for crisis is when we are not in a crisis.
6. Those who are prepared, recover more quickly.
7. Not just big companies, but small businesses and individuals need backup plans for storage and for operations.
What am I missing? If you say "nothing," we are all at risk, but cause there is always something we are missing.
That reality keeps us on our toes
The key is to prepare Be Prepared.
Preparing for a cyber attack is crucial for businesses to ensure the security of their data and operations. Here is a comprehensive guide to help a business prepare for potential cyber threats:
P. Policy
You should have some clear and implementable security policies in place. Study best practices and standard for your industry. Follow your policies with a plan and make sure all of your staff understands and is trained to implement.
R. Risk Assessment
Do a risk assessment. Identify potential vulnerabilities. Be aware of threats and threats. Understand the changing landscape of the risks in the field. Be adaptable. Consult your insurance carrier for advice.
E. Employees
Your staff and volunteers are your first line of defense. Train them to recognize phishing attempts and to understand safe internet use. Keep the training up-to-date,.
P. Purchase
Buy the software, antivirus protection, and consulting you need to head off an attack and recover when one occurs. The dollars you spend on this side of an attack will be saved many-fold after one.
A. Authentication
Implement multi-factor authentication for accessing sensitive systems and data. Utilize strong passwords. Keep them updated.
R. Review
Don't count on anything to remain stable. Monitor, inspect, review, revise, resource, and renew regularly.
E. Encrypt
Encrypt your data. Move it securely. Back it up regularly and religiously. Utilize redundancy.
D. Do It. Test it. Insure it. Monitor it.
All of this is about implementation, otherwise known as doing. Just thinking about it will not protect you. Get it done. Once you have a plan, test it. Get insurance. Get advice. Get eyes on the project. Get it done.
There is much more to it and this is not intended to exhaust the subject. But if you start with this acronym, you will be on your way to being P-R-E-P-A-R-E-D
Don’t Throw Jesus Out with the Deconstruction Bathwater
Mark, in his redactor’s comments, observes that the disciples’ hearts were hard and, thus, they were amazed at Jesus’ power and presence. He sites, as a reason for their hardness, as well as a result, that they did not understand the meaning of the feeding of the 5000.
So, that raises a very important question: What is the meaning of that moment?
What does it say about Jesus’ compassion, his presence, his attention, his power, and the difference he makes in our lives and in the world?
Consider Jesus, compassionate and suffering with us when we are without direction, hurting with us when we are alone at sea in a storm, patient with us when our hearts are hard, present with us working mighty wonders.
Don’t throw out Jesus in your deconstruction and reconstruction.
Consider Jesus. Touch the edge of his clothing if nothing else.
And whithersoever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole. — Mark 6:56
There was a typical response wherever Jesus went. When he entered a village, or a city., people congregated.
Then, they brought him their friends and family who were sick or afflicted.
They brought these folks with the confidence if they could just get near him, just make some contact with him, the sick would be healed.
Proximity to Jesus is what the church offers the world. The body of Christ is the physical and visible presence of Christ in the world. The presence of Christ is the very presence of God for Immanuel reminds us that God is with us.
So, to follow this flow, the presence of God becomes the possibility of healing, grace, forgiveness, deliverance, and hope.
Light shines in darkness. Life flows from death. Joy comes from sorrow.,
The very hem of his garment was close enough for so many. He was one man in one place on earth. It would have been impossible for him to personally touch or speak to everyone, but his presence was sufficient for those who could not get his attention.
It is different today. He is not with us in the flesh, but he inhabits the flesh of multitudes. He has expanded his ministry, as he said he would, through his people, the church.
We can go everywhere and bring proximity to Jesus. We can even be the presence of Jesus in places where we cannot physically go because of technology that is increasing our capacity family.
The same hope and healing is available in a broken world if we will be the presence of Christ for others and let his love flow through us.
That is the meaning of the church in the world. We carry the light into the darkness. We embody Christ himself to the world. We expand the presence of Christ who fills all things. We offer our voices so that he may speak.
I frequently see comments I have written that protest violence as I browse the memories sections of my social media platforms. Without doing some checking, I usually have lost track of the event that prompted my comment.
It is a sad state of affairs when they all blend together.
This was such a comment:
As we read the news, we are overwhelmed with sadness because of the violence of our humanity.
If we have any sense that we are evolving rather than devolving in maturity, it must churn within our collective gut.
We do not consider such things normative.
We wretch within and our hearts go out to grieving families and suffering injured .
Outrage at the insanity or evil or whatever prompts such deed is of lesser comfort than the call to pray for the well being of those whose lives have been so irreversibly invaded.
Yet, we do, also, pray as we act:
God grant shalom that passes understanding and the truth that the communities crave.
I found this among my memories and thought I’d revisit it at bit:
There are days to make comments on the issues of the day and there are days when the issues are too personal, painful, and powerful to come down on one side or the other. Those are the days when we become channels of grace, love, and compassion and enter into the pain of every man, woman, and child with a sense of common humanity, common concern, and common commitment to some core values we all share.
Such are days when we overcome our fear that others will use the day to their advantage.
Such are days when we resist the temptation to take advantage.
Though our convictions are strong, we respect that those of our neighbor are just as strong, sincere, and based upon personal integrity and perspective.
In the end, this world and nation will not rise and fall on our politics. We have survived many a shift and will survive many more.
We will survive on our good will and God’s grace and nothing we say or do about our opinions will bolster or alter that.
We are one people and we stand in sympathy and solidarity with our neighbors.
— — — — — — — — — — — —
Born this day in 1935, Diahann Carroll and died October 4, 2019. She was an American actress, singer, model, and activist. Remember her in g Carmen Jones (1954) and Porgy and Bess (1959). In 1962, she won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for No Strings. In 1974 she starred in Claudine and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. Here she is with James Garner in the 1963, March on Washington.
“Carroll was a founding member of the Celebrity Action Council, a volunteer group of celebrity women who served the women’s outreach of the Los Angeles Mission, working with women in rehabilitation from problems with alcohol, drugs, or prostitution. She helped to form the group along with other female television personalities including Mary Frann, Linda Gray, Donna Mills, and Joan Van Ark.” (Source — Wikipedia)
I just got off the phone praying with someone who thought that my prayers with them might be meaningful and helpful.
Whether they are or not is not for me to say.
I think all prayer is meaningful and helpful.
Am I a pastor?
Well, I had the title, job, and role for 47 years and I still have that as one of my roles on a more part-time basis. I might be semi-retired. Whatever that is.
This is me. I really do not think pastor is primarily a title, job, and role. It is more of a function and a gift. If I am watching a flock of sheep and have to excuse myself a moment, I might grab you and you walk by and ask you to watch them till I get back.
I do that with a certain confidence that you can handle it till I arrive and take over.
Keep them together. Don't let the wolves get them. The dog will help.
But I will keep coming back, because it has become more than just a temporary function for me. It permeates everything. It informs my thinking, prayers, and compassion - soul care, community care, care for people.
As long as you are out there and reach out to me in that function, I guess will be pastor someone.
I can't resign because there is no person or organization to whom I can submit a letter of resignation.
So, it is more than a function also, because that function comes and goes.
The same word does not always mean the same thing in every context, not even every biblically context exactly.
So, I say this loosely, humbly, and tentatively. For me, pastoral ministry is a calling and one that I sense I will have until I take my last breath and present myself before the Great Pastor.
“Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint.” — Proverbs 23:4 (NIV)
This may seem like a rather strange admonition, but it is absolutely necessary to remind ourselves of its truth. Many people simple do not succeed in the race to riches because they wear themselves out in the first lap or two. Or they accumulate some quick wealth and lose health or life itself and never get to enjoy it. Short sprints in life’s long haul are necessary for competition of the marathon. Pacing oneself, taking breaks, knowing limitations, setting boundaries, and balance are some of the secrets of maximum effectiveness.
PACE yourself.
P — Practice restraint. Solomon urges us to hold back some effort. Usually it is unproductive, frenzied, thoughtless activities that we need to curtail in order to be more effective.
A — Assign yourself times to work and specific tasks to do. Also assign yourself times for rest, refreshment, and recovery. Assign and follow through. Keep your life in balance.
C — Create spaces for thought, reflection, renewal, and creative thinking. Create space for family. Money is not the most important thing in your life. It is the freedom to pursue what is valuable that makes money attractive. Do not lose that perspective.
E — Excuse yourself from attempts to overload you (by others) or yourself by yourself with good things that rob your energy from the things that are best. Make wise choices.
“When suddenly you seem to lose all you thought you had gained, do not despair.. Don’t say “I have to start all over again.” This is not true. What you have gained you have gained.. When you return to the road, you return to the place where you left it, not to where you started.” — Henri Nouwen
A Case of the Pace
For people of faith who have a history with God, even when we doubt, we cry out to Him. Even when we waver, we never stray far from faith. Our teetering, pathetic faith is in a strong and good God and the mustard seeds of belief that we toss into the ground continue to move the mountains of despair.
“ Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever! Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly clings to the ground. Rise up; come to our help! Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!”
(Psalm 44:23–26 ESV)
How is this for making a case with God? I’ve been really bad; so please help me. Yet, that is what is happening here. Under the weight of his sin, the psalmist is suffering and cries out for healing. His acknowledgment of sin is not the case for just deserts, but a statement of need. His only case is the righteousness and goodness of a gracious God.
“ As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you!””
(Psalm 41:4 ESV)
Make Someone’s Day
Let me start by saying that if you chose to open this posting and read it, that is a good sign that you are on the right track and your heart is in the right place. You have already moved from the realm of unlikely positive outcome to likely positive outcome. You have identified making someone’s day as an intention in your life and that kind of intentionality is a real key to accomplishment.
Proverbs 18:1 says,
“An unfriendly man pursues selfish ends; he defies all sound judgment.”
It is in the pursuit that our judgment is magnified.
So I may leave it at that for today. To be friendly and to desire the good for someone else today will move you far down the road of being a blessing. When you wish someone well, it is communicated in your attitude, your words, and your deeds. you cannot help but be an encouragement to all who are receptive and in need.
The very desire to make another person’s day is an indicator of character and a predictor of success in that endeavor.
Today, I will start to spell out how to do that by examining the word, “D-A-Y.” First let us look at a proverb for today, Proverbs 19:1:
“Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse. “
To apply that to our theme, we might paraphrase it this way: “While wealth and prosperity can open doors, create opportunities, and enable us to do much good for others, it would be better to do without it if it meant that our words wounded rather than healed, deflated people rather than inflating them, and discouraged rather than encouraged.”
Words are powerful and how we use words will determine much of our success in making someone else’s day.
And the god news is that if you make the day of enough people, it will eventually lead you on the path to success.
We don’t have to choose between our success and that of others if we are willing to put our primary focus on helping others succeed.
Now, here is the D-A-Y
D = Decision.
You make a decision about the kind of day you will have. You make it early; you make it firm. You decide that whatever comes your way, “The is the day that the Lord hath made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” It is always a decision and if you make it, it will rub off on others. While you make the decision, early in the morning, to have a great day, decide to bring others along as well. Pray for opportunities to encourage, lift, and serve people. They will come!
A = Attitude.
It is aways about attitude. Attitude can make or break your day and will affect others. Positive attitudes are contagious, but so are negative attitudes. If you walk around all day with the attitude that is selfish, angry, resentful, and bitter, that will take the wind out of people’s sails who are living on the edge. Not everyone has learned the power of a positive decision. They need to see a living example of positivity — YOU! If you carry your decision to have a blessed day with you throughout the day and reflect that in your attitude, those same people will see and catch some of your spirit. Smile at frowns; speak gently to harsh voices; deflect criticism; be kind when you are treated without kindness. Be the master of your moments and your emotions. Elevated your attitude and you will elevate others.
Y = Yes, Yes living.
It is a no-no world. All around us, people are looking for reasons to be critical, to disagree, to complain, to gossip, to make other people feel small. You have chosen to live the opposite way. You are looking for areas of agreement. You are searching for the YES. You are endeavoring to find things you can compliment and affirm, people you can encourage, and lives you can touch with God’s love. You are actively giving out smiles. Your goal is to build and what you are building are people.
The only two things that will last forever are the Word of God and the souls of people. One builds the other.
Make a decision to have and promote a great day. Put on the attitude of positive thinking and living, the attitude of love and grace. Put it on the same way you put on a cheerful shirt in the morning. Look for yes every where and build upon each yes you find. Decision — Attitude — Yes = DAY.
“Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint.” — Proverbs 23:4 (NIV)
This may seem like a rather strange admonition, but it is absolutely necessary to remind ourselves of its truth. Many people simple do not succeed in the race to riches because they wear themselves out in the first lap or two. Or they accumulate some quick wealth and lose health or life itself and never get to enjoy it. Short sprints in life’s long haul are necessary for competition of the marathon. Pacing oneself, taking breaks, knowing limitations, setting boundaries, and balance are some of the secrets of maximum effectiveness.
PACE yourself.
P — Practice restraint. Solomon urges us to hold back some effort. Usually it is unproductive, frenzied, thoughtless activities that we need to curtail in order to be more effective.
A — Assign yourself times to work and specific tasks to do. Also assign yourself times for rest, refreshment, and recovery. Assign and follow through. Keep your life in balance.
C — Create spaces for thought, reflection, renewal, and creative thinking. Create space for family. Money is not the most important thing in your life. It is the freedom to pursue what is valuable that makes money attractive. Do not lose that perspective.
E — Excuse yourself from attempts to overload you (by others) or yourself by yourself with good things that rob your energy from the things that are best. Make wise choices.
“When suddenly you seem to lose all you thought you had gained, do not despair.. Don’t say “I have to start all over again.” This is not true. What you have gained you have gained.. When you return to the road, you return to the place where you left it, not to where you started.” — Henri Nouwen
A Case of the Pace
For people of faith who have a history with God, even when we doubt, we cry out to Him. Even when we waver, we never stray far from faith. Our teetering, pathetic faith is in a strong and good God and the mustard seeds of belief that we toss into the ground continue to move the mountains of despair.
“ Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever! Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly clings to the ground. Rise up; come to our help! Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!”
(Psalm 44:23–26 ESV)
How is this for making a case with God? I’ve been really bad; so please help me. Yet, that is what is happening here. Under the weight of his sin, the psalmist is suffering and cries out for healing. His acknowledgment of sin is not the case for just deserts, but a statement of need. His only case is the righteousness and goodness of a gracious God.
“ As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you!””
(Psalm 41:4 ESV)
Make Someone’s Day
Let me start by saying that if you chose to open this posting and read it, that is a good sign that you are on the right track and your heart is in the right place. You have already moved from the realm of unlikely positive outcome to likely positive outcome. You have identified making someone’s day as an intention in your life and that kind of intentionality is a real key to accomplishment.
Proverbs 18:1 says,
“An unfriendly man pursues selfish ends; he defies all sound judgment.”
It is in the pursuit that our judgment is magnified.
So I may leave it at that for today. To be friendly and to desire the good for someone else today will move you far down the road of being a blessing. When you wish someone well, it is communicated in your attitude, your words, and your deeds. you cannot help but be an encouragement to all who are receptive and in need.
The very desire to make another person’s day is an indicator of character and a predictor of success in that endeavor.
Today, I will start to spell out how to do that by examining the word, “D-A-Y.” First let us look at a proverb for today, Proverbs 19:1:
“Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse. “
To apply that to our theme, we might paraphrase it this way: “While wealth and prosperity can open doors, create opportunities, and enable us to do much good for others, it would be better to do without it if it meant that our words wounded rather than healed, deflated people rather than inflating them, and discouraged rather than encouraged.”
Words are powerful and how we use words will determine much of our success in making someone else’s day.
And the god news is that if you make the day of enough people, it will eventually lead you on the path to success.
We don’t have to choose between our success and that of others if we are willing to put our primary focus on helping others succeed.
Now, here is the D-A-Y
D = Decision.
You make a decision about the kind of day you will have. You make it early; you make it firm. You decide that whatever comes your way, “The is the day that the Lord hath made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” It is always a decision and if you make it, it will rub off on others. While you make the decision, early in the morning, to have a great day, decide to bring others along as well. Pray for opportunities to encourage, lift, and serve people. They will come!
A = Attitude.
It is aways about attitude. Attitude can make or break your day and will affect others. Positive attitudes are contagious, but so are negative attitudes. If you walk around all day with the attitude that is selfish, angry, resentful, and bitter, that will take the wind out of people’s sails who are living on the edge. Not everyone has learned the power of a positive decision. They need to see a living example of positivity — YOU! If you carry your decision to have a blessed day with you throughout the day and reflect that in your attitude, those same people will see and catch some of your spirit. Smile at frowns; speak gently to harsh voices; deflect criticism; be kind when you are treated without kindness. Be the master of your moments and your emotions. Elevated your attitude and you will elevate others.
Y = Yes, Yes living.
It is a no-no world. All around us, people are looking for reasons to be critical, to disagree, to complain, to gossip, to make other people feel small. You have chosen to live the opposite way. You are looking for areas of agreement. You are searching for the YES. You are endeavoring to find things you can compliment and affirm, people you can encourage, and lives you can touch with God’s love. You are actively giving out smiles. Your goal is to build and what you are building are people.
The only two things that will last forever are the Word of God and the souls of people. One builds the other.
Make a decision to have and promote a great day. Put on the attitude of positive thinking and living, the attitude of love and grace. Put it on the same way you put on a cheerful shirt in the morning. Look for yes every where and build upon each yes you find. Decision — Attitude — Yes = DAY.
Let’s reflect on Psalm 38 together a little bit this morning from the singer of sacred songs, the psalmist.
Let’s hear what he is praying and see where it may allow us to find a deeper place of prayer.
“O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger; * do not punish me in your wrath. For your arrows have already pierced me, * and your hand presses hard upon me. There is no health in my flesh, because of your indignation; * there is no soundness in my body, because of my sin. For my iniquities overwhelm me; * like a heavy burden they are too much for me to bear. My wounds stink and fester * by reason of my foolishness. I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; * I go about in mourning all the day long. My loins are filled with searing pain; * there is no health in my body. I am utterly numb and crushed; * I wail, because of the groaning of my heart. O Lord, you know all my desires, * and my sighing is not hidden from you. My heart is pounding, my strength has failed me, * and the brightness of my eyes is gone from me. My friends and companions draw back from my affliction; * my neighbors stand afar off. Those who seek after my life lay snares for me; * those who strive to hurt me speak of my ruin and plot treachery all the day long. But I am like the deaf who do not hear, * like those who are mute and who do not open their mouth. I have become like one who does not hear * and from whose mouth comes no defense. For in you, O Lord, have I fixed my hope; * you will answer me, O Lord my God. For I said, “Do not let them rejoice at my expense, * those who gloat over me when my foot slips.” Truly, I am on the verge of falling, * and my pain is always with me. I will confess my iniquity * and be sorry for my sin. Those who are my enemies without cause are mighty, * and many in number are those who wrongfully hate me. Those who repay evil for good slander me, * because I follow the course that is right. O Lord, do not forsake me; * be not far from me, O my God. Make haste to help me, * O Lord of my salvation.”
At the end of the psalm, the singer turns and begins to pray slightly differently from a place of hope, a desire for release and relief, a place where he is asking for help and even retribution against his enemies.
I often quote Pogo looks in the. Water and sees a reflection of himself thinking it is someone else, fierce and mighty and ready for battle. He says “we have met the enemy and he is us.”
I understand that my worst enemies are within, and I think the psalmist must understand that in his isolation. He begins with his own sense of his own failure and his own sin and his. He has a sense of being separate, being thrown out, being alienated from God and from himself and then from others He is alone. He is deaf and mute.
He is unaware and people are unaware of him, but then those who are aware of him, are antagonistic against him, or at least he senses that he feels their antagonism. He feels that they’re plotting against him everywhere around him, and within him there’s a sense of isolation and alienation.
It manifests itself in physical symptoms, emotional symptoms, mental symptoms. He is over whelmed by. The things in his life that have brought him to this place — To the place where he is worried about the anger of God.
Now why is that? It is because he is intensely aware of the holiness of God and the purity of God and the might of God. He is not a man who is living in unawareness of God and he is holding his own life up to the standard of God. That standard is, by the way, not a bad thing, but by comparison, our level of failure is profound. It is overwhelming.
The singer says. “For in you, O Lord, I fixed my hope.”
I fixed my hope. I have driven it into the ground.
“You will answer me. Oh, Lord, my God.”
This is a confidence that he comes to God with. I have driven the stake of hope into the ground that you God, are my God. You will answer me?
He’s honest. This is the prayer of an honest man. This is a prayer of a man who is authentic and real and real about himself and pulling no punches that he’s.
His OK-ness comes from God and any enemies that he may have are not given the opportunity to gloat over him.
I made mistakes in recording this. I left all my mistakes in the recording, because if we’re not human, we’re nothing. If we’re not human before God, who mix up words or lose our place in our own thought process? How are we going to be able to talk about confessing our iniquities?
And about our sin, how are we going to be real with God? How are we going to let it hang all before God and before humanity?
We are not finished products. And so he says. I will confess my iniquity and be sorry for my sin.
Here is his prayer. Here is his conclusion. Here is what he longs for. Here is what he hopes for. It is expressed in four lines. “O Lord, do not forsake me. Be not far from me. Oh my God. Make haste to help me. O Lord of my salvation.”
If you could pray those four lines today in the light of all that went before in that same level of honesty and pouring out your soul before God, you would have really prayed something powerful.
Somewhere between lament and desperation, somewhere between confession of our sin and confession, of our confidence and faith in God.
You come to those last four lines and repeat them in your soul to God. Here, you meet God. Suddenly the alienation dissolves. The sense of isolation is nullified. You know that you are neither deaf nor mute. When you speak to God, God hears, and when God speaks to your soul, you hear through the still small voice.
God says, “You were my child. I love you. I’m with you.”
May the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and be gracious unto you and give you peace through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The question of the day for those who want their nation to be great is: What are the criteria? What defines a great nation?
And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: -Matthew 25:32 (KJV)
This is a dramatic and overwhelming scene that Jesus describes. As far as the eye can see, the nations are gathered before the throne. There are sheep and goats at a time when only sheep are truly welcome in the flock. There has been considerable blending up until this point, but now the shepherd is dividing them.
And there is one criterion by which He judges the nations. How did you treat me when I was among you?
He is not talking about His incarnation here, but His presence among His people many of whom were the poor, the lowly, the imprisoned, the hungry, and so forth. He is identifying with the powerless that He described in Matthew 5 and, from their perspective, evaluating the powerful.
What did you do with all your influence to positively touch the people I love? That is His question. It is the test of a nation's greatness and the test of greatness for every institution or individual that has been entrusted with power.
Were you just?
Were you fair?
Were you generous?
Were you compassionate?
Were you welcoming?
Were you righteous?
Were you aware that I was there amid my brethren?
This is one dimension of judgment in the heavenly kingdom and Jesus gives us a preview. It is but a glimpse. We could not understand more, but we can understand this much: We must always be aware of Jesus and receive others as if we were receiving him.
The greatness of America has always been in her central idea: the dignity of every human being under God.
It is the basis for freedom, laws, and our system of government. For the Christian, that means looking for the image of God in every person we meet and treating that person as we would treat Jesus.
Another Thought on Verse 32
There is a question for self-examination emerging from this passage. Such examinations are painful, but the process is necessary for our growth.
Am I among the nation of sheep or the nation of goats? How do I align myself with what God values and those with whom Jesus identifies?
Leo Tolstoy spun a tale about a cobbler who was given to believe that Jesus would visit him on a particular day. He made simple but elegant preparations. One by one the poor came to his door, and he served them, but he came to the end of the day without the visit for which he longed.
Then he realized what had happened and he heard the voice of Jesus with the words of this passage.
So, the real question is this: Am I seeing Jesus where Jesus is? That one question separates the sheep from the goats.
We are at a turning point today as people and as nations. Are we here to serve ourselves or others?
Do we orient our lives and our policies toward to good of humanity using the best analyses and data and the brightest minds? Or do we serve immediate, temporal, shortsighted self-interest? Are we all in the same boat or do we live in silos of naivete?
For the disciples of Jesus, it is more, but it is also simpler. Do I see Jesus in every person and people group, especially the disinherited, dispossessed, discouraged, and disenfranchises?
If I see Jesus, how will I treat Jesus?
Matthew 25:31-46 (NRSVU)
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.
Then the king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.'
Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?'
And the king will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.'
Then he will say to those at his left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'
Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?'
Then he will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'
And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
On this day in 1935 – The world's first parking meter is installed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Roger W. Babson had filed the first patent for such a device on August 30, 1928. As well as being an entrepreneur, he was an academic who founded three colleges, two of which still exist: Babson College and Webber College, now Webber International University, in Babson Park, Florida.
An opportunist, Babson had 10 Commandments for Investing.
1. Keep speculation and investments separate.
2. Don't be fooled by a name.
3. Be wary of new promotions.
4. Give due consideration to market ability.
5. Don't buy without proper facts.
6. Safeguard purchases through diversification.
7. Don't try to diversify by buying different securities of the same company.
8. Small companies should be carefully scrutinized.
9. Buy adequate security, not super abundance.
10. Choose your dealer and buy outright (don't buy on margin).
Remember those the next time you put money in a parking meter.
I pulled my car into a space.
It was a double seater.
Alas, my claim, I'd soon erase.
There was a marking meter.
I had no coin inside my purse.
No Paul to rob nor Peter.
The news from bad, grew worse and worse.
Unwelcome parking greeter!
I drove away. I'm driving still.
I totter and I teeter.
I can't afford another bill
To pay the parking meter.
Note: It was in 1932, that "Carl Magee began to work on the parking meter and since his parking meter was the first to be installed for actual use on July 1935 in Oklahoma City, Magee is known as the inventor of the parking meter." (Wikipedia)
"And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do…" - I Chronicles 12:32
What is a leader? Is it someone who already has all the answers? Is it someone who is stubborn, arrogant, and confident in always being right. Or, it is someone who looks for the right people to be advisors and confidants.
We need children of Issachar today, leaders who can interpret our times, not to satisfy our curiosities, but to advise us on what we must do.
The Bible is a timely book. It transcends time and is timeless, but it steps out of its own context to speak to every generation with freshness and awareness of its own specific challenges.
There are two characteristics of leaders and counselors in this tradition. In the first place, they are grounded in truth. Their thinking has been saturated by the Word of God and they are sensitive to the Word and the Spirit.
This sensitivity is manifested in seeking. Their antennae are always scanning for some word of truth, for guidance, and for leadership through the voice that speaks to their hearts with clarity.
The second is that they observe and study the times. They do not bury their heads in the sand and disengage from the culture. They live in the real world even as their lives transcend the world. They suffer with hurting humanity and yet, maintain the capacity to step back and look on with analytical detachment.
They then come to us with their observations and counsel and, with clarity, and integrity, speak to our conditions and conundrums.
They think.
They process.
They ask questions.
They come to reasonable conclusions. Then, they share their insights.
We are now engaged in a process of sifting and choosing. We are looking for men and women of Issachar to lead our nation. We are looking for such leaders who are also gathering other children of Issachar around them with a willingness to receive their counsel. As we do so, we come to realize that we must also possess their gifts as we are called upon to choose.
We pray in this season that we might exercise our own Issachar-like qualities and be taught by God to understand our times that we might know what to do.
There is something else as well. They had a king who was ready, eager, willing, and able to listen to them. He was humble enough to seek their advice and take it to heart.
"Watch them pigeons," my father-in-law would say as the punchline of a joke flew over my head. It was a good natured reminder to wake up and cautiously avoid being head on the head by the stuff that pigeons often drop.
Watch out!
I can think of a number of idioms for the phrase:
Look out!
Stay on your toes!
Take heed!
Keep your eyes open!
Watch your step!
“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom and five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them …” – Matthew 25:1-13
When I had to learn memory verses as a child, “Jesus wept” was a wonderful standby. That was simple and was only two words to remember.
Here is another, more to the point: As a Boy Scout, our motto was as easy, “Be prepared.”
The Marines have “Semper Fidelis”
We do not know the day when the Lord will come and settle all accounts. But He demands that we live in a state of watchful expectation rather than fanciful speculation. We are to be ever looking unto Jesus. We are to be ever watchful, ever faithful, and ever ready for His return.
“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith …” (Hebrews 12:2)
That is the great challenge of our lives. It is with seeking wonder and faithful awareness that we stand on tiptoe as watchmen in the night.
His coming, whenever it will be and however, he will manifest himself, will be a joyous and awesome occasion and our privilege is to be at a state of present readiness. It will be a grand party, like a wedding feast.
Every challenge in our lives comes down to this great challenge: To be found faithful when He come again.
But that future hope must not obscure the present reality that He is here now, present with us and that our call to readiness involves listening for His voice and observing what He is doing in our midst.
It summons us to be ready for His call in every life situation and prepared to act upon His command at any moment.
Herod was a haunted man. But, like all haunted people, he was not haunted by ghosts, but by illusions in his mind.
Herod was a character.
He really loved his power and authority and thought a great deal of himself.
He shared a name with others who were addicted to power, position, and wealth.
Though his ego was over-sized, his heart was not cold enough to be frozen. He held a fascination with John the Baptist. He was able to recognize that something in him that was different from other people.
It confused him. His ignition switch for God-consciousness was shooting out some sparks, but the conflict within him always kept the engine from turning over.
He had fear and fascination and they could have led somewhere ... they could have led to faith and repentance, but it would have cost Herod more than he was willing to pay.
John merely lost his head from his shoulders. Herod lost everything.
" for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly." -Mark 6:20
Question - What is the fair market value of power, position, and wealth? What is the personal cost? What does it cost others for us to crave it?
Bigger Question - What is it really worth?
Question -What delusions must we cultivate to accumulate these fleeting commodities?
Bigger Question - When "all" is lost, what will you have gained?
It might depend on your definition of "all."
Herod held a fascination with John the Baptist. He was able to recognize that something in him that was different from other people.
It confused him.
His ignition switch for God-consciousness was shooting out some sparks, but the conflict within him always kept the engine from turning over. He had fear and fascination and they could have led somewhere ... they could have led to faith and repentance, but it would have cost Herod more than he was willing to pay.
John merely lost his head from his shoulders. Herod lost everything.
"...for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly." - Mark 6:20
“For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” – Matthew 3:3
Every prophetic function with its fulfillment has its counterpart in our lives and it is up to us to seek it. What does it mean for us, as the people of God, to prepare the way for the Lord? How have those who have gone before us prepared a straight path for Him in our lives?
How have events and people shaped us so that we could be ready to receive His Word?
God’s ways always involve preparation. He does nothing haphazardly or without thought and planning. When He desires to speak, He prepares the message, the messenger, and the hearer. When He is about to act, He informs His servants the prophets. He is a God of precision and perfect order. He does all things well.
John the Baptist was God’s man in God’s timing. His life was his ministry and he learned to look beyond the obvious and to seek God deeply. He patiently awaited the coming of the messiah and faithfully proclaimed the message God had given him through the days of waiting.
God never wastes time or calls us to bide our time. Everything, all time, all preparation is meaningful and purposeful.
God is working His purpose out
As year succeeds to year;
God is working His purpose out,
And the time is drawing near.
Nearer and nearer draws the time,
The time that shall surely be,
When the earth is filled with the glory of God
As the waters cover the sea.
(Arthur C. Ainger, 1894)
Again ...
"But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead. "- Mark 6:16
Herod caught wind of the reports of Jesus' ministry, miracles, and message and it terrified him.
He thought he had solved his big problem with John the Baptist. As reluctant as he was to behead the prophet who kept pointing a finger at his chest, he must have assumed that the matter was settled once and for all.
Anyone who has tried to put a stop to cockroaches in their house knows that they breed quicker than we can kill them.
The God Movement that John had proclaimed, and that Jesus was propagating, would not die. No one could behead it. Nothing could stop it. They killed John, but there was Jesus. Jesus died, but he arose. He ascended, but he multiplied the movement r through his Spirit-filled people.
It certainly seemed that way to Herod.
John, whose indictment Herod had sought to silence, seemed to be back, haunting and taunting him.
We have had similar experiences when we have used our crude methods to silence the sound of our own consciences. We have felt haunted when we have exerted energy to avoid the still small voice in our souls urging us to take another direction in life.
We have been haunted by our guilt, our shame, our regrets, and our knowledge that our lives are not what either God or we ourselves want them to be.
Our response to that is more avoidance, terror, and greater haunting.
Herod cowered in his cold, dark, room,
Haunted by the rumors of a seer,
Trembling at approaching doom,
Overwhelmed with guilt and fear.
Herod could have responded the grace of God at any time. So can we. We can choose, to be haunted by the rumors of Jesus or drawn to his embrace. It is a choice.
If time is given to all, why do we need to buy it?
Perhaps that is a bit of a misnomer, but since we have often wasted, squandered, a sold time to the lowest bidder, we often need to buy some back. We need to redeem time, invest time, and save time as we use it wisely.
Every good thing takes time.
There is the time where you are putting in the hours and efforts. There is the time where you are waiting for results. There is even time when there is nothing you can do to improve on your efforts or rush things along.
“Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.” Earl Nightingale
CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN GOD ALLOWS TO BE IN YOUR PATH ON THE ROAD TO YOUR ULTIMATE DESTINATION.
We have not been created to stumble through life
We are equipped to traverse purposefully and deliberately on the path to God's vision for our lives, our ultimate destiny and that of all humanity and creation.
"They (WE) have stumbled over the stumbling stone, as it is written, "See, I am laying in Zion a stone that will make people stumble, a rock that will make them fall, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame." - from Romans 9:19-33 (excerpted from closing words)
"But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come." Excerpted from Matthew 24:1-14
Do not be alarmed. These things will happen, but we are not abandoned or forgotten.
Do not give up. Endure till the end.
Keep spreading the good news of the Kingdom. There will come a day when all wars shall cease.
But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only…Thereforebe ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. -Matthew 24:3, 44
Jesus presupposes that we understand a basic truth. He came once to show us the Father, announce the Kingdom, make the way of salvation, and commission his servants to spread the good news of God’s ultimate triumph.
He would come again to usher in that Kingdom in power and glory once and for all.
That is why we sing a Second Coming hymn in anticipate of Christmas.
Joy to the world, The Lord has come. Let earth receive her King. Let every heart prepare him room And Heaven and nature sing. He rules the world With truth and grace And makes the nations proves The glories of his righteousness And wonders of his love. -Isaac Watts
When know, roughly, when he came the first time.
We have no idea when he will come again.
What we know is that it is always just around the corner and Advent reminds us to always be standing on tiptoes, ready, joyfully expectant, diligently faithful, and always full of wonder like a child at Christmas.
That is because the very best Christmas is yet to come.
And for that, we can be thankful in advance.
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns Let men their songs employ. While fields and floods, Rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding joy, Repeat the sounding joy Repeat the sounding joy.
In the meantime, because that is where we are — in the mean of time:
We have mountains to climb and prayers to pray.
Father of Lights,
Lord of Glory,
Master of the Universe,
Arbiter of Covenants,
Leader in Battle,
Thou Who stillest the storm and declares peace,
Giver of good gifts,
Creator of all,
God of Heaven Whose footstool is earth,
King of Glory,
God of Peace in Whom is peace,
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Father, Son, Holy Spirit,
to Thee we come ...
I come,
empty,
troubled,
wondering,
wandering,
confounded,
complicated,
confused,
committed to Thee,
waiting upon Thee,
ready to speak Thy Word and do Thy bidding ...
this day.
I come.
I stand.
I wait.
May I bring Thy Word of peace to troubled waters today that they may be stilled.
May Thy presence be in my presence and may that presence speak peace to a world at war with itself.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
--------------------------
Climb that Mountain and Prepare to cross over and take possession of the land of promise
"... Go up to the top of Pisgah and look around you to the west, to the north, to the south, and to the east. Look well, for you shall not cross over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, because it is he who shall cross over at the head of this people and who shall secure their possession of the land that you will see." Excerpted from Deuteronomy 3:18-28
Climb every mountain God allows to be in your path on the road to your ultimate destination.
Hamburg was a market town populated by a majority of freed blacks in Aiken County, across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia.
The Hamburg Massacre (or Red Shirt Massacre was just prior to the last election season of the Reconstruction Era.
It was the first of a series of civil disturbances planned and carried out by white Democrats (Keep in mind that there was a mass exodus of Southern conservatives from the Democratic part in the 1960s/70 and similar reversal among Republicans).
The Edgefield District as majority Republican and progressive. The goal of the rioters was the suppression of black voting, disruption Republican meetings, and suppression of black Americans civil rights, through violence and threats of violence.
Over 100 white men attacked about 30 black servicemen of the National Guard at the armory, killing two.
Over 100 black people were killed during several days.
94 whites were indicted by the coroner's jury, but no one was ever prosecuted for the Hamburg murders
During the remainder of the century, laws were enacted calling for single-party white rule, legal segregation, "Jim Crow," and disenfranchisement of blacks from voting and office-holding with a new state constitution adopted in 1895.
Prayer is the human experience of a deep spiritual mystery.
Mutual communication with God is going on far beneath the surface of our lives. Not only do we often not know what to pray, we often know not what we are praying.
Dive In — Prayer from Deep Within that Takes Us Deeper - Tom Sims , Cultivator of Big Ideas·Follow16 min read· Just now--Share
Into the Depths OF THE MYSTERY OF PRAYER
This is not said that we might disengage our minds, but that, with engagement, we might also release our spirits to commune with the Holy Spirit who knows, overcomes, and even uses our weaknesses in prayer even as He does in our outward lives.
Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples. When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed.
“Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing? Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.
Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits.
These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra shirt. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”
They went out and preached that people should repent.
We have known Jesus in the American church for a long time. Have we known Him well? Why then is it that we cannot recognize Him when He shows up in different garb?
Matthew 13:53-58 And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. 58And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
We have become the 21st Century hometown of Jesus where we think we know Him and can control Him and He will not comply.
Just being in the presence of Jesus is compelling to the garden variety sinner and offensive to the self righteous. We still drive Him away.
Without raising His voice or asserting His position, the strength of His words and the power of His love cause offense.
No wonder we are offended by Jesus. He won't behave the way we want Him to. He won't sit quietly in a corner and be religious.
He disturbs our thinking, disrupts our comfort, disengages our biases, and distances us from our respectability.
What if our boxed-in, over-defined, socially acceptable Jesus is a our attempt to avoid the real Jesus who disturbs our thinking?
How much more could we be experiencing if we did not take such offense at the one we have grown accustomed to calling, "Lord?"
Matthew said he worked miracles at home, but called them few, implying that there could have been so many more.
Has the American church become the familiar & contemptuous hometown of Jesus where few signs are wrought for our lack of faith?
Jesus keeps showing up in the culture in ways we don't expect Him and we continue to reject Him. Sadly, that rejection usually comes first from His own people.
Our problem is not that we know Him too well; it is that we have known Him so long and only superficially.
What sort of faith in Him might bring again the mighty signs?
F - Faith that takes us FARTHER than we have been before in our capacity for imagination and service.
A - ACCEPTANCE of His authority to do more than amaze us.
I - INTENTIONAL resolve to continue our quest to discover the depths of who He is in intimate relationship.
T - TESTED faith that is constantly putting itself to the test.
H- HONOR, the quality sadly lacking in Jesus' hometown.
Does Familiarity Breed Contempt?
" The expression familiarity breeds contempt was first used in English in the 1300s by Geoffrey Chaucer, in his work, Tale of Melibee. The first use of the phrase is credited to Publilius Syrus, a Roman citizen who began life as a Syrian slave and lived around 50 B.C. His master was so impressed with his intellect that he freed Publilius Syrus and educated him." - https://grammarist.com/proverb/familiarity-breeds-contempt/
Son of Mary
“Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.“ - Mark 6:3
Some folks are motivated by a deep, sometimes pathological desire to impress the people of their hometowns, families, and neighborhoods. All the folks who once put us down will have to acknowledge that they were wrong. The critics of our childhoods and youth will eat their words.
“Don’t count on it,” Jesus says.
"Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house."
Mary was flesh and blood and Jesus was her son, flesh, blood, and connected with her people. We think very highly of Mary through the window of sacred history, but others saw the designation of Jesus as her son to be a justification for derision.
It was not her reputation for having conceived him out of wedlock at this point that framed their curses. That would come up at some point, but this was subtler. They accused him of being common and familiar. They knew him and his brothers and their familiarity bred contempt.
He was common and He was uncommon.
As the son of Mary, Jesus had history and culture, family and traditions. He was given the gifts of language, nuance, familial customs, memories, and relationships, but he was always, also the Son of God and that reality was easily obscured to those who knew Him best as a carpenter.
We must be careful not to allow familiarity to obscure holiness to our view. The ordinary may not be so ordinary at all. Our familiarity with the things of God can be a liability if we forget to seek the sacred amidst the profane.
So They Went Out
And they went out and preached that men should repent. – Mark 6:12
On July 4, 1776, a group of men gathered in a room, to sign a document that, under the laws of their motherland, would be considered an act of treason. They decided to rebel against England and start a new country with new laws and a new way of governing. That was fine for the moment, but it would be followed by years of commitment, bloodshed, war, and action. Then, when the war was over, it would take decades to build the nation for which they were declaring independence. If it had all ended with the signing ceremony, we would not have been celebrating ]each Independence Day.
What comes after a call, a decision, and a commissioning ceremony? A reception with glad hands, punch, and cake? A warm feeling?
What about the next day? Activation! You, like the disciples who were sent, go out. You embark on your journey.
That is what sending is all about. Disciple, pastor, missionary, teacher, minister, servant, and leader are not just titles. They are not honorary designations. An "apostle" is literally one who is sent.
The one who is sent must, then, go. It is in the going that we find our purpose and effectiveness. It is in that activity that we find the fountain of meaningful activity. It is through that initial movement in faith that we tap into resources we never knew we had.
When we go, doors of opportunity emerge in front of us. Conversations turn into moments of great significance. We become engaged in the work of God. But we must move, out and move forward.
It is very hard to turn a vehicle of any sort that is not moving. Lives on the move turn with greater ease. Jesus was usually walking when he asked people to follow him. You had to move to keep up and you had to keep up to hear what he had to say.
This time, he is not asking them to come to him but to go out from him, later to return with reports of men and women who have joined their following.
Because they were turning, they could encourage people to turn. That was their key message, "Repent," That means "Turn around."
Turn around and start moving in God's direction. That is what they were doing and inviting others to do. This strategy has not changed in 2000 years.
