Angie Hartman, our lay delegate to Annual Conference, and I participated in a historic event this past week: The first Annual Conference of the New Indiana Conference. (You might wonder about the meaning of the word Conference and why it is used differently in this same sentence. Annual Conference is a yearly event bringing together both lay and clergy delegates to work on the business of the Church but also to worship together and have fellowship. The New Indiana Conference is a geographical area, encompassing what were formerly the North and South Indiana Conferences. As you have read above in Dan’s article, the districts lines have also been redrawn. The Michiana District and parts of other districts will now be known as the North District. This North District is comprised of the counties of Lake, Porter, LaPorte, St. Joseph, Elkhart, Marshall (except Culver Emmanuel, Poplar Grove, Santa Anna, Richland Center, and Burton), Kosciusko (except for Pierceton, Morris Chapel, Packerton, Center, Mentone, Burkett, Akron, Beaver Dam, and Talma), plus DeMotte from Jasper County.
Our first Annual Conference of the New Indiana Conference also took place in a new location. For years, we had gathered at Purdue University in West Lafayette. This year, and probably for the next couple of years at least, we gathered at Ball State University in Muncie.
Because of the coming together of two geographical Conference areas, the number of delegates basically doubled at over 2000. I don’t recall the exact number which was given to us by the Bishop on the first day. That large number of delegates combined with a new, unfamiliar – at least for me – location was interesting. Needless to say that if you need to find someone, you better have their cell phone number, in order to get hold of them and set a meeting place.
We did conduct the business of the church but for me the best part of Annual Conference is the worship and preaching, fellowship and ordination service. Have you ever heard “O for a Thousand Tongue to Sing” sang by over 2000 people? Pretty cool! The praise team did a great job. I guess I am biased too because I have some friends singing in it. We heard good speakers, in Rev. Adam Hamilton and Rev. David Bell and a thoughtful ordination message from our Bishop Mike Coyner. He called it “Finish the Song”. It was a reminder that we are serving together and that when someone is in trouble, we are called to help them “finish the song” by supporting them and loving them. We should be in ministry serving together not as isolated as too many are.
I got to see pastor friends I had not seen in a long time because they are appointed pretty far from here. I shared a room with a good friend who was ordained this year. I remembered my ordination last year too but I think I was more excited about her being ordained than I was at my own ordination. Go figure…
I wrote briefly about community in our June newsletter. What I experienced at Annual Conference was community. A gathering of all kind of folks, different folks, with the same love for Jesus and desire to see His Kingdom grow here as it is in Heaven. Community is not always neat; it can be a little chaotic and messy but we are still the Body that Jesus has commissioned to do His work. We are a bunch of goofs and some would snicker that if we are the ones Jesus has commissioned to do His work, we are in deep trouble. In view of the declining membership of our churches and the fact that we are not reaching unchurched population as effectively as what Jesus calls us to, one could believe that but Jesus is clear that we are the ones. Someone said that we are the ones we have been waiting for. Indeed. No others are coming. We’re it! May the Spirit continue to grant us power and boldness for the task at hand! May we be known by our love and not our division.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Community
Community. I have been thinking quite a bit about community recently. True community is hard to come by in our society yet it is what we were designed for. We were never meant to do life alone. We see this early on in Genesis, when God creates everything including man. It is very soon apparent that something is missing. God says, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” (Gen. 2:18) We were created for community because God is a community God. He is, after all, a triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We were created for community and we all need community.
I think of community because we celebrated the day of Pentecost on May 31. Pentecost Sunday is the final Sunday of Easter. We celebrate Pentecost (see Acts 2) as the “birth” of the Church – this corporate faith community. The Church emerges - out of a frightened band of followers - after the resurrection of Jesus and after he goes back to Heaven (celebrated on Ascension day). The Holy Spirit who comes forms the church by making the Risen Christ manifest in power.
The church is a community called together by the Spirit of the Risen One. As such, it is different than other “organizations” such as the Rotary or Kiwanis for example. “The Greek word for church (ekklesia, from which we derive “ecclesiastical” means “those who have been called forth or summoned, much as one is summoned to appear in a court of law. And we are called as a body of interdependent parts, not as separable individuals (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-31)… Participation therefore is not something we do on the basis of personal choice or need; participation in the Body of Christ is inherent in being Christian… Therefore Christians participate in the church not so much for what they can get as for what they can give, for what they can offer as an alternative to the dominant ways of the world.”
Our society tends to isolate us more and more. Families are distant, geographically and too often emotionally. People move quite a bit. We seldom know our neighbors. Isolation and loneliness are rampant.
I believe that what the church – at its best - can offer is a community that cannot be found outside of it: A community which points to Jesus, as the source of everything; a community where love and forgiveness and healing can be found in the midst of the craziness of this world; a community which worships the God who gives purpose and meaning to life; the God of our salvation.
I hope and pray that we are – that we can be - that kind of church.
I think of community because we celebrated the day of Pentecost on May 31. Pentecost Sunday is the final Sunday of Easter. We celebrate Pentecost (see Acts 2) as the “birth” of the Church – this corporate faith community. The Church emerges - out of a frightened band of followers - after the resurrection of Jesus and after he goes back to Heaven (celebrated on Ascension day). The Holy Spirit who comes forms the church by making the Risen Christ manifest in power.
The church is a community called together by the Spirit of the Risen One. As such, it is different than other “organizations” such as the Rotary or Kiwanis for example. “The Greek word for church (ekklesia, from which we derive “ecclesiastical” means “those who have been called forth or summoned, much as one is summoned to appear in a court of law. And we are called as a body of interdependent parts, not as separable individuals (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-31)… Participation therefore is not something we do on the basis of personal choice or need; participation in the Body of Christ is inherent in being Christian… Therefore Christians participate in the church not so much for what they can get as for what they can give, for what they can offer as an alternative to the dominant ways of the world.”
Our society tends to isolate us more and more. Families are distant, geographically and too often emotionally. People move quite a bit. We seldom know our neighbors. Isolation and loneliness are rampant.
I believe that what the church – at its best - can offer is a community that cannot be found outside of it: A community which points to Jesus, as the source of everything; a community where love and forgiveness and healing can be found in the midst of the craziness of this world; a community which worships the God who gives purpose and meaning to life; the God of our salvation.
I hope and pray that we are – that we can be - that kind of church.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Surprising Grace
There are moments in life when hard stuff seems to come in bunches. These past few weeks have been like this. Our church is facing challenges. Then health stuff in the form of stomach flu for Steve and I and then the worst sinus infection/cold that I ever remember getting for me, requiring antibiotics, which I am still on. I am usually never sick. Is that God’s way of saying it is time for a vacation?
This week-end we were in the Columbus, Ohio, area for me to do our 21 year old niece Jennifer’s gravesite service. She dropped dead with no warning on Steve’s birthday 1/29. I officiated at her funeral on 2/4 and the family asked me to come back on 6/6to commit her ashes, along with her dad’s ashes. Dwight, Steve’s older brother, died of cancer 10 years ago on Easter Sunday and his wife’ Carol had held on to his ashes until then. His birthday was on 6/5. Carol felt she was now ready to let go, so that we could bury Dwight’s ashes along with Jennifer’s. We got to the cemetery in Pataskala Saturday late morning, with a bunch of family and friends gathered, only to find out that nothing was ready. The plot was not marked. There was no hole dug and no one from the funeral home or the cemetery to greet us. Inquiring phone calls remained fruitless till after we decided to proceed, hole or no hole. After the service we found out that a miscommunication had occurred and that the funeral home/cemetery had us down for July 6 instead of June 6! Carol had to go home with the urn that day. Not the way it was supposed to be…
Then on Sunday morning I find a voice mail on my cell phone from the husband of Sara, our church secretary, announcing that she had died in her sleep during the night. She had just had cancer surgery over the Memorial Day week-end. We had all thought that things had gone well. So well in fact that Sara said she felt good and she wanted to come back to work! And she did for a couple of days against my better counsel.
Several weeks back, we got a call from the new owners of Steve’s boyhood home in Pickerington, OH. They had tracked us down through the internet and wanted to hear more about the house and stories associated with it. Since we were going to be nearby for the gravesite service, Steve told them we could stop by. They invited us to an early dinner at 2 pm.
Frankly, visiting these folks, Sunday afternoon, after hearing about Sara’s death and still battling this sinus infection/cold was the last thing I wanted to do. But Steve was so excited at the prospect of seeing the inside of the house he had lived in from age 5 till he graduated from High School in 1973, and sharing with these people and seeing what they had/were going to do to the house, that I did not want to disappoint him and I decided that staying away mopping would not help anybody anyway.
This is when God’s grace totally blew me – us - away. We had stopped by Home Depot to pick up a planter to bring with us as a gift.
I carried the plant with me and as soon as our hostess opened the door, she greeted us by hugging us and proceeded to talk to us as if we had been friends forever. While I was surprised at getting hugged by a total stranger, there was nothing forced about any of it and she made us feel like family. No airs, no pretense, just genuine friendliness.
Steve’s youngest brother and his wife and 9 years old daughter had been invited too and they joined us shortly thereafter. They were greeted in the same warm manner. Steve and I had thought of only staying just long enough to not be rude and his brother Tom and family thought they would just come for a Coke. Next thing we know, we are helping set up the table outside on the patio and carrying food out and helping ourselves to some pop and ice tea. We all ended up staying till 8:30 pm that night and Jane and Sam (the new owners) acted like they were genuinely sorry to see us leave. We exchanged email addresses and phone no. and I do hope we stay in touch. I heard stories after stories of growing up and good times in this house and heard about what had changed and what had not. We walked all over the large backyard and along the creek at the back of the house. We saw every room in the house. Jane and Sam and their 15 years old daughter Sophie were the most hospitable folks I ever remember meeting. We found out common interests etc. Several of us mentioned afterward that this was in fact a God thing. It felt that way as we were visiting and eating great food – the best homemade chocolate cake! - and enjoyed gracious, unforced company. Turns out Jane and Sam are Christians, Catholics. But not overbearing just genuinely caring folks. She is a former teacher, turned nurse. He has a long title I can’t recall but it has to do with medical research.
The company, the great food, the memories shared felt like a healing balm and a Godly embrace. It was as God were saying, “I know that things have been a little rough lately but I am here and I love you. You will be OK.”
This week-end we were in the Columbus, Ohio, area for me to do our 21 year old niece Jennifer’s gravesite service. She dropped dead with no warning on Steve’s birthday 1/29. I officiated at her funeral on 2/4 and the family asked me to come back on 6/6to commit her ashes, along with her dad’s ashes. Dwight, Steve’s older brother, died of cancer 10 years ago on Easter Sunday and his wife’ Carol had held on to his ashes until then. His birthday was on 6/5. Carol felt she was now ready to let go, so that we could bury Dwight’s ashes along with Jennifer’s. We got to the cemetery in Pataskala Saturday late morning, with a bunch of family and friends gathered, only to find out that nothing was ready. The plot was not marked. There was no hole dug and no one from the funeral home or the cemetery to greet us. Inquiring phone calls remained fruitless till after we decided to proceed, hole or no hole. After the service we found out that a miscommunication had occurred and that the funeral home/cemetery had us down for July 6 instead of June 6! Carol had to go home with the urn that day. Not the way it was supposed to be…
Then on Sunday morning I find a voice mail on my cell phone from the husband of Sara, our church secretary, announcing that she had died in her sleep during the night. She had just had cancer surgery over the Memorial Day week-end. We had all thought that things had gone well. So well in fact that Sara said she felt good and she wanted to come back to work! And she did for a couple of days against my better counsel.
Several weeks back, we got a call from the new owners of Steve’s boyhood home in Pickerington, OH. They had tracked us down through the internet and wanted to hear more about the house and stories associated with it. Since we were going to be nearby for the gravesite service, Steve told them we could stop by. They invited us to an early dinner at 2 pm.
Frankly, visiting these folks, Sunday afternoon, after hearing about Sara’s death and still battling this sinus infection/cold was the last thing I wanted to do. But Steve was so excited at the prospect of seeing the inside of the house he had lived in from age 5 till he graduated from High School in 1973, and sharing with these people and seeing what they had/were going to do to the house, that I did not want to disappoint him and I decided that staying away mopping would not help anybody anyway.
This is when God’s grace totally blew me – us - away. We had stopped by Home Depot to pick up a planter to bring with us as a gift.
I carried the plant with me and as soon as our hostess opened the door, she greeted us by hugging us and proceeded to talk to us as if we had been friends forever. While I was surprised at getting hugged by a total stranger, there was nothing forced about any of it and she made us feel like family. No airs, no pretense, just genuine friendliness.
Steve’s youngest brother and his wife and 9 years old daughter had been invited too and they joined us shortly thereafter. They were greeted in the same warm manner. Steve and I had thought of only staying just long enough to not be rude and his brother Tom and family thought they would just come for a Coke. Next thing we know, we are helping set up the table outside on the patio and carrying food out and helping ourselves to some pop and ice tea. We all ended up staying till 8:30 pm that night and Jane and Sam (the new owners) acted like they were genuinely sorry to see us leave. We exchanged email addresses and phone no. and I do hope we stay in touch. I heard stories after stories of growing up and good times in this house and heard about what had changed and what had not. We walked all over the large backyard and along the creek at the back of the house. We saw every room in the house. Jane and Sam and their 15 years old daughter Sophie were the most hospitable folks I ever remember meeting. We found out common interests etc. Several of us mentioned afterward that this was in fact a God thing. It felt that way as we were visiting and eating great food – the best homemade chocolate cake! - and enjoyed gracious, unforced company. Turns out Jane and Sam are Christians, Catholics. But not overbearing just genuinely caring folks. She is a former teacher, turned nurse. He has a long title I can’t recall but it has to do with medical research.
The company, the great food, the memories shared felt like a healing balm and a Godly embrace. It was as God were saying, “I know that things have been a little rough lately but I am here and I love you. You will be OK.”
Monday, June 1, 2009
Stuck in my head
I have a tendency to get stuck in my head. If I am not careful I can get overly cerebral. I want to analyze stuff too much at times. I find myself doing this in times of stress in particular. I get very physically and mentally active and I retreat in my head and I stuff my emotions. God stopped me in my tracks with that this week. It took an image in a devotional publication that I love called Alive Now. It is a publication of the Upper Room which helps me surrender to God and helps me get out of my head. The May/June issue is written by the folks, both clergy and lay, from our Indiana Conference. Deals with change and the difficulty of change and the resource we have in God. On page 17 there is a picture of cracked rocks and from the cracks come out green leaves and tiny purple flowers. I found myself with tears in my eyes looking at this picture. I was surprised by that. Again, I started asking myself why I felt that way and I started analyzing: Let’s see, I feel this way because this picture reminds me that in the dry moments of our lives, God can bring life. Well, this picture looks like something out of the parable of the sower… Stop! Get out of your head! Receive the picture as a gift to be cherished. Just let your heart be touched. Yeah… Thanks God.
Oh, another way I get out of my head is by reading Calvin and Hobbes. Why do we always have to be so grown-up and responsible!
PS: The picture herewith is not the picture in Alive Now but it is something like that.
Friendship and Grace
Friendship is a gift and grace is undeserved love. I have been on the receiving end of both love and grace, especially these past two weeks. A friend is someone who loves you even when you don’t feel like you deserve it and when you are weird. People who know me best probably would say I am weird all the time. My significant other tells me that – in all fun and love.
God showed up through a couple of friends recently when I really needed to hear I am loved even when I am weird. You guys know who you are. Thanks. Love you back.
Do you have someone in your life who loves you like that?
God showed up through a couple of friends recently when I really needed to hear I am loved even when I am weird. You guys know who you are. Thanks. Love you back.
Do you have someone in your life who loves you like that?
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Comfort in rough times
Printed in our May church newsletter
I was sitting at a local Body Shop this week waiting for the folks there to reinstall a strip on one of the doors of my car. Several weeks ago my car was damaged while parked as I was grocery shopping. I found the other driver. We talked. Turns out she remembered me from a funeral I had officiated at for a relative. Small world. Finally we got things resolved through her insurance company and mine.
While sitting there waiting for my car to be serviced, I pulled my Bible and a little pocket prayer book from Upper Room that I have had for several years. The cover reads, “Prayers for Courage-Words of Faith for Difficult Times.” (May-June 2003 Extra Issue.) I began to read these prayers. Several “jumped” at me.
The Lord is my Light and my Salvation; Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)
When I am afraid, I will trust in you. (Psalm 56:3)
Thus says the LORD, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers; they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God. (Isaiah 43:1-3)
Why am I sharing this with you? We have been facing some rough times, especially these past few months. This economic recession we are going through has hit most of us pretty hard, at some level. Folks talk with me; call me or email me; ask for prayer. Times are uncertain; I hear questions of “end times” in Sunday School; jobs are jeopardized or have ended… Money is tight. It’s not only jobs and moneyI hear about: Marriages or other relationships are rocky; health is failing for many of us…
Life has a way of bringing us face to face with the fact that things never remain the same; earthly things are temporary. We don’t have any control over most things. All these are sources of anxiety. But we have one thing that we can control and that is how we react and respond when we feel anxious and scared.
We just celebrated Easter. We talked about the Easter power that is made available to us through the Holy Spirit. We talked about the fact that we are empty-tomb people and the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead and this means Hope and Life for his followers. So we can claim this Power, this Hope, this Life or we can let fear paralyze us into despair and inaction.
Old timers, who remember the Great Depression of the 1930’s and remember World War II, remind us that “this too shall pass.” It is a call for us to remember what is important and to whom we look for strength and courage.
Perspective: Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) Where is our heart?
The thing about fear, if we let it control us, is that it can make us inward-looking people: We can start worrying so much about ourselves and our well-being that we become blind and uncaring about the people and needs around us. We can forget the track record that God has with His people – us – we can forget the promises offered in the Bible and we can forget to be the Church.
These are testing times for sure. How will we respond to fear and seemingly endless needs?
Will we be the Church?
We have many opportunities to be the Church. One such opportunity will happen on May 9 as United Way and the Post-office - partnering with areas churches and Church Community Services and other local food pantries – have their annual mail-carrier food drive to gather a lot of food for people who are hungry. Before that day, you will receive an empty grocery bag to take home and fill up to capacity. Further instructions are forthcoming about this.
“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There was no needy persons among them.” (Acts 4:32-34)
As the hymn says, “The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple, the church is not a resting place, the church is a people. We are the Church” (UMH 558)
Let it be so!
I was sitting at a local Body Shop this week waiting for the folks there to reinstall a strip on one of the doors of my car. Several weeks ago my car was damaged while parked as I was grocery shopping. I found the other driver. We talked. Turns out she remembered me from a funeral I had officiated at for a relative. Small world. Finally we got things resolved through her insurance company and mine.
While sitting there waiting for my car to be serviced, I pulled my Bible and a little pocket prayer book from Upper Room that I have had for several years. The cover reads, “Prayers for Courage-Words of Faith for Difficult Times.” (May-June 2003 Extra Issue.) I began to read these prayers. Several “jumped” at me.
The Lord is my Light and my Salvation; Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)
When I am afraid, I will trust in you. (Psalm 56:3)
Thus says the LORD, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers; they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God. (Isaiah 43:1-3)
Why am I sharing this with you? We have been facing some rough times, especially these past few months. This economic recession we are going through has hit most of us pretty hard, at some level. Folks talk with me; call me or email me; ask for prayer. Times are uncertain; I hear questions of “end times” in Sunday School; jobs are jeopardized or have ended… Money is tight. It’s not only jobs and moneyI hear about: Marriages or other relationships are rocky; health is failing for many of us…
Life has a way of bringing us face to face with the fact that things never remain the same; earthly things are temporary. We don’t have any control over most things. All these are sources of anxiety. But we have one thing that we can control and that is how we react and respond when we feel anxious and scared.
We just celebrated Easter. We talked about the Easter power that is made available to us through the Holy Spirit. We talked about the fact that we are empty-tomb people and the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead and this means Hope and Life for his followers. So we can claim this Power, this Hope, this Life or we can let fear paralyze us into despair and inaction.
Old timers, who remember the Great Depression of the 1930’s and remember World War II, remind us that “this too shall pass.” It is a call for us to remember what is important and to whom we look for strength and courage.
Perspective: Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) Where is our heart?
The thing about fear, if we let it control us, is that it can make us inward-looking people: We can start worrying so much about ourselves and our well-being that we become blind and uncaring about the people and needs around us. We can forget the track record that God has with His people – us – we can forget the promises offered in the Bible and we can forget to be the Church.
These are testing times for sure. How will we respond to fear and seemingly endless needs?
Will we be the Church?
We have many opportunities to be the Church. One such opportunity will happen on May 9 as United Way and the Post-office - partnering with areas churches and Church Community Services and other local food pantries – have their annual mail-carrier food drive to gather a lot of food for people who are hungry. Before that day, you will receive an empty grocery bag to take home and fill up to capacity. Further instructions are forthcoming about this.
“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There was no needy persons among them.” (Acts 4:32-34)
As the hymn says, “The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple, the church is not a resting place, the church is a people. We are the Church” (UMH 558)
Let it be so!
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Our Life Together - Holy Friendship
I attended our yearly Life Together clergy conference at St. Luke’s UMC Indianapolis this past Monday and Tuesday. The theme this year was Holy Friendship. We heard presentation from Bishop Janice Huie of the Texas Conference and her experience of bringing together two separate conferences. Since we are in process of bringing the North and South Indiana conferences together, this was interesting.
Matt Bloom (husband of Kim Bloom, associate pastor at SB Clay UMC – and associate professor of Management at Notre Dame) reported on surveys results which we were asked to fill out online in regards to what makes our work as clergy fulfilling and meaningful. In a very small nutshell, what I got out of these survey results – which are still being processed and looked at - is that there is a great passion for service among our clergy but also a sense of discouragement and loneliness were very much present. Being in a pastor in our day and time is much more challenging than it used to be. Long hours and comparatively small pay (for pastors with a Masters’ degree when compared with other professions requiring Masters’ degree) is a source of frustration for many.
Dr. Joyce Moore, associate Dean for the Center for Lifelong Learning at Duke Divinity School talked about this sense of community we all need.
Current Calumet DS Michelle Cobb briefly talked about an upcoming Clergy Wellness program, which will partly be underwritten by a Lilly Foundation grant to help with increasing the mental and physical health of pastors and decrease the sense of isolation among us. More accountability will also apparently be required. I do not have any more details about this at this time.
Lastly we laughed with Mishawaka comedian Craig Tornquist who had already made us laugh at our last Michiana district Christmas party.
We hear interesting people at these kinds of gatherings. The worship was good: More quiet and reflective on the first day and more upbeat the second morning. The last worship of the gathering, Tuesday afternoon, included communion which, for me, is always a moving moment. Seeing hundreds of pastors – some I know and whom are friends – come forward to receive the bread and juice is a powerful thing.
But I would say the most meaningful thing for me – not that these other things are not – is to see pastor friends I had not seen in a while. There was some free time Monday night and the group of pastors I was ordained with (minus of couple) gathered together at a local restaurant for dinner. It was great to see these people whom I have grown to love in the course of our ordination process together. Some I see more often because we serve the same district but some are geographically distant and we had not seen each other in months. Getting together was the highlight for me.
I also felt a great sense of belonging to something more important than me as we were together worshipping a great God. I am grateful.
Matt Bloom (husband of Kim Bloom, associate pastor at SB Clay UMC – and associate professor of Management at Notre Dame) reported on surveys results which we were asked to fill out online in regards to what makes our work as clergy fulfilling and meaningful. In a very small nutshell, what I got out of these survey results – which are still being processed and looked at - is that there is a great passion for service among our clergy but also a sense of discouragement and loneliness were very much present. Being in a pastor in our day and time is much more challenging than it used to be. Long hours and comparatively small pay (for pastors with a Masters’ degree when compared with other professions requiring Masters’ degree) is a source of frustration for many.
Dr. Joyce Moore, associate Dean for the Center for Lifelong Learning at Duke Divinity School talked about this sense of community we all need.
Current Calumet DS Michelle Cobb briefly talked about an upcoming Clergy Wellness program, which will partly be underwritten by a Lilly Foundation grant to help with increasing the mental and physical health of pastors and decrease the sense of isolation among us. More accountability will also apparently be required. I do not have any more details about this at this time.
Lastly we laughed with Mishawaka comedian Craig Tornquist who had already made us laugh at our last Michiana district Christmas party.
We hear interesting people at these kinds of gatherings. The worship was good: More quiet and reflective on the first day and more upbeat the second morning. The last worship of the gathering, Tuesday afternoon, included communion which, for me, is always a moving moment. Seeing hundreds of pastors – some I know and whom are friends – come forward to receive the bread and juice is a powerful thing.
But I would say the most meaningful thing for me – not that these other things are not – is to see pastor friends I had not seen in a while. There was some free time Monday night and the group of pastors I was ordained with (minus of couple) gathered together at a local restaurant for dinner. It was great to see these people whom I have grown to love in the course of our ordination process together. Some I see more often because we serve the same district but some are geographically distant and we had not seen each other in months. Getting together was the highlight for me.
I also felt a great sense of belonging to something more important than me as we were together worshipping a great God. I am grateful.
Easter Power
Acts 4:32-37 - Preached on 4/19/09 at Elkhart Bethel UMC
I love the season of Lent and Easter. That is my favorite time in our church liturgical calendar. In some ways, I like this time of year more than Christmas. I think that is one of the reasons I find myself a little disconcerted and a little sad when Easter day is over. For me, as a pastor, so much time and effort go into the preparation for these times in our liturgical calendar and then the season is quickly forgotten, it seems. The headlines read the same: Economic recession, wars, floods, earthquakes, diseases, death…Does Easter really change anything?
One could get discouraged but then I look at what happens after Easter. We read about this in the book of Acts. This is an amazing book that Luke wrote to tell us about God being at work in establishing the Church of Jesus Christ and its early progression. It is a great book which shows us the power of God and the growing pains as the Church gets birthed. We read of acts which display incredible, beautiful faith; actions which sadden God; the good things, the difficult things…
We have already witnessed incredible things happening: Can the death of Jesus and God raising him from the dead ever become routine?
Amazing things continue to happen. Do you remember Peter, who had denied Jesus three times when Jesus was doing through the most difficult time of his earthly life? The same Peter is now preaching a powerful message. Healings happen. Large numbers are converted.
Well, not everybody appreciates the convicting words and this resurrection thing is a definite stumbling block for many. Peter and John are arrested by the religious authorities and questioned. Peter and John are released unharmed for the authorities fear the people might riot.
Their release triggers an amazing prayer from the believers. They praise the mighty acts of God and ask for boldness in their proclamation of faith. And an incredible thing happens. We witness a second Pentecost of sorts. We are told that, “After this prayer, the building where they were meeting shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. And they preached God’s message with boldness.” (v. 4:31, NLT) Now, who said prayer does not do anything!
This brings us to our text for today. I have to be honest: I have resisted preaching on this passage. I had, up to now, always preached on the other Lectionary text of John 20:19-31 which deals with Jesus appearing, post-resurrection, to his disciples and the reaction of Thomas.
I am cool with the first verse. I read, “All the believers were of one heart and mind.” (v. 4:32a) and I find myself sitting up and leaning forward because I want to know more about that.
But then, I read the second part of verse 32, “They felt that what they owned was not their own. They shared everything they had.” And I find myself recoiling. This sound like living in a commune or communism or something. I like my stuff. I have some cool books and neat CDs and I am pretty possessive when it comes to my laptop. What do you mean “they shared everything? ”
I know what happens when I have shared before: I don’t get my stuff back or if it comes back, there are grease stains on the pages of my books and leftover crumbs from potato chips or other greasy snacks that were eaten by the reader stuck on the pages. The CDs have come back scratched with the case cracked. OK, I am exaggerating a little but I have had instances like that so I am a little reticent to let my stuff go. I ask for a security deposit and make a photocopy of the borrower’s driver’s license.
It’s not just books and CDs, it’s big stuff the text talks about: “From time to time, those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet and it was distributed to anyone as he had need. (v. 4:34b-35, NIV – Not all versions of the Bible say “From time to time” by the way.)
This way of living was radical then but more so now in our so very individualistic and materialistic society.
God has been working with me and this text. I realize now that what I am reading about is the Easter power at work. This happened because the resurrection is true and God has sent His Spirit to us and His Spirit enables to think in ways and act in ways which would be really hard, if not impossible, for us to do on our own.
I believe that what God wants us to see is THE MARK OF A GREAT CHURCH:
1. UNITY: “All the believers were of one heart and mind” (v. 32) This does not mean that people, all of a sudden, lose their individuality and personality. What I believe this mean is that they are so in love with Jesus and so full of the Spirit, that what God wants becomes more important than what they want. We are called to be so full of the Spirit and so in love with Jesus, that our stuff does not take precedence over someone else’s needs. Giving is not mandatory but it happens out of love.
What would that look like for us to have that kind of unity, that kind of close-knit community?
“British author and theologian C.S. Lewis, wrote a classic, entitled, “The Screwtape Letters.” In it, he imagined Screwtape as being the Devil (or as he describes himself, “undersecretary of the department of temptation”) and his nephew, Wormwood, a “junior tempter” who had been assigned the responsibility of recruiting members for the Kingdom of Hell.
In one chapter, Screwtape is talking to Wormwood. He says, “you will find that the church is fertile soil. One of the best places to find recruits to Hell is in the church.”
Now here is his advice to Wormwood, “Keep them bickering over programs, procedures, money, organization, personal hurts, misgivings. Keep them bickering. Whatever you do, don’t let them see the banners wave, because if they ever see the banners wave, we’ve lost them forever.”
I think that what C.S. Lewis is saying is that the secret to carrying out the great commission of reaching out people for Jesus is that when our vision is fixed on Jesus, and we are so caught up in Him, we won’t have time to bicker. We won’t have time to worry about our little hurts. When we are caught up in carrying His banner to a lost and dying world then the church will march forward in triumph once again. ”
What would it look like for the millions of Christians on this earth to come together, regardless of denominations, to work for the greater good of the Kingdom of God?
On a much smaller scale, what would it look like for our cluster groups to work together? You should be aware by now that we have formed a cluster with Trinity, St. Paul, Calvary, Elkhart First, Jimtown and Hillcrest. We had our first meeting Saturday morning at Perkins. The turnout was pretty good and we spent over an hour getting to know one another. I was sitting by Don Reed the pastor at Elkhart First and facing a couple of his lay leaders. Except for St. Paul’s (Bill Hemmig is on vacation but they had a lay leader there) all the pastors showed up. We talked about the possibility of doing VBS together or maybe having a common men’s prayer group. Maybe a joint youth group. There are several possibilities. This is an initial meeting. This is something that cannot be only pastor lead. It is meant to be lay lead.
Maybe more unity can start at the grass root level through these cluster groups.
2. GENEROSITY: As I said earlier, v. 32b had caused me to pause and decide to preach on something else up to now.
Was Luke thinking like Karl Marx, linking every human attitude and action to an economic source? “No,” says William Willimon, the Alabama area Bishop of the UMC “Luke was not a Marxist, but he was enough of a realist to know that there is a good chance that where our possessions are, our hearts will be also.”
A surprisingly large amount of the book of Acts deals with economic issues within the community, just as much of Luke’s first volume, his gospel, deals with matters of money (consider the parables of the Debtors, the Good Samaritan, the Rich Fool, the Unjust Steward, the Rich Man and Lazarus and the Pounds. Wealth is not, for Luke, a sign of divine approval — it is a danger (William H. Willimon, Acts [Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1988], 52).
In a society which believed that wealth and good health was a sign of blessing from God, this generosity, displayed by some of the early Christians, was as radical then as it is now. They seem to have taken the command of Deuteronomy 15:4, “there should be no poor among you…” pretty seriously.
If we look at the story of the man born blind in John 9, we get an idea that poverty or a disability of some kind was linked to sin. The thought was basically that people deserved their position because of what they did or what their relatives did.
The disciples, in John 9, asked Jesus, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”(v. 2) Jesus turns their assumption upside down, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” (v. 3)
Look at the book of Job also for this.
I don’t think that this notion of deserving our fate is too far removed from our modern thoughts. We still believe, too much of the time, that people are in trouble because of something they did or failed to do, because of laziness or some other character flaws.
We might also feel that if we try to help, we might end up being taken advantage of or enabling people to continue in their self-destructive behavior. Jesus does not ask us to leave our brain at the door when we follow him but he asks us to open our hearts to human suffering and need and respond accordingly. It is a challenge for sure.
Here is an exotic tale to illustrate: An Arab prince once owned a beautiful horse which was the envy of all. One man in particular tried to buy the horse, but the prince refused to set a price. One day the prince was riding across the desert. He saw the body of a man lying in the path, apparently exhausted. The prince dismounted and put the unfortunate traveler on his horse. Immediately, the traveled revived, straightened up and rode off. It was the very man who had tried so often to buy the prince’s horse. Now he had obtained the horse without paying anything.
“Wait!” cried the prince. “Please tell no one how you got that horse.”
“Why?” laughed the thief, “are you afraid they will laugh at you?”
“No” said the prince, “I am afraid it might hinder someone else from offering help to some other traveler whose need is genuine.” The eternal dilemma: We see someone in need, but we are afraid that we will be taken advantage of if we try to help or we’re afraid that they are somehow undeserving.
Things were not perfect then either. Read the story of Ananias and Sapphira which follows our story today (Acts 5:1-10). They sold a piece of property but lied, with dire consequences, about the proceeds they were giving to the church.
The distribution of food and other necessities was not always without problems either. Read the story of the distribution of food to the Grecian (Hellenist) Jewish widows in Acts 6. This leads directly to the choosing of seven “deacons” to deal with the situation.
Things are not perfect now but we are called nevertheless to be good stewards of what God has entrusted us with. This might mean, among other things, that we work with agencies like Church Community Services or Salvation Army to help insure that something is done to help the less fortunate.
3. GREAT WITNESS: I have shared with you briefly before that I was loved into the Kingdom. There is something really compelling and attractive about a group of people coming together and doing their best to love one another and impact their surrounding in the name of Jesus.
I told you before that I hang out with a bunch of male pastors who talk sports quite a bit. So I am trying to educate myself some on American sports. I came across this story which made me chuckle. I am assuming it is true. For you football fans, “Tommy Bell, a member of the Southland Christian Church in Lexington, KY, was a NFL referee in the third Super Bowl between the New York Jets and Baltimore Colts in 1968 (Wikipedia). In that Super Bowl, Fred O’ Brien was a player. Now Fred had one good eye and one glass eye. In one play he hit the other guy so hard with his helmet that his glass eye popped out and fell on the dusty ground. So they stopped the game, picked up the glass eye, washed it off and then Fred popped it back into his eye socket.
Tommy Bell, the referee, walked over to him and said, “Fred, I didn’t know you had just one eye. What in the world are you doing playing football? Don’t you realize how dangerous this is? What if someone should poke you in your good eye? You’d be blind. What would you do if you were blind?” O’Brien turned to Tommy Bell and said, “I’d be a referee, just like you.”
I like that story. God gave me two eyes and a body that is only going to be around for a while so I am not going to sit around here with my hands folded waiting for life to get easy. God has given each of us gifts and graces to be used in his name. In John 13:35, Jesus says, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you’re my disciples.” (NLT)
American author and war correspondent Marguerite Higgins (1920-1966) was the first woman to win a Pulitzer prize for reporting what she heard from an old army sergeant in Korea during the Korean conflict. 15,000 of our soldiers had been dug in for several weeks, facing more than 100,000 communist soldiers on the other side of the valley. They had been shooting at each other for weeks. They had been living on K rations, unable to bathe, unable to shave. They just sat there day after day cold and freezing, thinking that today might be their day to die.
Marguerite Higgins climbed to the top of the hill with her notebook and pencil to interview the soldiers. She went from one to another until she came to this tough old army sergeant. She posed this question to him, “If I were God and if I could give you anything you wanted, what would you ask for?” The old sergeant thought for a moment, repeated the question and said, “Well, if you were God and if you could give me anything I wanted, here is what I would ask for: I would ask for tomorrow… I would ask for tomorrow.”
Thanks to Jesus we have been given tomorrow. That’s what one of my favorite hymns affirms as well:
Because he lives, I can face tomorrow;
Because he lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know he holds the future
And life is worth the living just because he lives. (UMH 364)
Easter makes a difference. It did then. It does now. The Easter power is available to us through Jesus. We can live today and face tomorrow thanks to Jesus.
I find it really interesting that we are looking at this text in the midst of the worst economic recession we have been faced with since the Great Depression, commentators tell us.
In times of struggles and uncertainty, there is a strong inclination for us to look inward and take care of ourselves. There is a strong inclination to grow blinders preventing us to see the needs around us. There is a strong inclination to dwell on what we think we cannot do, or on what we think we do not have. There is a strong inclination to forget that we are the Church.
Do you hear: Because he lives, all fear is gone.
Dan Parker shared a great verse from the Bible with the finance committee this past week in his starting devotion:
“Give whatever you can according to what you have. If you are really eager to give, it isn’t important how much you are able to give. God wants you to give what you have, not what you don’t have.” (2 Cor. 8:11-12)
Because He lives we can face tomorrow. Amen!
I love the season of Lent and Easter. That is my favorite time in our church liturgical calendar. In some ways, I like this time of year more than Christmas. I think that is one of the reasons I find myself a little disconcerted and a little sad when Easter day is over. For me, as a pastor, so much time and effort go into the preparation for these times in our liturgical calendar and then the season is quickly forgotten, it seems. The headlines read the same: Economic recession, wars, floods, earthquakes, diseases, death…Does Easter really change anything?
One could get discouraged but then I look at what happens after Easter. We read about this in the book of Acts. This is an amazing book that Luke wrote to tell us about God being at work in establishing the Church of Jesus Christ and its early progression. It is a great book which shows us the power of God and the growing pains as the Church gets birthed. We read of acts which display incredible, beautiful faith; actions which sadden God; the good things, the difficult things…
We have already witnessed incredible things happening: Can the death of Jesus and God raising him from the dead ever become routine?
Amazing things continue to happen. Do you remember Peter, who had denied Jesus three times when Jesus was doing through the most difficult time of his earthly life? The same Peter is now preaching a powerful message. Healings happen. Large numbers are converted.
Well, not everybody appreciates the convicting words and this resurrection thing is a definite stumbling block for many. Peter and John are arrested by the religious authorities and questioned. Peter and John are released unharmed for the authorities fear the people might riot.
Their release triggers an amazing prayer from the believers. They praise the mighty acts of God and ask for boldness in their proclamation of faith. And an incredible thing happens. We witness a second Pentecost of sorts. We are told that, “After this prayer, the building where they were meeting shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. And they preached God’s message with boldness.” (v. 4:31, NLT) Now, who said prayer does not do anything!
This brings us to our text for today. I have to be honest: I have resisted preaching on this passage. I had, up to now, always preached on the other Lectionary text of John 20:19-31 which deals with Jesus appearing, post-resurrection, to his disciples and the reaction of Thomas.
I am cool with the first verse. I read, “All the believers were of one heart and mind.” (v. 4:32a) and I find myself sitting up and leaning forward because I want to know more about that.
But then, I read the second part of verse 32, “They felt that what they owned was not their own. They shared everything they had.” And I find myself recoiling. This sound like living in a commune or communism or something. I like my stuff. I have some cool books and neat CDs and I am pretty possessive when it comes to my laptop. What do you mean “they shared everything? ”
I know what happens when I have shared before: I don’t get my stuff back or if it comes back, there are grease stains on the pages of my books and leftover crumbs from potato chips or other greasy snacks that were eaten by the reader stuck on the pages. The CDs have come back scratched with the case cracked. OK, I am exaggerating a little but I have had instances like that so I am a little reticent to let my stuff go. I ask for a security deposit and make a photocopy of the borrower’s driver’s license.
It’s not just books and CDs, it’s big stuff the text talks about: “From time to time, those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet and it was distributed to anyone as he had need. (v. 4:34b-35, NIV – Not all versions of the Bible say “From time to time” by the way.)
This way of living was radical then but more so now in our so very individualistic and materialistic society.
God has been working with me and this text. I realize now that what I am reading about is the Easter power at work. This happened because the resurrection is true and God has sent His Spirit to us and His Spirit enables to think in ways and act in ways which would be really hard, if not impossible, for us to do on our own.
I believe that what God wants us to see is THE MARK OF A GREAT CHURCH:
1. UNITY: “All the believers were of one heart and mind” (v. 32) This does not mean that people, all of a sudden, lose their individuality and personality. What I believe this mean is that they are so in love with Jesus and so full of the Spirit, that what God wants becomes more important than what they want. We are called to be so full of the Spirit and so in love with Jesus, that our stuff does not take precedence over someone else’s needs. Giving is not mandatory but it happens out of love.
What would that look like for us to have that kind of unity, that kind of close-knit community?
“British author and theologian C.S. Lewis, wrote a classic, entitled, “The Screwtape Letters.” In it, he imagined Screwtape as being the Devil (or as he describes himself, “undersecretary of the department of temptation”) and his nephew, Wormwood, a “junior tempter” who had been assigned the responsibility of recruiting members for the Kingdom of Hell.
In one chapter, Screwtape is talking to Wormwood. He says, “you will find that the church is fertile soil. One of the best places to find recruits to Hell is in the church.”
Now here is his advice to Wormwood, “Keep them bickering over programs, procedures, money, organization, personal hurts, misgivings. Keep them bickering. Whatever you do, don’t let them see the banners wave, because if they ever see the banners wave, we’ve lost them forever.”
I think that what C.S. Lewis is saying is that the secret to carrying out the great commission of reaching out people for Jesus is that when our vision is fixed on Jesus, and we are so caught up in Him, we won’t have time to bicker. We won’t have time to worry about our little hurts. When we are caught up in carrying His banner to a lost and dying world then the church will march forward in triumph once again. ”
What would it look like for the millions of Christians on this earth to come together, regardless of denominations, to work for the greater good of the Kingdom of God?
On a much smaller scale, what would it look like for our cluster groups to work together? You should be aware by now that we have formed a cluster with Trinity, St. Paul, Calvary, Elkhart First, Jimtown and Hillcrest. We had our first meeting Saturday morning at Perkins. The turnout was pretty good and we spent over an hour getting to know one another. I was sitting by Don Reed the pastor at Elkhart First and facing a couple of his lay leaders. Except for St. Paul’s (Bill Hemmig is on vacation but they had a lay leader there) all the pastors showed up. We talked about the possibility of doing VBS together or maybe having a common men’s prayer group. Maybe a joint youth group. There are several possibilities. This is an initial meeting. This is something that cannot be only pastor lead. It is meant to be lay lead.
Maybe more unity can start at the grass root level through these cluster groups.
2. GENEROSITY: As I said earlier, v. 32b had caused me to pause and decide to preach on something else up to now.
Was Luke thinking like Karl Marx, linking every human attitude and action to an economic source? “No,” says William Willimon, the Alabama area Bishop of the UMC “Luke was not a Marxist, but he was enough of a realist to know that there is a good chance that where our possessions are, our hearts will be also.”
A surprisingly large amount of the book of Acts deals with economic issues within the community, just as much of Luke’s first volume, his gospel, deals with matters of money (consider the parables of the Debtors, the Good Samaritan, the Rich Fool, the Unjust Steward, the Rich Man and Lazarus and the Pounds. Wealth is not, for Luke, a sign of divine approval — it is a danger (William H. Willimon, Acts [Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1988], 52).
In a society which believed that wealth and good health was a sign of blessing from God, this generosity, displayed by some of the early Christians, was as radical then as it is now. They seem to have taken the command of Deuteronomy 15:4, “there should be no poor among you…” pretty seriously.
If we look at the story of the man born blind in John 9, we get an idea that poverty or a disability of some kind was linked to sin. The thought was basically that people deserved their position because of what they did or what their relatives did.
The disciples, in John 9, asked Jesus, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”(v. 2) Jesus turns their assumption upside down, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” (v. 3)
Look at the book of Job also for this.
I don’t think that this notion of deserving our fate is too far removed from our modern thoughts. We still believe, too much of the time, that people are in trouble because of something they did or failed to do, because of laziness or some other character flaws.
We might also feel that if we try to help, we might end up being taken advantage of or enabling people to continue in their self-destructive behavior. Jesus does not ask us to leave our brain at the door when we follow him but he asks us to open our hearts to human suffering and need and respond accordingly. It is a challenge for sure.
Here is an exotic tale to illustrate: An Arab prince once owned a beautiful horse which was the envy of all. One man in particular tried to buy the horse, but the prince refused to set a price. One day the prince was riding across the desert. He saw the body of a man lying in the path, apparently exhausted. The prince dismounted and put the unfortunate traveler on his horse. Immediately, the traveled revived, straightened up and rode off. It was the very man who had tried so often to buy the prince’s horse. Now he had obtained the horse without paying anything.
“Wait!” cried the prince. “Please tell no one how you got that horse.”
“Why?” laughed the thief, “are you afraid they will laugh at you?”
“No” said the prince, “I am afraid it might hinder someone else from offering help to some other traveler whose need is genuine.” The eternal dilemma: We see someone in need, but we are afraid that we will be taken advantage of if we try to help or we’re afraid that they are somehow undeserving.
Things were not perfect then either. Read the story of Ananias and Sapphira which follows our story today (Acts 5:1-10). They sold a piece of property but lied, with dire consequences, about the proceeds they were giving to the church.
The distribution of food and other necessities was not always without problems either. Read the story of the distribution of food to the Grecian (Hellenist) Jewish widows in Acts 6. This leads directly to the choosing of seven “deacons” to deal with the situation.
Things are not perfect now but we are called nevertheless to be good stewards of what God has entrusted us with. This might mean, among other things, that we work with agencies like Church Community Services or Salvation Army to help insure that something is done to help the less fortunate.
3. GREAT WITNESS: I have shared with you briefly before that I was loved into the Kingdom. There is something really compelling and attractive about a group of people coming together and doing their best to love one another and impact their surrounding in the name of Jesus.
I told you before that I hang out with a bunch of male pastors who talk sports quite a bit. So I am trying to educate myself some on American sports. I came across this story which made me chuckle. I am assuming it is true. For you football fans, “Tommy Bell, a member of the Southland Christian Church in Lexington, KY, was a NFL referee in the third Super Bowl between the New York Jets and Baltimore Colts in 1968 (Wikipedia). In that Super Bowl, Fred O’ Brien was a player. Now Fred had one good eye and one glass eye. In one play he hit the other guy so hard with his helmet that his glass eye popped out and fell on the dusty ground. So they stopped the game, picked up the glass eye, washed it off and then Fred popped it back into his eye socket.
Tommy Bell, the referee, walked over to him and said, “Fred, I didn’t know you had just one eye. What in the world are you doing playing football? Don’t you realize how dangerous this is? What if someone should poke you in your good eye? You’d be blind. What would you do if you were blind?” O’Brien turned to Tommy Bell and said, “I’d be a referee, just like you.”
I like that story. God gave me two eyes and a body that is only going to be around for a while so I am not going to sit around here with my hands folded waiting for life to get easy. God has given each of us gifts and graces to be used in his name. In John 13:35, Jesus says, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you’re my disciples.” (NLT)
American author and war correspondent Marguerite Higgins (1920-1966) was the first woman to win a Pulitzer prize for reporting what she heard from an old army sergeant in Korea during the Korean conflict. 15,000 of our soldiers had been dug in for several weeks, facing more than 100,000 communist soldiers on the other side of the valley. They had been shooting at each other for weeks. They had been living on K rations, unable to bathe, unable to shave. They just sat there day after day cold and freezing, thinking that today might be their day to die.
Marguerite Higgins climbed to the top of the hill with her notebook and pencil to interview the soldiers. She went from one to another until she came to this tough old army sergeant. She posed this question to him, “If I were God and if I could give you anything you wanted, what would you ask for?” The old sergeant thought for a moment, repeated the question and said, “Well, if you were God and if you could give me anything I wanted, here is what I would ask for: I would ask for tomorrow… I would ask for tomorrow.”
Thanks to Jesus we have been given tomorrow. That’s what one of my favorite hymns affirms as well:
Because he lives, I can face tomorrow;
Because he lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know he holds the future
And life is worth the living just because he lives. (UMH 364)
Easter makes a difference. It did then. It does now. The Easter power is available to us through Jesus. We can live today and face tomorrow thanks to Jesus.
I find it really interesting that we are looking at this text in the midst of the worst economic recession we have been faced with since the Great Depression, commentators tell us.
In times of struggles and uncertainty, there is a strong inclination for us to look inward and take care of ourselves. There is a strong inclination to grow blinders preventing us to see the needs around us. There is a strong inclination to dwell on what we think we cannot do, or on what we think we do not have. There is a strong inclination to forget that we are the Church.
Do you hear: Because he lives, all fear is gone.
Dan Parker shared a great verse from the Bible with the finance committee this past week in his starting devotion:
“Give whatever you can according to what you have. If you are really eager to give, it isn’t important how much you are able to give. God wants you to give what you have, not what you don’t have.” (2 Cor. 8:11-12)
Because He lives we can face tomorrow. Amen!
When God sends a Saint
I lost someone precious to me recently. Actually, many of us within the Church lost someone precious. Erland Waltner died at the age of 94 on Easter Sunday.
Erland had been a pastor since 1935. He then became a Bible professor and President of Mennonite Biblical Seminary from 1958-1978. He then continued as part-time faculty from 1978-1998 and continued to offer spiritual direction until a week before his death.
He had doctorate degrees etc…
But what I remember him for is as my spiritual director for a couple of years while I was in seminary at AMBS here in Elkhart. He was one of the most faith-filled men I have ever known. He was never full of himself or boastful. He was gentle and patient and witty and funny. He taught me a lot about discerning the Spirit, about prayer, about faithfulness, about perseverance... He was a cheerleader to young, green seminarians like me.
He called me in Frankfort when I was first appointed there after graduating from seminary. He called me at New Salem to see how things were. He knew I was at Bethel and had told me he was praying for me there.
He and I corresponded via email for a time until his eye sight got too bad (macular degeneration) and he became legally blind. His mind stayed sharp till the end though. After that he or I would call off and on. We would talk about ministry, life, aging… I would see him at seminary sometimes when I went to the library or attended chapel
The past few years have been rough on him and his wife Winifred but when I would talk with him, he still praised God for His goodness and it was not faked. He never denied the storms and the pain, but his faith was stronger. I loved him. I believe he knew that even though I never told him in so many words.
I rejoice because he is Home and Easter is a good day to go Home but I feel like crying – am crying – because I will miss him.
It is interesting how you realize when your life comes in contact with a saint.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
A Great Life
Since I have turned 40, a few years ago, I have been in the habit of checking the obituaries in the paper. Not sure what that’s all about. Maybe I want to make sure I am not in there! Actually, I find myself checking for who died, because I know quite a few people in Elkhart and many are elderly. I find also myself checking for who the pastor is performing the service. I often say a breath prayer for them.
It is interesting to read how old people were when they died. I pause when I see that someone died who is younger than me or my age. Reminds me of my own mortality.
I read about what people did in their life, I look to see if they have kids and grandkids.
I find myself somewhat disconcerted when I read that some people, for whatever reason, forgo a funeral service. To read that someone will have no service or memorial and that often cremation will take or as taken place is rather sad. Doesn’t seem quite right to end a life this way.
I find myself wondering about life. How unsettling that a life is summarized in a short column. I start wondering what people will say about me when I die. Maybe I should write something myself to make sure my obituary will read how I want it to read. What would I say? How will I be remembered? Will I be remembered? I wonder since we have no children.
There are some people that somehow you think can never die.
In my head I know that everyone will die one day but there are some people I have known all of your life and somehow I cannot quite imagine them not being there. I think of my parents, who are both now in their late 70’s. Even though we are not close geographically, I cannot imagine my life without them in it. Not hearing their voice on the phone…
John and Helen DeWees were such people. Mom had John as a teacher in HS. John was a red coat at the hospital till he was 95. They both sang at church. John and Helen were the sweetest people you could ever find. They are both gone now.
Another such person was June Deal.I read June’s obituary this week. She was 92. I have heard about June pretty much all of my life. She had a 48 year teaching career mostly at Elkhart High School, which is no more since 1972. She taught when my Mom was a student there in the 1940’s and early 1950’s. I have pictures of June in my Mom’s 1951 senior year book. Incredibly they never changed much. Same hair style. Just got a little smaller and thinner.
June was a member of Trinity UMC since 1936. This is where I met her. She never married, had no biological kids. My Mom, when I called her in France to let her know about June, said that back then women could not marry if they wanted to be teachers. Wow. Almost like going into the priesthood. But June had many adoped kids and grandkids and great-grandkids through her students and their kids and grandkids. She came to my Mom’s 50th and 55th high school reunion a few years back and everybody loved on her.
I had gotten more acquainted with her personally when I joined Trinity years ago before going to seminary and moving on to serve other churches. Got to know her also through CARES (Community Actively Relating to Elkhart Schools), a local mentoring program, which I am a part of. I loved June. She was my kind of woman. Strong, intelligent, funny, well-read, with a passion for learning and education, a passion for helping people.
June was a grand lady. I give thanks for her life and legacy. I hear that Trinity UMC has established a scholarship fund in her name to be used for educational needs. That’s cool.
As we are starting Holy Week, I also give thanks for the gift of salvation which comes to us through Jesus. Because Jesus gave his life, we can have life here now and for eternity and if anyone is welcome in Heaven with Jesus, I would say that June has a spot. I thank God for June.
It is interesting to read how old people were when they died. I pause when I see that someone died who is younger than me or my age. Reminds me of my own mortality.
I read about what people did in their life, I look to see if they have kids and grandkids.
I find myself somewhat disconcerted when I read that some people, for whatever reason, forgo a funeral service. To read that someone will have no service or memorial and that often cremation will take or as taken place is rather sad. Doesn’t seem quite right to end a life this way.
I find myself wondering about life. How unsettling that a life is summarized in a short column. I start wondering what people will say about me when I die. Maybe I should write something myself to make sure my obituary will read how I want it to read. What would I say? How will I be remembered? Will I be remembered? I wonder since we have no children.
There are some people that somehow you think can never die.
In my head I know that everyone will die one day but there are some people I have known all of your life and somehow I cannot quite imagine them not being there. I think of my parents, who are both now in their late 70’s. Even though we are not close geographically, I cannot imagine my life without them in it. Not hearing their voice on the phone…
John and Helen DeWees were such people. Mom had John as a teacher in HS. John was a red coat at the hospital till he was 95. They both sang at church. John and Helen were the sweetest people you could ever find. They are both gone now.
Another such person was June Deal.I read June’s obituary this week. She was 92. I have heard about June pretty much all of my life. She had a 48 year teaching career mostly at Elkhart High School, which is no more since 1972. She taught when my Mom was a student there in the 1940’s and early 1950’s. I have pictures of June in my Mom’s 1951 senior year book. Incredibly they never changed much. Same hair style. Just got a little smaller and thinner.
June was a member of Trinity UMC since 1936. This is where I met her. She never married, had no biological kids. My Mom, when I called her in France to let her know about June, said that back then women could not marry if they wanted to be teachers. Wow. Almost like going into the priesthood. But June had many adoped kids and grandkids and great-grandkids through her students and their kids and grandkids. She came to my Mom’s 50th and 55th high school reunion a few years back and everybody loved on her.
I had gotten more acquainted with her personally when I joined Trinity years ago before going to seminary and moving on to serve other churches. Got to know her also through CARES (Community Actively Relating to Elkhart Schools), a local mentoring program, which I am a part of. I loved June. She was my kind of woman. Strong, intelligent, funny, well-read, with a passion for learning and education, a passion for helping people.
June was a grand lady. I give thanks for her life and legacy. I hear that Trinity UMC has established a scholarship fund in her name to be used for educational needs. That’s cool.
As we are starting Holy Week, I also give thanks for the gift of salvation which comes to us through Jesus. Because Jesus gave his life, we can have life here now and for eternity and if anyone is welcome in Heaven with Jesus, I would say that June has a spot. I thank God for June.
The Servant King
Palm Sunday Sermon
Gloria Swanson was one of Hollywood’s top actresses from the 1920’s to the 1950’s. She was quite ambitious. Early in her career, Swanson was quoted as saying, “I have gone through enough of being a nobody. I have decided that when I am a star I will be every inch and every moment the star! Everybody from the studio gate man to the highest executive will know it.” And Swanson made sure of that. Before returning from a trip to France, she sent a telegram to her film studio informing them that she expected a grand welcome when she arrived in California. To quote the telegram: “Arriving with the Marquis tomorrow morning. Stop. Please arrange ovation.” The studio knew enough not to argue with their star. An ovation was duly arranged.
Jesus does not have to arrange his own ovation when he enters Jerusalem. Word about him have been spreading through the countryside. Healer, teacher, leader: he was becoming quite a celebrity as holy week begins; too much celebrity to suit the entrenched bureaucracy. And so, even as the crowd waves its palm branches and shouts its Hosannas, the shadow of the cross looms in the background: In the bright sunlight of adoration but still on the edge of night.
Jesus is not fooled by the crowd’s adoration. He knows that public opinion is a fickle thing. One day you are a hero, the next you are out of office. You’ve got to give the public what it wants, an image consultant surely would have instructed Jesus to ride a mighty stallion into Jerusalem that day instead of a humble donkey.
The people don’t understand. They shout “Hosanna”. They yearn for a deliverer that would fight off the Roman invaders and send them packing. Jesus is a king but not the king they are expecting.
Jesus knows where he is headed. He does not welcome it: Rejection, pain and death is not the cup he would have chosen for himself but he will be obedient to his Father even if this means death. This death is necessary for our salvation:
Listen to the Message paraphrase of the Philippians text today:
“Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death - and the worst kind of death at that – a crucifixion. Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth – even those long ago dead and buried – will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all (the NIV reads that Jesus Christ is Lord), to the glorious honor of God the Father. (vv. 2:6-11)
Philippians 2:5-11 is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. It offers what may very well be one of the oldest Christological reflections (understanding of Christ) in the entire New Testament. Because of the poetic splendor of these verses, there is considerable suggestion that these texts made up an early Christian hymn, which Paul skillfully incorporates into his letter. If this is indeed the case, the theology behind this hymn represents not only Paul’s own thoughts, but also the Christological convictions of the first generation of believers.
Paul had founded the Philippian church early on during a missionary journey around A.D. 50. Paul was persecuted while in Philippi and the Christians of the church there are now also facing a significant opposition so Paul’s letter to them is a call to persistence in faith. They also experience some internal dissention. He writes to them now about 10 years after their start while he awaits trial in Rome. He challenges them to stand firm in one spirit and to strive side by side with “one mind” for the faith of the gospel (v. 1:27). He tells them that humility is essential for those who have the “mind” that was in Jesus Christ (v. 5). Philippians 2:1-13 is a reflection on humility and the example of Christ, beginning with some words of advice (vv. 1-4) and then transitioning into a poetic reflection on the shocking self-emptying of the Lord (vv. 5-11.)
The thoughts expressed in Philippians 2 will be picked up years later in what we call the Nicene Creed which was adopted by the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325 and modified in A.D 381 in the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed.
Before his days on earth, Christ enjoyed complete equality with the Father (John 17:24)
Jesus is unalterably in the form of God, but he laid it willingly down for our sake. He emptied himself of his divinity to take upon himself his humanity. This is not role-playing as some would have us believe.
Even in human form, his essential nature remained unchanged; he was still God (John 5:18). Yet so that he might take away the sins of the world, he voluntarily laid aside the privileges and glory of his heavenly authority (v. 8). He surrendered the splendor of his position to identify with sinful humanity.
Christ’s action has been described as the laying aside during the incarnation of the independent use of his divine attributes. He performed miracles but always under the direction of the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus was so committed to his Father’s plan that he obeyed even to the point of death (Heb. 5:8)
Paul does not specifically spell it here out but there is an obvious parallel between Adam and Jesus, who was known as the second Adam. The comparison juxtaposes the disobedience of the human Adam, who grasped at a divine status that was not his to take, with the obedience of a truly divine Christ, who gladly relinquished divinity for the sake of saving fallen humanity.
“Taking the form of a slave/servant” and “being made/born in human likeness” are both ways of identifying Jesus as fully human. The “slave” or “servant” image certainly calls to mind the Suffering Servant of Isaiah chapters 42-53 – a servant who also willingly undergoes suffering and humiliation for the sake of others. But the “slavery” this emptied Christ takes on could also be a reference to the weight of human sinfulness under which all men and women are born.
While I was pondering Jesus’ sacrifice this week, I thought of a wonderful Charles Wesley Hymn titled, “And Can it Be That I Should Gain” (UMH 363). Turn to your hymnal and sing these poignant words with me:
1. And can it be that I should gain
an interest in the Savior's blood!
Died he for me? who caused his pain!
For me? who him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be
that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
Amazing love! How can it be
that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
2. He left his Father's throne above
(so free, so infinite his grace!),
emptied himself of all but love,
and bled for Adam's helpless race.
'Tis mercy all, immense and free,
for O my God, it found out me!
I took a class in seminary which touched me and touches me still. I mentioned this before. It was a class on “suffering and the atonement.” We talked about what we think happened on the cross. It really remains a mystery after all. But one of the theories which deeply resonates with me is Peter Abelard’s (Dialectician philosopher and theologian born 1079. Died 1142) Moral Influence Theory. This is what we have been singing about this morning. Rather than a payment to or victory over the Devil, or a satisfaction of a debt owed to God, Abelard sees Jesus’ life and death as a demonstration of God’s love that moves sinners to repent and love God.
When you and I understand (even in glimpses, imperfectly) that we are loved beyond words, something happens to our heart: It begins to melt. We find ourselves wanting to love God and people back. In ways I don’t fully understand, we find ourselves drawn to this Jesus and wanting to follow him.
Do you remember last week’s sermon on John 12:1-8, when Mary anoints Jesus’ feet with expensive perfumed ointment? In that story we get to see Jesus’ humanity. He had to have been scared and troubled by what laid ahead. He was so close to Jerusalem and he knew what awaited him there. He needed and welcomed Mary’s extravagant act of love and devotion for him. She loved him deeply and responded to the love she had received. Maybe Jesus had healed her somewhere, sometime along the way, during one of his visits to Bethany. That is an incredible story.
Our text today is an incredible story too. Imagine: Christianity is a new religion and God is depicted as a slave who emptied and humbled himself!
The whole New Testament is incredible: It depicts a man who is born in a barn, in a obscure corner of a Roman-ruled province; We see a man who is tempted in the wilderness; a man who needs love and comfort like the rest of us; a man who struggles and prays a heart breaking prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane; a man who ends up suffering pain beyond comprehension and dying nailed to a cross because he loves us more than his life…
And this is God!?
I am telling you, this is one of the reasons which tipped my heart toward Jesus. We have a God who loves us beyond words to the point of coming in the flesh, to live and die to save us. This is one of the reasons I know God is real. Who in their right mind would depict a God on the cross if it were not true? It does not seem to me that this would be the best way to get followers. A God who dies on the cross!? Why not talk instead of a god who is all mighty, ruling from above, untouched by our lives below. This is nuts! Yet 1 Corinthians 1:18 says it this way: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”
Paul used this beautiful hymn to the Philippian church (but also to us): So that our hearts would be touched and transformed; So that the same attitude of humility and selflessness would be in us too. Believers cannot duplicate the precise ministry of Jesus but they can display the same attitude.
Paul exhorts his readers and listeners to have the same attitude as Christ. What does that mean?
I often spend time during the week with pastors. Most are male. Invariably we talk about sports or cars. I am also married to a car enthusiast. So I hear car stories and the following is one I heard:
A man had posted an article he had written on the Internet about an old car he once had. In his words, this car was ratty and ragged, driven when he was a poor college student. He was having trouble with something he couldn’t readily identify, so he took it to the repair shop. The mechanic looked at it a couple of minutes and said, “What you really need is the radiator cap solution.”
“Oh” said the young automobile owner, trying not to sound too confused. “Do you mean the radiator cap isn’t holding enough pressure?”
“That’s part of the problem” said the mechanic. “You need to lift the radiator cap and drive another car under it. Then the next day you can replace the radiator cap, and it should solve your problem.”
In order to have the mind and heart of Christ, that is what we would have to do – replace not just our attitudes and opinions, but lift these attitudes and opinions and drive a whole new person under them, then throw the old attitudes and opinons out and replace them with new ones.
When we let Jesus in our hearts, we can be transformed in that way. We become new creation in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). We become more like Jesus and with the Spirit’s help we can get to the point of saying to God, “Not my will but your will be done.”
Have you checked for attitudes lately? Are they Christ-like?
Communication
Communication. I watched a show on TV the other day. I can’t remember the station. It was something like the History or Science channel. The show talked about what differentiates human beings from animals. The show explained how our physiology - the size and shape of our cranium, and consequently the size of our brain and the design of our throat etc… - enable us to produce sounds and pitches that other animals can’t. With this ability came better communication capabilities. Increased and better communication, the show went on, gave us a clear advantage in term of survival.
Communication. If you are married, have a family and have friends (that should cover everybody, right?), you know the importance of communication. How tricky communicating with one another can be. Things can go down hill quickly if we fail to communicate properly.
In marriage counseling, quite a bit of time and effort can be spent helping folks actually communicate, instead of talking “above each others’ head”, where the spouses are not really talking with or listening to one another.
I remember a little bit of a speech class I had years ago in college and I remember that we talked about the mechanics of communication. How a “message” is sent and how it is “received” and the interference that are in the way of the sender and receiver. If you have ever played the game of “telephone”, you get the idea of what I mean. A message starts one way and ends up garbled at the other end. There are so many things which can go wrong, beginning with the sender, the space between the sender and the receiver and the receiver itself. Sometimes I think it is amazing that we understand each other at all. I know that I don’t always communicate as clearly as I want to. So I am trying to get better. I am looking at is a book titled, “How to communicate: The Ultimate Guide to Improving Your Personal and Professional Relationships.” I have had this book for a while but had never read it until now.
Communication. I think of communication quite a bit because part of my calling is sharing God’s Word with people. I spend quite a bit of my week praying for, thinking about and crafting the message that I deliver each week. I think about flow, about transitions, about delivery… I had a preaching class in seminary. I have read books about preaching but I want to keep learning and get better so I have started to read a neat resource titled, “The Art and Craft of Biblical Preaching” to help me hopefully improve in this endeavor. This book is a hefty tome at over 700 pages. The title struck me because it says the “Art and Craft.” Communication is a skill which can be learned. No one is born knowing how to effectively communicate. It is more than words as you know also, it is body language, the tone of one’s voice, one’s culture, one’s gender in relationship to the people receiving the message… Communication requires sustained intention and care.
So I think a lot about communication as a pastor but I think we all need to give thoughts to this because it is really important for all of us to communicate clearly.
The resources I mentioned above are certainly helpful but I don’t want to forget that Jesus gives us a model of healthy communication among Christians in the Bible. Look at Matthew 18:15-17. It says: Go directly to the person you have a problem with and talk; no gossiping behind the person’s back; no holding on and chewing on something for days, no triangling – trying to get others to take side. Go and talk directly with the one you have a problem with. If this does not work well, than bring one or two others with you and go talk with the person you have issues with. In our denomination, this might be someone from the Staff-Parish committee. In the first church that I served, things unfortunately escalated and the District Superintendent got involved, along with a conflict management consultant, a retired pastor. I hope to never get to that point again. It was ugly and it was painful and I am sure God cringed.
Few things can hurt a church more and lead to faster decline than lack of, or unhealthy communication, among folks. My experiences with churches is that we are not very good usually at communicating clearly. We are usually pretty good at undercover, guerilla warfare, sadly enough. Things are said behind people’s back. Egos get bruised. We don’t want to offend so we don’t say what we really feel. Feelings get hurt but we hold on to a grudge because we are unable or unwilling – because of pride maybe - to talk with the people we feel resentment toward…. Mole hills soon grow into mountains. Do you know what I mean?
Communication. I believe most of the world’s problems stem at some level from lack of or poor communication; from an unwillingness to listen and understand others…
Communication. Clear, healthy, loving communication among Christians can offer a great witness to unchurched, unbelieving people also. Let’s do our best to have healthy, loving communication. As the hymn says, “they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
Communication. If you are married, have a family and have friends (that should cover everybody, right?), you know the importance of communication. How tricky communicating with one another can be. Things can go down hill quickly if we fail to communicate properly.
In marriage counseling, quite a bit of time and effort can be spent helping folks actually communicate, instead of talking “above each others’ head”, where the spouses are not really talking with or listening to one another.
I remember a little bit of a speech class I had years ago in college and I remember that we talked about the mechanics of communication. How a “message” is sent and how it is “received” and the interference that are in the way of the sender and receiver. If you have ever played the game of “telephone”, you get the idea of what I mean. A message starts one way and ends up garbled at the other end. There are so many things which can go wrong, beginning with the sender, the space between the sender and the receiver and the receiver itself. Sometimes I think it is amazing that we understand each other at all. I know that I don’t always communicate as clearly as I want to. So I am trying to get better. I am looking at is a book titled, “How to communicate: The Ultimate Guide to Improving Your Personal and Professional Relationships.” I have had this book for a while but had never read it until now.
Communication. I think of communication quite a bit because part of my calling is sharing God’s Word with people. I spend quite a bit of my week praying for, thinking about and crafting the message that I deliver each week. I think about flow, about transitions, about delivery… I had a preaching class in seminary. I have read books about preaching but I want to keep learning and get better so I have started to read a neat resource titled, “The Art and Craft of Biblical Preaching” to help me hopefully improve in this endeavor. This book is a hefty tome at over 700 pages. The title struck me because it says the “Art and Craft.” Communication is a skill which can be learned. No one is born knowing how to effectively communicate. It is more than words as you know also, it is body language, the tone of one’s voice, one’s culture, one’s gender in relationship to the people receiving the message… Communication requires sustained intention and care.
So I think a lot about communication as a pastor but I think we all need to give thoughts to this because it is really important for all of us to communicate clearly.
The resources I mentioned above are certainly helpful but I don’t want to forget that Jesus gives us a model of healthy communication among Christians in the Bible. Look at Matthew 18:15-17. It says: Go directly to the person you have a problem with and talk; no gossiping behind the person’s back; no holding on and chewing on something for days, no triangling – trying to get others to take side. Go and talk directly with the one you have a problem with. If this does not work well, than bring one or two others with you and go talk with the person you have issues with. In our denomination, this might be someone from the Staff-Parish committee. In the first church that I served, things unfortunately escalated and the District Superintendent got involved, along with a conflict management consultant, a retired pastor. I hope to never get to that point again. It was ugly and it was painful and I am sure God cringed.
Few things can hurt a church more and lead to faster decline than lack of, or unhealthy communication, among folks. My experiences with churches is that we are not very good usually at communicating clearly. We are usually pretty good at undercover, guerilla warfare, sadly enough. Things are said behind people’s back. Egos get bruised. We don’t want to offend so we don’t say what we really feel. Feelings get hurt but we hold on to a grudge because we are unable or unwilling – because of pride maybe - to talk with the people we feel resentment toward…. Mole hills soon grow into mountains. Do you know what I mean?
Communication. I believe most of the world’s problems stem at some level from lack of or poor communication; from an unwillingness to listen and understand others…
Communication. Clear, healthy, loving communication among Christians can offer a great witness to unchurched, unbelieving people also. Let’s do our best to have healthy, loving communication. As the hymn says, “they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Heavenly Brew
A pastor friend describes life as something akin to a book. Life has chapters, he says. One ends, another starts. Often I find myself not wanting for chapters to end. I want to hold on to the good stuff, I am not always good at letting people go. I want to freeze-frame moments of peace and joy… I shared this with the owner of my favorite coffee shop this morning. This place of retreat and sanctuary is closing today. The economy proved to be too hard. I wrote Sharon a card. I wasn’t quite sure what to say and how to say it. I feel things deeply but I am not always real good at translating my feelings into words, but I wrote this:
“Dear Sharon and Heavenly Brew Team: Today is more than likely a bittersweet day. But I hope you celebrate the fact that you have provided this community a great place to be. You will certainly be missed but the cozy times of intimacy with friends, the animated conversations, the soul warming goodies will not be forgotten.
I, for one, will never forget the grace of an oatmeal cranberry cookie when I was facing medical uncertainty earlier this year. You were a true angel in disguise that day.
This is the beginning of a new chapter and I wish you the very best.”
I hope this does not sound too trite or cheesy. But however clumsy this might be, I wrote it from my heart.
I know God is not done with Sharon and the gift of warmth and hospitality she possesses. She will continue to bless others. I hope our paths will cross again.
I rejoice at new opportunities which are coming but I have to be honest, I grieve today also. I told Sharon, and maybe this is selfish, that I looked forward a couple of times a week, after working out at the Y, to getting a cup of coffee at her place and just sit for a while before the day would start in full force. This was a great place to be, to read, to watch people and meet friends and make new friends. Sharon and the staff got to know my name and what I do quickly. They always seemed happy to see me as I was to see them. I felt welcome. They got to know and remember that I like cranberry oatmeal cookies, that I like their berry oatmeal-bake warmed up and without milk. They knew my favorite flavored coffee was Blueberry Muffin.
Someone in front of me ordering today said that she felt as if she had been evicted with nowhere to go since Heavenly Brew will be no more. I feel a little like that. Where will I go to get coffee and soul-warming goodies but more importantly where will I go when I need to be, when I need community? Church is one place but it is not the same. This was a different kind of sanctuary.
Hunger
I went to a briefing on hunger this past week. This was a gathering of church folks mostly, organized by United Way. The intent was to talk about the face of hunger in our community and talk about the available sources of support and what we can do to help. With the recession, more and more people are affected. The Salvation Army captain said that some of the people who used to give to the Salvation Army are now some of the ones receiving help. The irony of this is that we met at Das Dutchman Essenhaus in Middlebury over breakfast! We ate our scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, sausage and sweet rolls while talking about hungry people. I did not eat much. My breakfast did not go down well that morning.
The other irony I thought about is that I am, let say, pleasantly plump. I work out at the Y several times a week to try to slow down the passage of time and the hold that gravity has gotten on me and tone everything up. I also work out because doing so clears my head and relaxes me and I am hopefully a nicer, calmer person because I do this. While I do that, some in this world starve to death. One could get real cynical here. This world has enough ills and suffering in it. Getting cynical and sarcastic would be really easy. I choose not to go that route.
Instead, I find myself giving thanks for the fact that I am healthy, that I have plenty of food, the fact that I am loved and I am also reminded and encouraged greatly to find ways to help those who have less than I do. Starving myself will not help these folks get food but out of my wealth and blessings I can give and for that I find myself very grateful. Life is a great gift not to be wasted but to be lived to the full and I don’t believe that can happen without love, serving others and sharing.
The gathering of representatives for about 50 local churches is a miracle, one of the speakers pointed out. Together we can find solutions. Feed the hungry and clothe the naked are some of the things Jesus admonished us to do (Matthew 25). What I also want to do is find ways of dealing with the system which allows such things to happen. Nobody in the world should go hungry but to hear of hunger in America, the richest country in the world, is crazy. So I want to find effective ways of helping. I can’t feed everybody on my own but God has a way of multiplying a little food (remember the story of the feeding of the multitude with just a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish?) into a lot if we all work together. I want to be part of that! I hope you join me! One way is to fill up a grocery bag on May 9 and leave it by your mailbox for the mail carrier to pick up. There will be volunteer opportunities that day. You will hear more about it soon.
The other irony I thought about is that I am, let say, pleasantly plump. I work out at the Y several times a week to try to slow down the passage of time and the hold that gravity has gotten on me and tone everything up. I also work out because doing so clears my head and relaxes me and I am hopefully a nicer, calmer person because I do this. While I do that, some in this world starve to death. One could get real cynical here. This world has enough ills and suffering in it. Getting cynical and sarcastic would be really easy. I choose not to go that route.
Instead, I find myself giving thanks for the fact that I am healthy, that I have plenty of food, the fact that I am loved and I am also reminded and encouraged greatly to find ways to help those who have less than I do. Starving myself will not help these folks get food but out of my wealth and blessings I can give and for that I find myself very grateful. Life is a great gift not to be wasted but to be lived to the full and I don’t believe that can happen without love, serving others and sharing.
The gathering of representatives for about 50 local churches is a miracle, one of the speakers pointed out. Together we can find solutions. Feed the hungry and clothe the naked are some of the things Jesus admonished us to do (Matthew 25). What I also want to do is find ways of dealing with the system which allows such things to happen. Nobody in the world should go hungry but to hear of hunger in America, the richest country in the world, is crazy. So I want to find effective ways of helping. I can’t feed everybody on my own but God has a way of multiplying a little food (remember the story of the feeding of the multitude with just a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish?) into a lot if we all work together. I want to be part of that! I hope you join me! One way is to fill up a grocery bag on May 9 and leave it by your mailbox for the mail carrier to pick up. There will be volunteer opportunities that day. You will hear more about it soon.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Change
This is an article I shared with our congregation in our March newsletter.
Change. I’ve been thinking a lot about change this past year.
I have been thinking about change because there are a lot of things going on in each of our lives. We experience aging. We experience new births and the death of loved ones. We experience change in our living situations. Some get married; Others divorced. Some of us have lost a job and with it more than income and insurance but also a sense of our identity and maybe a sense of our worth.
I have been thinking about change because we have all felt the impact on our lives of the economic recession we are experiencing. Our money does not stretch as far as it used to. I think of that every time Steve and I buy groceries. I think of this and I am more grateful than ever to have meaningful employment and a roof above our heads.
I have been thinking about change as we enter the season of Lent. It is a time of introspection and a time when we are called anew to ponder Jesus’ question “Who do you say I am?” and the questions of “who are we?” and “whose are we?” These are questions we have to answer as individuals and as a church body. If we answer, “Jesus in our LORD”, this means that we are called to follow and following is not a static, unchanging thing.
I have been thinking about change because of the election of Barak Obama. Whether we agree with his political views or not, it is undeniable that we are entering a new chapter in history.
I have been thinking about change because our church and our Indiana Conference are in the middle of great change and transition. As you know, the coming together of the North and South Indiana Conferences was approved last year and we are now deep in the transition time and implementation and working the nitty gritty details.
I have been thinking about change because Bethel is in transition and we are faced with decisions having to do with how to remain faithful as a church and faithful to our mission of making disciples of Jesus. You’ll hear more about this in the weeks and months to come.
I would venture to say that most of us, if not all of us, have mixed feelings about change: Change can be exciting and it can be scary and often change is all these things at once. We can embrace change or we can resist it. In the end, whether we embrace or resist change, it is inevitable and it is part of life.
I am talking with several people about change and how to negotiate transitions in our personal life as well as in our gatherings of people we call the church.
I went to a seminar in February, after having read several books from our presenter, and we talked about how to introduce change in churches. There are some good ways of doing this and there are not so good ways of doing this. One of the pastors who attended recalled how she served a church which had forgotten its purpose and which refused/never found ways to adapt to meet the needs of a changing neighborhood. They used to be a large downtown church, well attended by wealthy parishioners. But through the years, attendance dwindled to less than 50. They do have a beautiful, European-inspired, church, which only remains open because of an endowment fund. She said it looks more like a mausoleum than a church. What striked me is that she did not say, museum – which is bad enough; she said mausoleum - a place where the dead are buried. This saddened me. I know the church and another friend is serving there now. I hope he can help revive this place through the people in it and by inviting others to come and experience life with Jesus. This will require changing hearts and minds and it will require a lot of work on everyone’s part.
When I think of change and transitions, I think of the story of the Exodus in the Bible; how the people found themselves facing new situations. They had to learn new ways and they had to adapt and it did not always go very smoothly. Many even grumbled that the slavery in Egypt they had just left would be better than that they were experiencing in the wilderness. It’s interesting how we remember things. The good ol’ days were usually not as good as we might remember them. They grumbled so much that God ended up giving them a lot of extra time to think and hopefully mature. It also took the passing of the rebellious generation before the rest of the people could enter the Promised Land.
When I think of change and transitions, I also think of 1st and 2nd Peter. In these letters, the author, whom we think was the apostle Peter, exhorts the scattered Christians in Asia Minor (present day Turkey) to hold fast to their faith and their trust of God in the face of hardship. We started the study of these letters and what they have to say to us last Monday. It is not too late to join the study!
When I think of change and transitions, I think of prayer. As people of God we are called to pray without ceasing. I don’t believe we can live life very well and negotiate the inevitable changes and transitions, which come our way without talking with God and seeking His guidance.
When I think of change and transitions, I think of God because no matter what we all face, He is with us and will guide us through when we seek Him.
One question that our seminar leader asked - and that question haunts me in some ways - is “If your church closed, would anyone in the neighborhood, in the community, notice and care? Would your church be missed by anyone outside of it?”
Change. I’ve been thinking a lot about change this past year.
I have been thinking about change because there are a lot of things going on in each of our lives. We experience aging. We experience new births and the death of loved ones. We experience change in our living situations. Some get married; Others divorced. Some of us have lost a job and with it more than income and insurance but also a sense of our identity and maybe a sense of our worth.
I have been thinking about change because we have all felt the impact on our lives of the economic recession we are experiencing. Our money does not stretch as far as it used to. I think of that every time Steve and I buy groceries. I think of this and I am more grateful than ever to have meaningful employment and a roof above our heads.
I have been thinking about change as we enter the season of Lent. It is a time of introspection and a time when we are called anew to ponder Jesus’ question “Who do you say I am?” and the questions of “who are we?” and “whose are we?” These are questions we have to answer as individuals and as a church body. If we answer, “Jesus in our LORD”, this means that we are called to follow and following is not a static, unchanging thing.
I have been thinking about change because of the election of Barak Obama. Whether we agree with his political views or not, it is undeniable that we are entering a new chapter in history.
I have been thinking about change because our church and our Indiana Conference are in the middle of great change and transition. As you know, the coming together of the North and South Indiana Conferences was approved last year and we are now deep in the transition time and implementation and working the nitty gritty details.
I have been thinking about change because Bethel is in transition and we are faced with decisions having to do with how to remain faithful as a church and faithful to our mission of making disciples of Jesus. You’ll hear more about this in the weeks and months to come.
I would venture to say that most of us, if not all of us, have mixed feelings about change: Change can be exciting and it can be scary and often change is all these things at once. We can embrace change or we can resist it. In the end, whether we embrace or resist change, it is inevitable and it is part of life.
I am talking with several people about change and how to negotiate transitions in our personal life as well as in our gatherings of people we call the church.
I went to a seminar in February, after having read several books from our presenter, and we talked about how to introduce change in churches. There are some good ways of doing this and there are not so good ways of doing this. One of the pastors who attended recalled how she served a church which had forgotten its purpose and which refused/never found ways to adapt to meet the needs of a changing neighborhood. They used to be a large downtown church, well attended by wealthy parishioners. But through the years, attendance dwindled to less than 50. They do have a beautiful, European-inspired, church, which only remains open because of an endowment fund. She said it looks more like a mausoleum than a church. What striked me is that she did not say, museum – which is bad enough; she said mausoleum - a place where the dead are buried. This saddened me. I know the church and another friend is serving there now. I hope he can help revive this place through the people in it and by inviting others to come and experience life with Jesus. This will require changing hearts and minds and it will require a lot of work on everyone’s part.
When I think of change and transitions, I think of the story of the Exodus in the Bible; how the people found themselves facing new situations. They had to learn new ways and they had to adapt and it did not always go very smoothly. Many even grumbled that the slavery in Egypt they had just left would be better than that they were experiencing in the wilderness. It’s interesting how we remember things. The good ol’ days were usually not as good as we might remember them. They grumbled so much that God ended up giving them a lot of extra time to think and hopefully mature. It also took the passing of the rebellious generation before the rest of the people could enter the Promised Land.
When I think of change and transitions, I also think of 1st and 2nd Peter. In these letters, the author, whom we think was the apostle Peter, exhorts the scattered Christians in Asia Minor (present day Turkey) to hold fast to their faith and their trust of God in the face of hardship. We started the study of these letters and what they have to say to us last Monday. It is not too late to join the study!
When I think of change and transitions, I think of prayer. As people of God we are called to pray without ceasing. I don’t believe we can live life very well and negotiate the inevitable changes and transitions, which come our way without talking with God and seeking His guidance.
When I think of change and transitions, I think of God because no matter what we all face, He is with us and will guide us through when we seek Him.
One question that our seminar leader asked - and that question haunts me in some ways - is “If your church closed, would anyone in the neighborhood, in the community, notice and care? Would your church be missed by anyone outside of it?”
Friday, February 20, 2009
I have this place
I have this place. It’s a cute coffee shop that used to be a flower shop on E. Jackson not far from the Y. It’s a cozy place. Looks like it was a home at one time. I have my favorite table in that place, in a corner, towards the back.
I have this place where the people who work there know my name and they know that I like a cranberry oatmeal cookie with my coffee. And they know that I like strawberry-banana smoothies and I like my berry oatmeal bake warmed up and without milk; like a piece of coffee cake.
I have a place. I go there, not so much for the food (especially now that I am trying to be on a lower carb diet) but I go there because of the peace and grace I often find.
Earlier this year, I had a health thing which got me on edge for about a week while I waited for the biopsy result. I went to this place right after the tissue sample was taken and I received a much needed dose of grace – in the form of a free cookie and a warm smile. I never told the owner that she was an angel in disguise that day. Maybe I should tell her. The results of the biopsy came out as benign.
I go to this place alone to read, to think through things, to think about an upcoming sermon... I go there fairly regularly just to be for a while. To talk with God.
I go there to meet with a friend and talk about life. I go there with someone from the church to discuss ministry possibilities.
I was there this morning, with a pastor friend. I received grace from that person who has been more than patient with this green, searching, pastor on many occasions. He listened to me. Shared some thoughts for a little while. It was good.
Jesus had places too. In one place he would withdraw regularly and pray. He had another place which belonged to two sisters, where he could get away from the craziness of life and the business of ministry in order to be renewed and readied again for service. People – sometimes his own disciples - often tried to go after him and tried to make him feel guilty about not being with the people all the time as they eagerly waited for him to heal their broken lives and their broken bodies. But Jesus knew when to say “enough”.
We seem to have a thing against slowing down in this culture. Some seem to take pride in the fact that they are always busy. Seems like their worth is tied to how busy they are.
It almost seems like we will be judged as lazy if we stop on a regular basis to just be.
I struggle with business but I know, and realize anew as we are getting ready to enter the season of Lent, that busy does not necessarily mean effective. I also know that I won’t be able to serve in the long haul if I don’t stop on a regular basis to just be.
As Christians, I think we all need to become counter-cultural in how we use our time and how we define our worth.
Do you have a place? Do you stop on a regular basis to just be?
I have this place where the people who work there know my name and they know that I like a cranberry oatmeal cookie with my coffee. And they know that I like strawberry-banana smoothies and I like my berry oatmeal bake warmed up and without milk; like a piece of coffee cake.
I have a place. I go there, not so much for the food (especially now that I am trying to be on a lower carb diet) but I go there because of the peace and grace I often find.
Earlier this year, I had a health thing which got me on edge for about a week while I waited for the biopsy result. I went to this place right after the tissue sample was taken and I received a much needed dose of grace – in the form of a free cookie and a warm smile. I never told the owner that she was an angel in disguise that day. Maybe I should tell her. The results of the biopsy came out as benign.
I go to this place alone to read, to think through things, to think about an upcoming sermon... I go there fairly regularly just to be for a while. To talk with God.
I go there to meet with a friend and talk about life. I go there with someone from the church to discuss ministry possibilities.
I was there this morning, with a pastor friend. I received grace from that person who has been more than patient with this green, searching, pastor on many occasions. He listened to me. Shared some thoughts for a little while. It was good.
Jesus had places too. In one place he would withdraw regularly and pray. He had another place which belonged to two sisters, where he could get away from the craziness of life and the business of ministry in order to be renewed and readied again for service. People – sometimes his own disciples - often tried to go after him and tried to make him feel guilty about not being with the people all the time as they eagerly waited for him to heal their broken lives and their broken bodies. But Jesus knew when to say “enough”.
We seem to have a thing against slowing down in this culture. Some seem to take pride in the fact that they are always busy. Seems like their worth is tied to how busy they are.
It almost seems like we will be judged as lazy if we stop on a regular basis to just be.
I struggle with business but I know, and realize anew as we are getting ready to enter the season of Lent, that busy does not necessarily mean effective. I also know that I won’t be able to serve in the long haul if I don’t stop on a regular basis to just be.
As Christians, I think we all need to become counter-cultural in how we use our time and how we define our worth.
Do you have a place? Do you stop on a regular basis to just be?
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Faith
There are some things in life that you just hope you never have to do. One of these things happened to me this past Wednesday: I officiated at the funeral of one of our nieces, 21 year old Jennifer in Ohio. The cause of death is still being worked on but it looks like a brain aneurism took her too soon.
I have officiated at several funerals before but they were always for elderly people who were not related to me.
Over 100 people showed up and stayed for her viewing on Tuesday and again for the service on Wednesday. She had been in band in High School and I would bet most of the band was present to honor her. It was just unbelievable how many lives she had touched in her young span of time here on the earth. Jen loved people and she loved horses. As she loved and gave in life so did she in death.
Jen was an organ donor. The doctors were able to use her liver, kidneys and corneas. That is such a comfort to know that she lives on through the recipients of these gifts of life.
The age old questions of how can there be a loving God when things like this happen surfaced. How is pain and suffering able to coexist with love? What kind of explanation can I give? This is not a sin related thing. It just is and I have no explanation. Job comes to mind.
In the end I have to trust that God walks with us in this time of trial and that He cares. I believe, help my unbelief.
I have officiated at several funerals before but they were always for elderly people who were not related to me.
Over 100 people showed up and stayed for her viewing on Tuesday and again for the service on Wednesday. She had been in band in High School and I would bet most of the band was present to honor her. It was just unbelievable how many lives she had touched in her young span of time here on the earth. Jen loved people and she loved horses. As she loved and gave in life so did she in death.
Jen was an organ donor. The doctors were able to use her liver, kidneys and corneas. That is such a comfort to know that she lives on through the recipients of these gifts of life.
The age old questions of how can there be a loving God when things like this happen surfaced. How is pain and suffering able to coexist with love? What kind of explanation can I give? This is not a sin related thing. It just is and I have no explanation. Job comes to mind.
In the end I have to trust that God walks with us in this time of trial and that He cares. I believe, help my unbelief.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Witnessing History
I have been watching quite a bit of news broadcasts these past few days and been emotionally moved a lot.
Monday (usually my day off) was spent between the History Channel, which honored the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. and stations like CNN, MSNBC, and Fox as they each broadcasted the pre-inaugural festivities for Barack Obama.
I have usually voted for presidential elections but this is the first one when I find myself truly moved and with the sense of witnessing something important and historical. I find myself wanting to understand the political system better. I find myself wanting to learn more about Martin and the whole civil rights movement.
This is not part of my heritage. I was not born and I did not grow up in the United States. American history was not taught to me growing up. French history was. Twenty years ago I had a couple American history classes in college while Steve and I lived in Texas. I enjoy history, I just don’t have a lot of time to read about it as much I would like to, with the other things that I want to read and need to read. This is something I want to remedy.
I was surprised to find myself teary-eyed these past couple of days because I was 3 when Martin Luther King Jr, was assassinated. I believe what moves me is the dedication of one’s life for peace and justice to the point of accepting death as a very probable result of one’s involvement. The men’s dedication is not the only thing that touched me. With each of these men was a strong, dedicated woman and these men would not have achieved what they achieved without these women. What was true for Martin is true for Barack.
Whether one is Republican or Democrat (or something else), the hope that is currently present is undeniable and America desperately needs hope.
Hope is what some pastoral colleagues and I saw and felt when we shared Hawaiian pizza together (here goes the low carb diet) as we were watching Obama’s inauguration on TV. The pastor who invited us to her home said about the pizza, “if it is good enough for Barack, it is good enough for us” (and it was good pizza.) We had a great time together, sitting in this small living room. Giggled at Aretha Franklin’s hat. Commented on what we heard being said. There was this sense of unity despite the fact that we don’t all share the same views on several things (our host is a Unitarian Universalist pastor; we had a United Church of Christ pastor, a Presbyterian and me.) But we could all agree that it is time for a change; that it is time to work harder than ever toward peace and unity and we believe that this starts with us.
Now the danger is to place too much hope of the shoulders of Barack. His name means “blessed” but he is not the Messiah. The challenges are huge – and regardless of political parties and ideologies - it is going to take everybody working together to get us out of the mess we are in. Whether we agree with everything Barack is going to try to achieve or not, he needs our prayers.
Monday (usually my day off) was spent between the History Channel, which honored the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. and stations like CNN, MSNBC, and Fox as they each broadcasted the pre-inaugural festivities for Barack Obama.
I have usually voted for presidential elections but this is the first one when I find myself truly moved and with the sense of witnessing something important and historical. I find myself wanting to understand the political system better. I find myself wanting to learn more about Martin and the whole civil rights movement.
This is not part of my heritage. I was not born and I did not grow up in the United States. American history was not taught to me growing up. French history was. Twenty years ago I had a couple American history classes in college while Steve and I lived in Texas. I enjoy history, I just don’t have a lot of time to read about it as much I would like to, with the other things that I want to read and need to read. This is something I want to remedy.
I was surprised to find myself teary-eyed these past couple of days because I was 3 when Martin Luther King Jr, was assassinated. I believe what moves me is the dedication of one’s life for peace and justice to the point of accepting death as a very probable result of one’s involvement. The men’s dedication is not the only thing that touched me. With each of these men was a strong, dedicated woman and these men would not have achieved what they achieved without these women. What was true for Martin is true for Barack.
Whether one is Republican or Democrat (or something else), the hope that is currently present is undeniable and America desperately needs hope.
Hope is what some pastoral colleagues and I saw and felt when we shared Hawaiian pizza together (here goes the low carb diet) as we were watching Obama’s inauguration on TV. The pastor who invited us to her home said about the pizza, “if it is good enough for Barack, it is good enough for us” (and it was good pizza.) We had a great time together, sitting in this small living room. Giggled at Aretha Franklin’s hat. Commented on what we heard being said. There was this sense of unity despite the fact that we don’t all share the same views on several things (our host is a Unitarian Universalist pastor; we had a United Church of Christ pastor, a Presbyterian and me.) But we could all agree that it is time for a change; that it is time to work harder than ever toward peace and unity and we believe that this starts with us.
Now the danger is to place too much hope of the shoulders of Barack. His name means “blessed” but he is not the Messiah. The challenges are huge – and regardless of political parties and ideologies - it is going to take everybody working together to get us out of the mess we are in. Whether we agree with everything Barack is going to try to achieve or not, he needs our prayers.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
A prisoner of Jesus Christ
“…I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus…” That phrase has been echoing in my heart and mind these past several weeks. It comes from Ephesians 3:1. That was one of the lectionary texts (3:1-12) for Epiphany Sunday, January 4. On that Sunday, we recognized and remembered anew that all the world, Jews and non-Jews (Gentiles), has been called into the family of God. That is the mystery that God has given Paul, this first century missionary pastor, to tell the people. I preached on that. On how good it is to be part of the family but also on the privilege and responsibility we have been given also to let people know… To let them know that they are not too broken, or too messed up or whatever to come and have a relationship with Jesus. They are loved and welcomed.
That is an amazing message of grace. A message that I have and continue to be the recipient of.
“…I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus…” But that phrase keeps rattling within me. I have thought about it off and on as I lay in bed at night, reviewing my day, talking with God, waiting for sleep to come…
“…I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus…” The immediate meaning is that Paul is telling the folks he is writing to (Ephesians and others since this is apparently a circular letter, commentators tell us) that he is in jail. Scholars believe he was imprisoned in Rome when he wrote the letter. But what I also think he is telling them and us – and that is the part that gets me - is that his love for Jesus is so profound, so deep, and so powerful that it controls him. All of him. Every decision he makes. Every moment of his life…
That statement must have jarred the folks at the Ephesus church. By all accounts, they were great folks. Paul writes, “Since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you.” (Eph. 1:15, NLT) But then the writer of Revelation says this about the followers of Jesus in Ephesus “Yet I hold this against you. You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.” (v. 2:4-5a, NIV)
Paul is calling them and us to wake up, to not go through the motion of faith, to not play church. Instead he prays that passion – that fire in our belly for God and people – would be re-ignited.
There is something really powerful, really contagious, about a life lived with passion; in the best sense of the term.
I went to my seminary recently to a communion service in honor of Erland Waltner. Erland is 94. He was my spiritual director when I was in seminary. He is one of the most faithful, wise, grace-filled person I know. He has a passion for God, for people, for teaching… He and his wife are going through great times of changes and transition in terms of health and living arrangements. They have recently moved from the home they had lived in for years, across the street to the seminary, to a retirement place in Goshen.
When I read what Paul says about himself, I think of Erland. He is a prisoner of Jesus Christ. It is obvious God has all of him. He shines with a quiet, strong and steady faith. Erland is legally blind but the eyes of his heart and the discernment of his spirit are sharp. He could see right through the confusion experienced by this green pastor not so long ago. His passion and love for Jesus are inspiring.
I remember reading the newsletter from a local counseling agency and the director was talking about the passion that he has for what he does and the passion he sees in his colleagues and also in some of the people they serve. This therapist wrote, “The word "passion" itself has an interesting history in Christian tradition. It derives from the Latin passio, which meant "to suffer," and also "to allow oneself to be acted upon" ("suffer the little children to come unto me" reflects this meaning), and especially to allow oneself to endure suffering – as in Jesus' Passion.
Passion is what Paul had, what Erland has, what some pastors I know have. A passion for God, for God’s people which drives their life. This passion enables them to bear their cross.
A pastor friend was talking about that recently. He shared his deep concern for children and how they grow up in this society. He wants them to have roots, a solid foundation rooted in Jesus and His love. He says that he wants kids to have a faith which will enable them to carry the crosses that bring unspeakable pain and loss to all our lives at one time or another.
I want that kind of faith, that kind of passion. I want to be a prisoner of Jesus. I want people to see Jesus in me and for them to come to Him. Amen.
That is an amazing message of grace. A message that I have and continue to be the recipient of.
“…I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus…” But that phrase keeps rattling within me. I have thought about it off and on as I lay in bed at night, reviewing my day, talking with God, waiting for sleep to come…
“…I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus…” The immediate meaning is that Paul is telling the folks he is writing to (Ephesians and others since this is apparently a circular letter, commentators tell us) that he is in jail. Scholars believe he was imprisoned in Rome when he wrote the letter. But what I also think he is telling them and us – and that is the part that gets me - is that his love for Jesus is so profound, so deep, and so powerful that it controls him. All of him. Every decision he makes. Every moment of his life…
That statement must have jarred the folks at the Ephesus church. By all accounts, they were great folks. Paul writes, “Since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you.” (Eph. 1:15, NLT) But then the writer of Revelation says this about the followers of Jesus in Ephesus “Yet I hold this against you. You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.” (v. 2:4-5a, NIV)
Paul is calling them and us to wake up, to not go through the motion of faith, to not play church. Instead he prays that passion – that fire in our belly for God and people – would be re-ignited.
There is something really powerful, really contagious, about a life lived with passion; in the best sense of the term.
I went to my seminary recently to a communion service in honor of Erland Waltner. Erland is 94. He was my spiritual director when I was in seminary. He is one of the most faithful, wise, grace-filled person I know. He has a passion for God, for people, for teaching… He and his wife are going through great times of changes and transition in terms of health and living arrangements. They have recently moved from the home they had lived in for years, across the street to the seminary, to a retirement place in Goshen.
When I read what Paul says about himself, I think of Erland. He is a prisoner of Jesus Christ. It is obvious God has all of him. He shines with a quiet, strong and steady faith. Erland is legally blind but the eyes of his heart and the discernment of his spirit are sharp. He could see right through the confusion experienced by this green pastor not so long ago. His passion and love for Jesus are inspiring.
I remember reading the newsletter from a local counseling agency and the director was talking about the passion that he has for what he does and the passion he sees in his colleagues and also in some of the people they serve. This therapist wrote, “The word "passion" itself has an interesting history in Christian tradition. It derives from the Latin passio, which meant "to suffer," and also "to allow oneself to be acted upon" ("suffer the little children to come unto me" reflects this meaning), and especially to allow oneself to endure suffering – as in Jesus' Passion.
Passion is what Paul had, what Erland has, what some pastors I know have. A passion for God, for God’s people which drives their life. This passion enables them to bear their cross.
A pastor friend was talking about that recently. He shared his deep concern for children and how they grow up in this society. He wants them to have roots, a solid foundation rooted in Jesus and His love. He says that he wants kids to have a faith which will enable them to carry the crosses that bring unspeakable pain and loss to all our lives at one time or another.
I want that kind of faith, that kind of passion. I want to be a prisoner of Jesus. I want people to see Jesus in me and for them to come to Him. Amen.
Monday, January 5, 2009
The Story does not end with Christmas
Steve and I took down the decoration off our Christmas tree and put the nativity set away today. The Christmas season is a bittersweet time for me because we are away from family and we don’t have biological children. The celebration is different, the food is different than in France... It is a busy time. But still I enjoy Christmas – not the marketers’ version of Christmas, mind you – I dislike shopping most of the time; but I like the lights and the ornaments, many of which have a history. We have stuffed teddy bears in winter outfits on our couch. One even plays music when you squeeze its paw.
And I never get tired of hearing the Story or telling the Story in various ways.
From as far back as I can remember as a child, it was my “job” to put up the crèche and that tradition remains. We have a neat nativity set. It’s not the “santons” (“little saints” in Provençal,) of my youth, those hand-painted clay figurines, dressed in traditional attire, prevalent in the south of France. My little resin friends of today look right out of first century Judea. The plaster houses look like what I imagine the houses back then would have looked like. I enjoy setting the scene and trying to imagine what life would have been like so long ago.
People, in my crèche rendition, go about their every day business, oblivious to the miracle happening right under their nose. That part has not changed all that much, has it?
The wise men are even part of my recreated story despite the fact that scholars don’t believe they reached Jesus until he was a 2 year-old toddler and long gone from the stable in Bethlehem. There are 3 wise men – an assumption based on the three gifts brought – again, probably not accurate either but frankly it does not matter all that much. The point, as our lectionary texts Sunday reminded us, is that outsiders: Gentiles (non-Jews), dirty-stinky shepherds… believed what they heard, responded and came to worship and became part of the family of God. Power, as the world understands it, was turned on its head, redefined, on that day.
So there is a little sadness because putting things away means that another year has gone by. The lights are put away and familiar and beloved carols won’t be sung for the next 12 months.
The end of the Christmas season kind of feels like I imagine the disciples must have felt coming down the mountain after transfiguration. There is part of me that wants to stay on the mountain, dazzled by visions and light. But I am reminded that I can’t stay on the mountain. Life happens on the plain and in the valley and occasionally there are mountain top experiences.
But “God is in us, God is for us, God is with us Emmanuel”; that is what the Casting Crown song I sang Sunday reminded us of. He is with us all year long, whether we are on a mountain or deep in the valley.
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