Sometimes, even the best intentions can be hard to follow up on! Like my intention to do some writing for you while I've been on vacation the last week. However, I did get invited to give the message again at Leesburg UMC last Sunday. And I did some writing to prepare for that. Of course, it's not quite the sort of thing I usually share here... but its something!
I hope it feeds you: http://leesburgumc.org/media/2011/08/21/step-plate
Thoughts and observations about life in the kingdom of God. I hope to feed your hungry soul!
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
In the Mean Time...
I've been rather adrift the past few months, which is why I haven't generated any food for your souls. I've got some words floating around in my head on that topic of drifting, but they haven't quite got enough speed up to break free of the lazy current I've been drifting in. Soon, though. Soon...In the mean time, July presented me with two unexpected opportunities to share God's word from the pulpit, which I would like to share with you.
On July 24th, I preached the sermon at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church. The scripture for the day is available at the lectionary page (along with the readings from Romans and Matthew, we used the passage from Genesis and Psalm 105). The message text follows.
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Passionate for the Kingdom
Two of the little parables we just heard - Treasure Hidden in a Field, and The Pearl of Great Value - reminded me of a book I have: “Ripley’s Believe It or Not,” with the subtitle “take a look at the world’s weirdest facts.” Now, there are many weird facts in here, like the largest ham & cheese sandwich, a water-skiing squirrel, and a hang glider with a toilet attached to it, to mention a few. But there have always been just a few that struck me because of the “all in” commitment-level of the people involved, which is reminded me of the two parables I just mentioned. One man left his work as a carpenter, and moved to Mexico where he spent 4 years building a raft-island paradise home. Another fellow turned his suburban home into a replica 1950s gas station, with gas pumps, service island and everything, even the back half of a vintage Chevy apparently protruding from the side of the house as though it had crashed into the building. But my “favorite” is the man who legally changed his name to “Captain Beany”. He has such a thing for baked beans, that he paints himself orange, wears an orange “super-hero” suit, drives an old VW bug painted up like baked beans, and not only eats baked beans every day, but occasionally baths in them as well.
Personally, I think these people are all just a little bit unbalanced, but they certainly live their lives completely committed to their values and passions, willing to give up a lot to live they way they are convinced they need to live. The OT lesson today also shows us an example of a person willing to go to extraordinary measures to get what they are after. Jacob willingly works 7 years to get the wife he desires, Rachel, then works ANOTHER 7 years for her when her father Laban tricks him into marrying her sister Leah first. It’s a dedicated young man who’s willing to work not just 7 but 14 YEARS to get the woman he wants for his wife. I wonder how many of us would be willing to invest 7, let alone 14, years of labor in order to marry the man or woman of our dreams?
You’ve got to have powerfully motivating dreams to take on the sort of heavy costs like Jacob – or Captain Beany – have paid to follow their dreams. But that is just what we see going on with the treasure and the pearl in our Gospel passage. The person who finds the treasure in a field wasn’t LOOKING for treasure, but he certainly realized the great value of what he found when he came across it. And Jesus says that he sells everything he has so that he can buy the field – and obtain the treasure. The pearl merchant WAS searching for the best pearls, but he, too, realized the tremendous value of one particular pearl, and was willing to sell all the others – along with everything else he had- in order to have this one most perfect pearl in his possession.
Jesus tells us that these two stories are pictures of what the Kingdom of Heaven (God) is like. Those who discover it, whether accidentally stumbling upon it or intentionally searching for it, will find themselves willing to give up everything in order to have it.
So the challenge then, is this: do we live like this in our desire for Christ? Are we willing to DO all we can or GIVE all we have in order to obtain the Kingdom and to live as disciples of Jesus Christ?
For myself, I have to be honest and tell you that most of the time, I am not living like a person who’s willing to potentially give up everything for God. In my better moments, I certainly desire to be a person willing to do anything or give up everything for Jesus sake. I WANT to respond like the pearl merchant or the treasure finder, but I rarely do.
I have heard any number of people express the idea that when you finally understand, in your heart of hearts, the love God has for you, and the extraordinary lengths that Jesus went to to save your soul – when the scope and magnitude of those things finally sinks in – then everything will change. You’ll be so overwhelmed by the knowledge of the love of God that your whole life will change, and you will respond like the treasure finder and the pearl merchant, and willingly give up everything for that treasure.
And that idea has made me feel so very inadequate on so many occasions – made me question whether I really do even believe.... What am I missing, what’s wrong with me that this “big change of heart” doesn’t seem to have taken place? Do you ever wonder that about yourself?
If you’ve ever felt that way, then let me encourage you – fear not! I certainly believe it is true that some people will have a nearly complete and instantaneous change of heart when they finally “get it”. In a moment, or perhaps in the course of a few days or weeks, suddenly and unexpectedly they come to understand the great treasure before them, and their lives are completely and irrevocably changed. But I suspect it’s more common to have an initial change that is much smaller and less dramatic, and then we move incrementally closer to understanding over time in a series of baby steps. Some folks will plunge right in to the deep end of the pool, others inch their way in from the shallow end.
For those of us who may feel like we’re struggling to inch our way in from the shallow end, our epistle reading from Romans this morning offers some powerful promises and reassurances. I just LOVE this part of Romans – it just so GOOD and rich and full. Listen:
- “the spirit helps us in our weakness” – we don’t have to do this on our own.
- “all things work together for good for those who love God, and are called according to his purpose” - even our current feelings of inadequacy, of not quite getting it – all those things will be to our benefit eventually.
- “those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son” - it’s God’s plan for us to fully find and understand his love sooner or later. We are among the predestined, and it is our ultimate destiny to love God as perfectly and passionately as Jesus does, whether we get there by sudden leaps and bounds or whether we inch along in baby steps.
- “If God is for us, who is against us?” - there is no one against us who is more powerful than God who loves us. So we need to love ourselves as well.
- “neither death nor life,… nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord.” I just don’t know what I can say to add to that statement!
Looking back at today’s Gospel reading again, Jesus says that the kingdom of Heaven is like a tiny mustard seed that becomes a giant plant, or a small amount of yeast that can spread through and raise a large amount of flour. Be confident that even the tiniest desire to love God, to live for his pleasure and fulfill his purposes – even a bit as small as a pinch of yeast or a single tiny seed can make huge changes in your life.
Our reactions to the tug of God at our hearts will influence our progress. Think about it: a seed that is carefully planted, watered, weeded, pruned, fertilized and so on, will grow faster, stronger and bigger than one left to it’s own devices or worse, one that is trampled or intentionally allowed to be persecuted by the elements. Similarly, the yeast in a dough will multiply and raise a dough much faster and more effectively if there is adequate sugar in the dough, and it’s set to rise in a protected place that’s neither too cool nor too hot.
Whether our faith is small or well-developed – whether it’s a newly sprouted seed or a mature plant large enough for the birds of the air to nest in – in either case we can help and nurture its growth in the same way a gardener cares for a seed or a baker tends to yeast dough. The various Spiritual Disciplines are the tools we have available to help our faith grow.
Here is one list of spiritual disciplines (from this website: http://quaillake.blogspot.com/2006/09/spiritual-disciplines.html )
Solitude: The practice of spending time without any others or any distractions. Silence: No noise or conversation. Just you and God. Fasting: Abstain from food, media, entertainment, or anything else that occupies your time. Frugality: Use your money for purposes outside your own needs for a time. Chastity: 1 Corinthians 7:8, “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” Secrecy: Do not allow anyone to know of the deeds you do or the money you give in order to avoid doing them for the wrong motivations. Only God needs to know. Sacrifice: Stretch your sense of what you can do without for the sake of those who have less.Study: Memorize Scripture and expand your universe of biblical study helps. Worship: Engage in corporate worship and include worship in your own prayer time. Celebration: Practice being grateful and thankful both in your own relationship with Christ and with other believers. Express encouragement and thankfulness to others. Service: Give your time to the church and/or to others. Ponder tithing your time. Prayer: Take deliberate steps to pray regularly and with purpose. Praying through the Psalms is a good way to increase your “prayer vocabulary.” Fellowship: Hebrews 10:25, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Confession: Practice confessing your sins to trusted people who will pray with you and be spiritual allies. Submission: Submit to the proper people in the proper ways—fight against the sin of pride.I encourage you to read through this list and take stock of which disciplines you are presently practicing, and what discipline (or disciplines) you might add. These practices are ways we can cooperate with God’s plans and desires for us, and they can help us to increase our faith, fire up our passion for the Kingdom of God, and more fully develop our love of Jesus Christ. Our faith and love of God should make us stand out from the rest of the world. And while I don’t necessarily encourage anyone to stand out quite as weirdly as Captain Beany does, nevertheless, something of our joy in finding the treasure of the Kingdom of God should be evident to those around us, and make us stand out from the world.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Simple Help, Super Hero
The following piece was inspired by my good friend, Monica, who blogs at www.lifewithgrace.net. Be sure to check out her work!
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A woman stands on a small, grassy hill, warmly lit by evening light. She's looking off into the distance, at the unseen setting of the sun, with a small town visible in the background. Despite the heroic pose, she seems, at first, quite ordinary. She's an unremarkable figure dressed in unremarkable clothes: faded shirt, sagging jeans, scuffed sneakers. As we draw closer, though, a slight stirring in the shadows behind her draws the eye and we see ...... The Cape.
It's green, a deep, emerald hue, and made of a fabric that is lighter than a breath. It moves gently with even the tiniest of movements. The slight hitch of the shoulders produced by a small sigh is enough to set it moving as though it were, somehow, alive. The folds of the long, full cape create dark shadows reminiscent of the depths of a summer wood, deep and mysterious. But in the sun, the color will be bright and translucent, watery in its clarity, like a crystal clear mountain lake, reflecting the green of the surrounding vegetation. It is a remarkable garment that speaks competence and strength along with softness and tranquility. It is a superhero's cape...and it is mine!
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A woman stands on a small, grassy hill, warmly lit by evening light. She's looking off into the distance, at the unseen setting of the sun, with a small town visible in the background. Despite the heroic pose, she seems, at first, quite ordinary. She's an unremarkable figure dressed in unremarkable clothes: faded shirt, sagging jeans, scuffed sneakers. As we draw closer, though, a slight stirring in the shadows behind her draws the eye and we see ...... The Cape.
It's green, a deep, emerald hue, and made of a fabric that is lighter than a breath. It moves gently with even the tiniest of movements. The slight hitch of the shoulders produced by a small sigh is enough to set it moving as though it were, somehow, alive. The folds of the long, full cape create dark shadows reminiscent of the depths of a summer wood, deep and mysterious. But in the sun, the color will be bright and translucent, watery in its clarity, like a crystal clear mountain lake, reflecting the green of the surrounding vegetation. It is a remarkable garment that speaks competence and strength along with softness and tranquility. It is a superhero's cape...and it is mine!...That was my fanciful imagining earlier, after I was able to help a friend solve a little computer problem. She gushed in her joy at finally finding the root of her problem, and called me her hero - inspiring me to dream up my perfect superhero cape. But the help I had given was unwitting and almost ungiven - the question I asked so basic (to me) that I almost didn't ask it for fear of appearing either inept or condescending. But the tiny, stale crumb of help that I thought I was offering, turned out to be a whole loaf of goodness to her.
When we take the time and effort to share even the tiniest of our gifts with others (things we may not even recognize as gifts!), we can at any time find them multiplied and returned to us. I shared a simple question that came to mind, and got back the joy and pleasure of being able to help another. And I got my beautifully imagined cape!
By helping one another, we can all be heroes - the smallest service, the simplest comment or suggestion can transform you into someone's hero. Smile at a stranger on the street; hold a door for a mother struggling to herd her small children into a store; let someone merge in front of you in traffic - and suddenly you, too, may feel an imaginary cape hanging from your shoulders and swirling around your legs.
By helping one another, we can all be heroes - the smallest service, the simplest comment or suggestion can transform you into someone's hero. Smile at a stranger on the street; hold a door for a mother struggling to herd her small children into a store; let someone merge in front of you in traffic - and suddenly you, too, may feel an imaginary cape hanging from your shoulders and swirling around your legs.
"Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too." (Phil 2:3-4, emphasis added)
The words above are from the Apostle Paul, but Jesus himself taught that whoever wanted to be "great" must be the servant of all. You see, serving one another lies at the heart of the Christian life. And we can start with our "widow's mite" of service, offering even the tiniest of helps to those around us. That which may seem embarrassingly inadequate in our own eyes might be more than someone else could have hoped for.
Messiah Jesus performed the ultimate service for us all when he bore our sins and died on a cross that we might have life everlasting in him. His superhero cape started out as darkness and blood, funeral wrappings to cocoon sweet spices around his decaying corpse. On the third day, he left it behind and donned his true superhero cape - a garment of light that fills the world with His glory!
"[The Lord] was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple.... The whole earth is filled with his glory!" (Isaiah 6:1b, 3b)What can you do today so you might be someone's superhero?
And what does your cape look like?
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(Really! Let's have some fun - tell us what it looks like. Post a comment and share with us what kind of superhero cape you imagine for yourself.)
Monday, April 25, 2011
Cat Gravity
I have a stalker!
Lest you worry for my safety, let me reassure you that I'm in no danger. You see, my stalker is just my cat, Brownie. But the last few months, she follows me around in a devoted way that borders on the obsessive. If I sit at my computer, she insists on being in my lap. If I sit on the love seat, she wants to perch on the arm next to me. If I stretch out on the sofa, she wants to lay beside me, and when I lie down in bed, she wants to situate herself on the pillow right next to my head! No matter where in my house I go or what I'm doing, if I stay in the same place for even a little while, I can look up and notice Brownie somewhere near.
She seems to want nothing but to be near me. Sure, sometimes she seems to want to soak up some of my body heat, and sometimes she's hoping for a cat treat. But more often than not, she just wants to be close. I never knew I was so fascinating! Sometimes I joke with my husband that I must have "cat gravity" - some irresistible force that pulls the cat into my orbit.
It occurs to me that this is how we should be in our devotion to God - doing whatever it takes to be close, "stalking" God. Sure, sometimes we turn to God hoping to feel his love, and sometimes we seek God to make our requests. But most of the time, we should be seeking him just to be close.
God is quite fascinating, after all. Who better is there to be devoted to? Surely no celebrity or public figure or business tycoon is nearly so fascinating as our God, creator of the universe, and creator of each of us. God can speak to the deepest desires of our hearts and provide for our most profound needs in ways no human can.
Why, then, do we so often forget God? Why do we so often turn to our fellow creatures and creation itself with our devotion, instead of to God? Why can God's presence sometimes feel so remote and hidden from us? If I have "cat gravity", then God should have "people gravity" like nobody's business, right? And we should all readily fall into "orbit" near God if we just once get close enough to be captured by the "gravity field" of his awesome presence. Right?
But God doesn't want us to follow him mindlessly, simply because of the overwhelming nature of his greatness, as though pulled by an irresistible force like gravity. God wants us to choose him, to love him - yes, even to stalk him! God loves noting more than to see his children do all in their power to be close to him.
So, just forget about passively waiting around for God to draw you in with his "gravity." Instead, set out to seek him, to find him, and to stalk him!
How will you stalk God today?
Lest you worry for my safety, let me reassure you that I'm in no danger. You see, my stalker is just my cat, Brownie. But the last few months, she follows me around in a devoted way that borders on the obsessive. If I sit at my computer, she insists on being in my lap. If I sit on the love seat, she wants to perch on the arm next to me. If I stretch out on the sofa, she wants to lay beside me, and when I lie down in bed, she wants to situate herself on the pillow right next to my head! No matter where in my house I go or what I'm doing, if I stay in the same place for even a little while, I can look up and notice Brownie somewhere near.
She seems to want nothing but to be near me. Sure, sometimes she seems to want to soak up some of my body heat, and sometimes she's hoping for a cat treat. But more often than not, she just wants to be close. I never knew I was so fascinating! Sometimes I joke with my husband that I must have "cat gravity" - some irresistible force that pulls the cat into my orbit.It occurs to me that this is how we should be in our devotion to God - doing whatever it takes to be close, "stalking" God. Sure, sometimes we turn to God hoping to feel his love, and sometimes we seek God to make our requests. But most of the time, we should be seeking him just to be close.
God is quite fascinating, after all. Who better is there to be devoted to? Surely no celebrity or public figure or business tycoon is nearly so fascinating as our God, creator of the universe, and creator of each of us. God can speak to the deepest desires of our hearts and provide for our most profound needs in ways no human can.
But God doesn't want us to follow him mindlessly, simply because of the overwhelming nature of his greatness, as though pulled by an irresistible force like gravity. God wants us to choose him, to love him - yes, even to stalk him! God loves noting more than to see his children do all in their power to be close to him.
So, just forget about passively waiting around for God to draw you in with his "gravity." Instead, set out to seek him, to find him, and to stalk him!
You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. (Jer. 29:13)
How will you stalk God today?
Monday, April 18, 2011
What's in a Name?
My daughter (who was has been both Girl Scout and Girl Scout Camp counselor) tells me that these days, all the counselors have "camp names". The camp name is a nickname, most kinda silly, to give the counselors a bit of privacy along with a certain air of mystery. The counselors generally choose these names for themselves, and they tend to be things that are somehow descriptive, like "Poptart" for the counselor who swears she could live on Poptarts, or "Splash" who runs the pool, or "Scarlet" with the bright red hair.
I was a Girl Scout who loved summer resident camp, and got the chance to work as a counselor one summer at my favorite camp. Back in my camp days, though, not all the counselors had camp names, and camp names were earned or otherwise given by the other counselors. Sure, the names might still be quite descriptive like they are now, but you didn't just choose one for yourself. There would be an incident to inspire the name, or perhaps a simple observation that suggested a name, or a name you brought with you from past summers - SOMETHING! And I've always been a little sad that I was one of those unfortunates who never inspired a camp name. I was always just Linda, not Princess Moonbeam, or Smurfette, or Little Gray Pigeon, or something otherwise fun or intriguing. And I've always felt that made me somehow "less."
Names are important, after all. We are each identified by a name of some sort, and baggage that comes with your particular string of syllables will color your view of the world. Whether common or unusual, simple or a nightmare to spell, connecting you with fine upstanding citizens or folks who's manner of living can't withstand the light of day - whatever your name, it helps you understand who you are and your place in the world.
A name given in infancy, however, can convey only so much about a person. That's why there's something extra-special about a name bestowed in (more-or-less) adulthood, like the camp name. A name GIVEN by someone who knows you implies relationship and care. And I guess that's what saddened me about not having been given a camp name: the implication that no one I served with that summer either knew me well enough or cared enough to give me a name.
However, I think my lack of a camp name says more about my own introverted nature than anything ill-natured or lacking in my fellow counselors. We introverts don't readily share ourselves with just any-old-body, and the fewer people there are who really know you, the less likely you are to be given another name. But we can take heart, because God knows everyone, to the deepest recesses of the heart.
God knows who you are - because He made you. And He knows what you'll accomplish - because he exists outside of the constraints of time. And God has a habit of giving people new names to better reflect who they are or what they will accomplish. Abram and Sarai became Abraham and Sarah, Simon became Peter, and Saul became Paul, to mention just a few of the most notable examples. When God claims you, God names you!
My name may still be "Linda" as far as I and the world knows. But Jesus knows my heart and soul, and has a new name for me. I long for the day when it shall be revealed to me, when I meet my Maker and Savior, and He reveals to me who He has intended me to be since before the foundations of the world were laid.
Take comfort, you lonely ones - Jesus knows your name!
I was a Girl Scout who loved summer resident camp, and got the chance to work as a counselor one summer at my favorite camp. Back in my camp days, though, not all the counselors had camp names, and camp names were earned or otherwise given by the other counselors. Sure, the names might still be quite descriptive like they are now, but you didn't just choose one for yourself. There would be an incident to inspire the name, or perhaps a simple observation that suggested a name, or a name you brought with you from past summers - SOMETHING! And I've always been a little sad that I was one of those unfortunates who never inspired a camp name. I was always just Linda, not Princess Moonbeam, or Smurfette, or Little Gray Pigeon, or something otherwise fun or intriguing. And I've always felt that made me somehow "less."Names are important, after all. We are each identified by a name of some sort, and baggage that comes with your particular string of syllables will color your view of the world. Whether common or unusual, simple or a nightmare to spell, connecting you with fine upstanding citizens or folks who's manner of living can't withstand the light of day - whatever your name, it helps you understand who you are and your place in the world.
A name given in infancy, however, can convey only so much about a person. That's why there's something extra-special about a name bestowed in (more-or-less) adulthood, like the camp name. A name GIVEN by someone who knows you implies relationship and care. And I guess that's what saddened me about not having been given a camp name: the implication that no one I served with that summer either knew me well enough or cared enough to give me a name.
However, I think my lack of a camp name says more about my own introverted nature than anything ill-natured or lacking in my fellow counselors. We introverts don't readily share ourselves with just any-old-body, and the fewer people there are who really know you, the less likely you are to be given another name. But we can take heart, because God knows everyone, to the deepest recesses of the heart.
God knows who you are - because He made you. And He knows what you'll accomplish - because he exists outside of the constraints of time. And God has a habit of giving people new names to better reflect who they are or what they will accomplish. Abram and Sarai became Abraham and Sarah, Simon became Peter, and Saul became Paul, to mention just a few of the most notable examples. When God claims you, God names you!
My name may still be "Linda" as far as I and the world knows. But Jesus knows my heart and soul, and has a new name for me. I long for the day when it shall be revealed to me, when I meet my Maker and Savior, and He reveals to me who He has intended me to be since before the foundations of the world were laid. "I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it." (Revelation 2:17)
Take comfort, you lonely ones - Jesus knows your name!
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
A Song of Ascents
I’ve been here before.I’ve been to this place before. The landscape is familiar. I know there’s a deep valley beyond that gentle, tree-covered rise, and that the path from here to there has several stony places and a muddy spot. I recognize even the smell of the place. I’ve been here before, at this place where all seems loss and vague sorrow, lonliness for something I can’t describe, wanting I-know-not-what.
I know exactly what I’ve done when I’ve been here before. The wanting sends me searching, and I head across the meadow, into the woods, along the well-worn path over the rise, and then down into the deep, deep valley beyond - the valley that seems so easy to walk down into, but which is such a struggle to get back up out of. The path down into that deep dark valley is almost a joy to tread. It’s cut into the steep and cliff-like valley wall, and it seems a great adventure. Gravity pulls me down, and I walk faster than I think. I don’t realize how far I’ve descended until I finally turn back and look with dismay at the hilltop so far above, so very tiny. Have I really come so far already?
And now the wanting that drove me onward has left. There is no longer a spur for my travels. The climb back up is no adventure. It’s hard work. And fear. The path that seemed so broad on the way down looks narrow and treacherous on the way back up, the distance nearly too much to contemplate. Perhaps I’ll just take up residence here in this dark valley – it would be so much easier to live here, perched on the side of this rocky cliff, than to find the strength and will to climb back out. Why, oh why did I come here?
If I had known this was my destination, I never would have set out. Would I? But there’s the rub. I’ve been here many times before, but every time is the same – I head down that same familiar path as though the end will turn out differently this time. Yes – surely it will end well THIS time, surely I'll find what I'm searching for when I descend... But, no, the end is always pain and sorrow, and a certain confusion at finding myself, again, so far from what I thought I wanted.
But this time, my visit to this familiar country will be different. As I look toward the path I know, toward that little rise and the valley beyond, I am remembering the difficulty of the return, the despair of ever leaving that deep, dark place. The comfort of the familiar path, the feeling of adventure on the way down does not seem so appealing this time.
I pause. I consider. I still want... I-know-not-what. I’m still feeling lonely and alone with a vague sense of sorrow clinging to me like a fine mist. I need to do something, ANYTHING, to leave this feeling of unease and unrest behind, but today I think I’ll take another path. As I pause and gaze about the landscape, I notice the barest hint of a path. Just a few bent blades of grass, a few tiny spots of bare earth, a path so faint that I’m not sure its really a path and not some random trick of nature.
Then I lift my eyes and see, in the far distance, a low haze. What is that? Looking more carefully, I can begin to make out the rugged shape of mountains, steep and sharp, rising from the earth in the distance. This faint path, it seems, is heading to those lofty peaks. To follow this path, however, will be no easy matter of letting gravity take its course. Although the trail starts gently enough, I know great effort will be required to reach those lofty peaks. But somehow, strangely, my desire for I-know-not-what grows and strengthens as I gaze at those misty heights in the distance.Yes - this time, today, I shall set out on a different course.
A Song of Ascents.
I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is your keeper;
the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The LORD will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore. (Psalm 121)
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
The Quality of Light
Have you ever noticed what a marvelous thing light is? Not only does light allow our eyes to function, so we may visually interact with the world around us. But light can also perform little miracles of mood - injecting beauty or sorrow or joy or excitement or worry into a situation, just because of the quality of the light in a scene. Photographers and painters are particularly aware of this phenomenon, and I think any architect or home designer worth their salt considers carefully the effects of light in their planning.
I was especially struck by the quality of light at church this past Sunday. I was assisting at the altar, and happened to glance behind me toward the flower arrangements that sit on shelves on the wall behind the altar. Rosy morning light, filtered and tinted by the stained glass above, was gently illuminating the arrangement in a most stunning manner!
The arrangement itself was quite simple for Lent - just branches from (I think) a magnolia tree. But the light caught the few blossoms that had started to come out and they simply glowed. Stunning! The arrangement on the other side of the altar made a striking contrast. No special light fell on that vase, and the branches of that arrangement were dead and bare - no flowers, no light, no life!
And that got me to thinking about one of the readings from earlier in the service:
I was especially struck by the quality of light at church this past Sunday. I was assisting at the altar, and happened to glance behind me toward the flower arrangements that sit on shelves on the wall behind the altar. Rosy morning light, filtered and tinted by the stained glass above, was gently illuminating the arrangement in a most stunning manner! The arrangement itself was quite simple for Lent - just branches from (I think) a magnolia tree. But the light caught the few blossoms that had started to come out and they simply glowed. Stunning! The arrangement on the other side of the altar made a striking contrast. No special light fell on that vase, and the branches of that arrangement were dead and bare - no flowers, no light, no life!
And that got me to thinking about one of the readings from earlier in the service:
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” (Ephesians 5:8-14, NIV 2011)
Those two arrangements - one in the sunlight, with flowers and life, tinted with a wholesome glow, and one not in sunlight, barren and dead-looking - are a perfect metaphor and illustration of living in the light versus living in darkness. I'm pretty sure both vases of branches were about the same when they were prepared by the altar guild. Yet one group of branches was bathed in light that drew forth the potential within, the flowers, the life. And the other group, without light, not only didn't blossom, but also lost its potential to ever do so.
The light of Christ's presence can inspire growth and regeneration in even those parts of our lives that might seem the barest, driest branches of ourselves. But the power of the Light of Jesus is greater. All we need to do is expose ourselves - all our deepest darkest, most hidden corners - to that Gracious Light. And Jesus will slowly, surely begin to bring forth life and growth.
"Everything that is illuminated becomes a light." Shine forth, my friends!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Are You a Reliquary?
A couple of weeks ago, I went to the Walters Gallery in Baltimore to see an exhibit called "Treasures of Heaven: Saints, Relics and Devotion in Medieval Europe." The exhibit was filled with intriguing items, mostly reliquaries of one sort or another. A reliquary is "a container of relics," and a relic "may be the physical remains of saints, such as bones, pieces of clothing, or some object associated with saints or other religious figures." (Sadly, most of the reliquaries in the exhibit no longer contain a relic.)
Some of the reliquaries were rather plain in shape or decoration, most were elaborately decorated even if simple and shape, and some of the later ones were crafted to resemble the part they once housed, like the arm reliquary pictured to the right that once contained part of an arm-bone. The objects were intriguing to look at, and intriguing to reflect on the notion that a finger-bone of St. So-and-So or a sliver of The True Cross might have some miraculous properties. I'm not quite sure what I think about the veneration of such relics, but that's not why I'm writing today.
I'm writing about relics today, because it occurred to me that in some sense, Christians ARE reliquaries! At one point in the display, the exhibit preparers suggest that a relic is what is left after death and decay, and invited people to write about what constitutes relics and reliquaries in their own lives and experience. Reflecting on that question, I noticed that as Christians, the Holy Spirit is what we have left after Jesus' death (and resurrection and ascension into heaven). So in some sense, the Holy Spirit is a relic. And if the Holy Spirit is a relic, and that relic dwells in us, then that makes us RELIQUARIES!
So, are YOU a reliquary? Have you confessed Jesus as Savior and invited the Holy Spirit to dwell in your heart? If not, I invite you to consider John 3:16 and Romans 10:9-13 as a starting point on your faith journey.
And if you are a reliquary, then what kind of reliquary are you? Some reliquaries are made so that the relic inside can be displayed to the faithful. Other reliquaries have their relic secreted out of sight, and its presence is a matter of trust. Some reliquaries are shaped to resemble the relic inside (like the arm reliquary above), others are not explicitly related to the relic inside.
Considering this reliquary metaphor for the Christian life, I don't think one type of reliquary is superior to another except for this: it is important that whatever type of reliquary we are, it should be obvious that there is something holy and set-apart about each of us. No matter how plain and ordinary, or how extravagantly beautiful we are as "reliquaries of Christ," it should somehow be apparent that we are set apart for a special use, in the world but not of it. Can others identify that "set-apart" quality in you?
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"Treasures of Heaven" will remain at the Walters Gallery through May 15, 2011, if you want to go see the reliquaries for yourself. In addition to this special exhibit, the gallery also has a large permanent collection of medieval religious art and artifacts (mostly Christian). Here are links to the Walters Gallery (to plan a visit), and for the "Treasures of Heaven" exhibit.
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| Arm reliquary, on display in the "Treasures of Heaven" exhibit. |
Some of the reliquaries were rather plain in shape or decoration, most were elaborately decorated even if simple and shape, and some of the later ones were crafted to resemble the part they once housed, like the arm reliquary pictured to the right that once contained part of an arm-bone. The objects were intriguing to look at, and intriguing to reflect on the notion that a finger-bone of St. So-and-So or a sliver of The True Cross might have some miraculous properties. I'm not quite sure what I think about the veneration of such relics, but that's not why I'm writing today.
I'm writing about relics today, because it occurred to me that in some sense, Christians ARE reliquaries! At one point in the display, the exhibit preparers suggest that a relic is what is left after death and decay, and invited people to write about what constitutes relics and reliquaries in their own lives and experience. Reflecting on that question, I noticed that as Christians, the Holy Spirit is what we have left after Jesus' death (and resurrection and ascension into heaven). So in some sense, the Holy Spirit is a relic. And if the Holy Spirit is a relic, and that relic dwells in us, then that makes us RELIQUARIES!
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| a very plain reliquary |
So, are YOU a reliquary? Have you confessed Jesus as Savior and invited the Holy Spirit to dwell in your heart? If not, I invite you to consider John 3:16 and Romans 10:9-13 as a starting point on your faith journey.
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| Rock-crystal reliquary, so the relic can be viewed |
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| elaborately decorated reliquary |
Considering this reliquary metaphor for the Christian life, I don't think one type of reliquary is superior to another except for this: it is important that whatever type of reliquary we are, it should be obvious that there is something holy and set-apart about each of us. No matter how plain and ordinary, or how extravagantly beautiful we are as "reliquaries of Christ," it should somehow be apparent that we are set apart for a special use, in the world but not of it. Can others identify that "set-apart" quality in you?
=======================
"Treasures of Heaven" will remain at the Walters Gallery through May 15, 2011, if you want to go see the reliquaries for yourself. In addition to this special exhibit, the gallery also has a large permanent collection of medieval religious art and artifacts (mostly Christian). Here are links to the Walters Gallery (to plan a visit), and for the "Treasures of Heaven" exhibit.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Hunters & Gatherers
My brother came to visit last week, to hunt for deer on our little parcel of Virginia. He's a skilled and experienced hunter who relies on the deer season to both stretch his grocery dollar and to satisfy his taste for venison. Due to a series of unfortunate circumstances, he had only gotten one deer while hunting back home in Pennsylvania. While I welcomed his visit it made me rather anxious, worrying that the deer I saw so frequently would be elsewhere while my brother was here. I didn't want him to go home empty handed after 150 miles of driving! Although he saw many deer, he'd still had no success by the beginning of the last evening's hunt. Then finally, at dark, I heard him return to the house and with apprehension went to see how things had gone.... He got one! Hooray! It wasn't the giant deer he'd seen within the first moments of his first day's hunting, and it was only one deer, but it was a respectably-sized creature, a buck, and as my brother said to me, it was "the one I was supposed to have." Then followed the gutting, and the dragging, and the cutting and packing into the cooler of the venison. It was all quite exciting, and everyone was happy - and relieved!
My brother's comment about this deer being the one he was supposed to have, got me to thinking about God's providence. As I said, my brother is a good hunter, and that's not just my sisterly bias. All who know him would say the same. And yet, he still had only one deer to his credit before his visit. Despite the hours and days spent hunting, carefully, patiently waiting and watching, still he had little success. What was up with that?
Well, what's up is that God gives us what we're supposed to have. Those who hunt and gather from nature, I think, are more tuned in to the truth that all things come from God. All the hunting experience and skill in the world is not going to guarantee a kill, nor will foolish carelessness ensure that you'll never bring home meat. God provides. Skill and experience make the whole thing easier, but ultimately its God's providence that allows hunters to bring home the venison.
The fact of God's providence is more apparent to hunters than to herders, and to foragers than to farmers. Because they are involved in so many more parts of the process - feeding and breeding and tending their animals - herders are more likely to think that the success of their livestock is merely the natural result of their good husbandry. Similarly, farmers who plant and weed and water a field to grow a crop are more likely than foragers (who roam the woods and fields gathering wild plants) to see a bountiful harvest as nothing more than than the fruit of their hard work. And when we step back even farther in the process and consider the majority of us, who's only regular experience with "hunting and gathering" is in the retail setting of grocery or department store, it's even easier to see our bounty as nothing more than the natural and inevitable result of our own skill and hard work.
We work at jobs and earn money. We take our money to the store and buy what we want. Unless you are foolish enough to be shopping for milk and toilet paper on the eve of Snow-mageddon, you ARE going to find what you set out to buy. Americans in general have plenty of money, and the county I live in (Loudoun, VA) has the dubious honor of being one of the wealthiest counties in the nation. We have plenty of money and more than enough stuff to buy with it.
This way of life makes it easy to forget that everything we have has come to us as a gift of God's grace.
"All things come of Thee, and of Thine own have we given Thee." (KJV, 1 Chronicles, 29:14b)
"Everything comes from You, and we have given You only what comes from Your hand." (NIV)
If you think about it, though, everything truly comes from God. He knit us together in our mother's womb with our various traits and tendencies. He placed us in a family with particular people to train and nurture us. God placed skills and talents in each of us, and gave us opportunities to use and develop them. Both the corporate executive and the backwoods hunter are equally beholden to God for their ability to make a living.
I invite you to spend 24 hours intentionally looking at your life with the eyes of a humble hunter or a grateful gatherer. Notice all the things you take for granted, as the fruit of your labors, and think back through the steps that gave you the ability or opportunity to have those things in the first place. Thank God for the great bounty that He, not you, has provided.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Fire and Ash
On sunny days at certain seasons, rays of sunlight will pass through the stained glass windows behind the altar of St. Peter's Church and land in columns of color on the wall during the worship service. I love gazing at the stripes of gemstone colors - something beautiful on which to fix my eyes while singing or listening or praying.
Last week the effect was particularly striking, and one patch of color gathered up the reds and cast upon the wall a slender tongue of flame some three feet tall. It was stunningly beautiful, and my first thought was of the tongues of flame at Pentecost. "They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them." (Acts 2:3) I kept hoping that the priest or an acolyte or somebody would walk between me and that tongue of flame, so that it would look like fire had come to rest on them. Alas, I was disappointed, and after 10 or 15 minutes the position of the sun changed and the fire was gone except in memory.
But it has proved a potent memory, one I keep going back to, perhaps because Ash Wednesday is nearly upon us. In the Ash Wednesday liturgy, we are reminded that we are formed from dust, and ashes are marked on the forehead with the words, "remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." The contrast of fire and ash is so very rich...
The creation story in Genesis tells how God created Adam from the dust of the earth. God formed Adam, but he was not alive until God breathed into him the spark of life. What's the different between "ash" and "Adam?" The difference is the presence of "Life" - God's holy fire, the spark the makes the difference between a dead sculpture and a living human being.
Ordinary fire consumes. Fuel is required to maintain the blaze, and when the fuel runs out, the fire goes out, leaving nothing but charred, dead ash. God's fire, however, burns without consuming, without destroying, like the time when God appeared to Moses in a burning bush. "There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up." (Exodus 3:2)
Our passions are often described as fire, and its in our passions that the difference between natural fire and God's Holy fire is, I think, most evident. Natural passions consume us. They must be fed or they die, burning us up (and burning us out) in the process! How many lives have been ruined trying to maintain a passion at all costs? Charlie Sheen is in the headlines now for the flaming wreck he's made of his life by pursuing his various "passions." But how many others have burned themselves up away from the public eye, pursuing more "noble" passions of career, children, hobby, wealth, beauty, health, and on and on and on.
The passions God gives us - the ones that are focused on God, motivated by God's love of us, fueled by awe of Him - those passions will set us ablaze without being consumed. Much like Jesus at the Transfiguration, God's light will shine forth from us like spiritual fire, giving light and life to those around us. And not a hair on our heads will be so much as singed in the process!
What passions do you burn with? Do they consume you, using you up, leaving a pile of dead ashes? Or do they fill you with the life of God, burning but no consumed, fueled by God's powerful love? Lent is a great time to take a look at your life and your passions, see what gives light and life, and what merely consumes, and consider whether changes are in order.
Last week the effect was particularly striking, and one patch of color gathered up the reds and cast upon the wall a slender tongue of flame some three feet tall. It was stunningly beautiful, and my first thought was of the tongues of flame at Pentecost. "They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them." (Acts 2:3) I kept hoping that the priest or an acolyte or somebody would walk between me and that tongue of flame, so that it would look like fire had come to rest on them. Alas, I was disappointed, and after 10 or 15 minutes the position of the sun changed and the fire was gone except in memory.
The creation story in Genesis tells how God created Adam from the dust of the earth. God formed Adam, but he was not alive until God breathed into him the spark of life. What's the different between "ash" and "Adam?" The difference is the presence of "Life" - God's holy fire, the spark the makes the difference between a dead sculpture and a living human being.
Ordinary fire consumes. Fuel is required to maintain the blaze, and when the fuel runs out, the fire goes out, leaving nothing but charred, dead ash. God's fire, however, burns without consuming, without destroying, like the time when God appeared to Moses in a burning bush. "There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up." (Exodus 3:2)
Our passions are often described as fire, and its in our passions that the difference between natural fire and God's Holy fire is, I think, most evident. Natural passions consume us. They must be fed or they die, burning us up (and burning us out) in the process! How many lives have been ruined trying to maintain a passion at all costs? Charlie Sheen is in the headlines now for the flaming wreck he's made of his life by pursuing his various "passions." But how many others have burned themselves up away from the public eye, pursuing more "noble" passions of career, children, hobby, wealth, beauty, health, and on and on and on.
The passions God gives us - the ones that are focused on God, motivated by God's love of us, fueled by awe of Him - those passions will set us ablaze without being consumed. Much like Jesus at the Transfiguration, God's light will shine forth from us like spiritual fire, giving light and life to those around us. And not a hair on our heads will be so much as singed in the process! What passions do you burn with? Do they consume you, using you up, leaving a pile of dead ashes? Or do they fill you with the life of God, burning but no consumed, fueled by God's powerful love? Lent is a great time to take a look at your life and your passions, see what gives light and life, and what merely consumes, and consider whether changes are in order.
"I invite you, therefore, ... to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God's holy Word." (BCP, p. 265)
Monday, February 21, 2011
Lenten Discipline or Lenten Discipleship?
Lent will soon be upon us - the penitential season of "giving things up" that begins on Ash Wednesday - March 9th this year - and extends to Holy Saturday (the day before Easter). That's 40 days, not counting the Sundays.
Why would anyone bother to do such a thing? Well, Lent is a season for self examination, self discipline, and self denial as we prepare for Holy Week, that intensive scrutiny of Jesus' suffering and death, followed by the unexpected joy of his resurrection on Easter. Holy Week and Easter are the absolute pinnacle of Christian religious observances, and warrant careful preparation.
People often give up candy & sweets, chocolate, deserts, wine, a weekly meal, coffee, television, or similar pleasures during Lent. But the manner in which many folk choose and follow their "Lenten Discipline" often misses the purpose of the exercise. "Giving up" something for Lent isn't primarily about punishing ourselves, even though that's how many people view it. There is no inherent virtue in denying ourselves, and we run the risk of becoming proud and self-sufficient, as English spiritual writer and mystic William Law (1686-1761) points out:
So, done wrong, "giving up" something for Lent can actually move us AWAY from the Kingdom of God and TOWARD the kingdom of self. Yikes!
We'll have better results from "giving up" something for Lent if we keep in mind that our Lenten discipline is meant to improve our discipleship. Whatever you choose to give up should encourage your discipleship - your life in Christ. If you take something away, it needs to somehow add to your relationship with Jesus.
Giving up television or skipping a meal clearly leaves additional time in your day that you could spend in Bible reading or prayer or meditation. But what about something like giving up candy? That's not really going to gain you any time in your day - unless you have a serious candy-eating problem! However, every time you notice that you're yearning for the candy-coated, chocolaty, sweet deliciousness of an MnM (for example), you can use that as a reminder to turn you heart and mind to the Lord in prayer.
That is where denying ourselves will improve discipleship: by adding reminders (with every hunger pang or craving) to turn to God. Of course, we can add discipleship without giving up specific things. You can add the discipline of daily prayer or study or Bible reading, etc., without also skipping the candy.
I haven't decided my Lenten discipline yet for this year - whether or not I'll be giving up anything, and what discipleship endeavor I'll be adding. I'd love to hear whether you observe the season of Lent, and what discipline you'll be taking on. Please post your comments!
People often give up candy & sweets, chocolate, deserts, wine, a weekly meal, coffee, television, or similar pleasures during Lent. But the manner in which many folk choose and follow their "Lenten Discipline" often misses the purpose of the exercise. "Giving up" something for Lent isn't primarily about punishing ourselves, even though that's how many people view it. There is no inherent virtue in denying ourselves, and we run the risk of becoming proud and self-sufficient, as English spiritual writer and mystic William Law (1686-1761) points out:
Many people not only lose the benefit, but are even the worse for their mortifications [i.e., sacrifices, abstensions], ... because they mistake the whole nature and worth of them: they practice them for their own sakes, as things good in themselves, they think them to be real parts of holiness, and so rest in them and look no further, but grow full of a self-esteem and self-admiration for their own progress in them. This makes them self-sufficient, morose, severe judges of all those that fall short of their mortifications. And thus their self-denials do only that for them which indulgences do for other people: they withstand and hinder the operation of God upon their souls, and instead of being really self-denials, they strengthen and keep up the kingdom of self.
So, done wrong, "giving up" something for Lent can actually move us AWAY from the Kingdom of God and TOWARD the kingdom of self. Yikes!
We'll have better results from "giving up" something for Lent if we keep in mind that our Lenten discipline is meant to improve our discipleship. Whatever you choose to give up should encourage your discipleship - your life in Christ. If you take something away, it needs to somehow add to your relationship with Jesus.
Giving up television or skipping a meal clearly leaves additional time in your day that you could spend in Bible reading or prayer or meditation. But what about something like giving up candy? That's not really going to gain you any time in your day - unless you have a serious candy-eating problem! However, every time you notice that you're yearning for the candy-coated, chocolaty, sweet deliciousness of an MnM (for example), you can use that as a reminder to turn you heart and mind to the Lord in prayer. That is where denying ourselves will improve discipleship: by adding reminders (with every hunger pang or craving) to turn to God. Of course, we can add discipleship without giving up specific things. You can add the discipline of daily prayer or study or Bible reading, etc., without also skipping the candy.
I haven't decided my Lenten discipline yet for this year - whether or not I'll be giving up anything, and what discipleship endeavor I'll be adding. I'd love to hear whether you observe the season of Lent, and what discipline you'll be taking on. Please post your comments!
Monday, February 14, 2011
Rock Tumbler, part 2: Rocks vs. Tomatoes
I've been thinking more about the rock tumbler (see my previous post from 2/12/11), and I feel I need to offer a bit more clarification. Taking a spin in the rock tumbler, and coming out smoother and more polished, is something we do with our fellow Christ-followers. Its a thing that will work when we are in relationship with people whose ultimate good intentions we trust, despite the rough edges and sharp corners we may encounter.
The rock tumbler works in Christian community because we are all made of similar "stuff." We are all children of God, followers of Jesus, and in-dwelt by the Holy Spirit. That identity makes us intrinsically different from others - as different in substance as a rock and a tomato.
Here's a little thought experiment to consider. What do you think would happen if you put a handful of tomatoes and a handful of rough, un-tumbled rocks into a rock tumbler? With each turn of the drum, the rough patches and jagged edges of the rocks would tear at the tomato's skin. And with each subsequent revolution, the hard density of the rocks would bruise and then pulverize the soft fleshy tomatoes.
After a while, you'd have rough jagged rocks coated in tomato sauce! The rocks are not improved, and the poor tomatoes have been destroyed. Not a pretty picture, to be sure. And even well-smoothed rocks will eventually pulverize tomatoes into sauce.
My purpose in considering this imaginary conflict between rock and tomato, is to point out that we need to know who we're dealing with when we encounter difficult people and are in conflict with others. I want to make clear that I am NOT advising to stay in conflict with anyone and everyone, but only with our fellow Christians who are made of similar stuff as ourselves.
In unequal conflict, sometimes we are the rock. As a rock, I do not want to be making sauce out of the very tomatoes that I hope might be rocks one day! On the other hand, sometimes we feel like the tomato - receiving cuts and crushing treatment from people of ill-intent. To submit to such treatment from people who do not ultimately wish us well, does not serve to improve either us or them.
So wisdom and discernment is required. Tumble with your fellow rocks, but watch out for the tomatoes!
The rock tumbler works in Christian community because we are all made of similar "stuff." We are all children of God, followers of Jesus, and in-dwelt by the Holy Spirit. That identity makes us intrinsically different from others - as different in substance as a rock and a tomato.
After a while, you'd have rough jagged rocks coated in tomato sauce! The rocks are not improved, and the poor tomatoes have been destroyed. Not a pretty picture, to be sure. And even well-smoothed rocks will eventually pulverize tomatoes into sauce.
My purpose in considering this imaginary conflict between rock and tomato, is to point out that we need to know who we're dealing with when we encounter difficult people and are in conflict with others. I want to make clear that I am NOT advising to stay in conflict with anyone and everyone, but only with our fellow Christians who are made of similar stuff as ourselves.
In unequal conflict, sometimes we are the rock. As a rock, I do not want to be making sauce out of the very tomatoes that I hope might be rocks one day! On the other hand, sometimes we feel like the tomato - receiving cuts and crushing treatment from people of ill-intent. To submit to such treatment from people who do not ultimately wish us well, does not serve to improve either us or them.So wisdom and discernment is required. Tumble with your fellow rocks, but watch out for the tomatoes!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Rock Tumbler
We bought a rock tumbler some years ago. You take a handful of rough, un-lovely rocks and put them into the tumbler with some water and grit, and let them tumble. After a week or two when you open up the tumbler, you'll find smoothed and polished stones, suitably beautiful for use in jewelry and craft projects. The jagged edges are smoothed, the rough surfaces are polished, and the color and pattern of the substance of the rock is revealed. The transformation is quite amazing! |
| Rough, jagged rocks. |
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| Smooth stones after stream tumbling. |
Persevering in difficult relationships is a great source of growth! I know because recently I've been experiencing it first hand. By stepping back and removing ourselves from relationships that seem to be less than fulfilling, we cheat not only ourselves, but also the other person of the opportunity for growth and refining - of the chance to spin a few rounds in the rock tumbler together. If our difficulties and conflicts are lubricated by the water of the Holy Spirit, everyone comes out smoother. And with the increasing smoothness and polish, our true nature as children of God becomes more and more apparent and visible.
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| Before & After |
Proverbs says, "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." (Proverbs 27:17) But I tell you this, "As one stone strikes against another, so one person smooths and polishes another." Get out there and get tumbling!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Stiff-necked People
We got 10 inches of wet, heavy snow on Wednesday night. It fell quickly, creating a nightmare commute for thousands of people heading home just as snow was falling fast and furious. But it also created a beautiful, snow-frosted world. The wet snow clung to trees and shrubs and powerlines and signs: it covered everything - so beautiful! The weight of the snow took a toll, though.
In front of my house, we have a hedge of Arbor Vitae trees. Perhaps I should say we "had" a hedge of Arbor Vitae trees. All that wet heavy snow clung to their evergreen leaves, and bent the poor dears over so far their "heads" were touching the snow! Some couldn't take the weight and snapped. I spent Thursday morning shaking snow off of the bent trunks, hoping they might recover eventually.
Driving around later, I noticed how all the plants of every sort were either bent or broken by the heavy snow. Those that were stiffer snapped, but those with more supple trunks or branches merely bent. All those bent-over trees and plants seemed to be in a posture of prayer. And I got to thinking about people...
Throughout the Old Testament, God's people Israel are referred to as "stiff-necked people." “'I have seen these people,' the LORD said to Moses, 'and they are a stiff-necked people.'" (Exodus 32:9) They are rebellious and refuse to obey God or trust God. They are stubborn in their sinfulness. Does that remind you of anyone you know? Yourself, perhaps? I know I am more stiff-necked than I wish. The less attentive I am to God, the more stiff-necked I seem to become! And being stiff-necked is a problem. Remember my poor trees...
When a weight of troubles descend, we will either bend or break under them, depending on our relationship with God. The yielding and obedient - those who strive to love the Lord their God with all their heart and mind and soul - can bend. In fact, they willingly bend in prayer and thanksgiving to God. Because even in the most extreme and difficult of circumstances, we can always thank God that he loves us no matter what.
The stiff-necked, however, will break. The stiff-necked turn away from God and try to handle things themselves, their own way, apart from God. And sooner or later the load becomes too great to bear, and they snap.
Of course, at the end of time, we all must bow to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. All people - those who are Christ followers, and those who are not - will be faced with the weighty truth that Jesus Christ is Lord. Will you be among the bent or among the broken on that day?
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| My trees used to look a lot like these. |
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| My bent and broken trees! |
Throughout the Old Testament, God's people Israel are referred to as "stiff-necked people." “'I have seen these people,' the LORD said to Moses, 'and they are a stiff-necked people.'" (Exodus 32:9) They are rebellious and refuse to obey God or trust God. They are stubborn in their sinfulness. Does that remind you of anyone you know? Yourself, perhaps? I know I am more stiff-necked than I wish. The less attentive I am to God, the more stiff-necked I seem to become! And being stiff-necked is a problem. Remember my poor trees...
When a weight of troubles descend, we will either bend or break under them, depending on our relationship with God. The yielding and obedient - those who strive to love the Lord their God with all their heart and mind and soul - can bend. In fact, they willingly bend in prayer and thanksgiving to God. Because even in the most extreme and difficult of circumstances, we can always thank God that he loves us no matter what.
The stiff-necked, however, will break. The stiff-necked turn away from God and try to handle things themselves, their own way, apart from God. And sooner or later the load becomes too great to bear, and they snap.
Of course, at the end of time, we all must bow to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. All people - those who are Christ followers, and those who are not - will be faced with the weighty truth that Jesus Christ is Lord. Will you be among the bent or among the broken on that day?
At the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. -Philippians 2:10-11
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Keeping in Touch
I had vivid dreams this morning – you know those really bizarre ones that you wake up trying to make sense of, even as you scratch your head thinking “where the heck did THAT come from?” Some dream scenes I remember: “The Office” characters putting on an elaborate party for me (including the gift of a tiny diorama); then the party wound up at a beach-like location and we were swimming; then there were obstacles and a competition much like the big balls in “Winter Wipeout”; then I was at church and had just spent a bunch of time cleaning up and arranging the church social hall for some event, only to have someone else swoop in and decide to rearrange my efforts. Just your typically weird dream sequences….
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| alone in a crowd? |
But the strangest part – if you can believe anything might be stranger than those dreams! – was that I woke with not just the crazy dream scenes in mind, but this sentence as well: “Why am I so lonely when there are people all around me?”
The words were extraordinarily vivid – unforgettable. But oddly, the idea of loneliness was not related to the goofy dreams. I suppose that’s the reason the words were so striking. “Why am I so lonely when there are people all around me?” What is that supposed to mean?
So I’ve been thinking about those words today, scratching my head and trying to figure out where the heck THAT came from. I haven’t been noticeably lonely of late. I’m strongly introverted, so it doesn’t take much interaction with people to meet my social needs. I also have a handful of close personal relationships wherein I know and am known. If I’m not lonely for people, then who am I lonely for?
Aha! I am lonely for God! When personal relationship with God is missing, you can find yourself lonely even in the midst of the most satisfying relationships with other people. When quiet time to pray and meditate and simply “be,” consciously aware of existing in the presence of God, when that time gets pushed aside, a dissatisfied loneliness creeps into your heart.
If you have known intimacy with God, then you might figure out what’s going on. As soon as I realized those vivid words could only be speaking of a loneliness for God, then I immediately recalled that I have been remiss in finding quiet time with God these past couple of weeks. And because the weeks before that had felt very close to our Father, why should I feel anything other than loneliness at His absence?
Of course, God is always with us, so it’s not like God went anywhere. It’s sort of like two people going out for a lunch date, and one person winds up sitting and waiting while the other person takes call after call on their cell phone, turns aside to greet a passing acquaintance, wanders off to track down a waiter, checks email on the Blackberry, etc., etc. God is the one patiently waiting for our attention to return to him.
If you’ve never had an intimate relationship with God, then you may not even know what’s wrong. The vague sense that something is missing goes unsatisfied by the things of the world with which you try to satisfy yourself. “Why am I so lonely when there are people all around me?” you think. The loneliness is a lack of God - and only God will satisfy.
And with that said, I simply must stop writing for you now - I miss God! I’m going to log off and spend some time in God’s presence – praying, reading scripture, pondering the amazing truth that God could have any interest whatever in hearing from little ol’ me – astounding…. Monday, January 3, 2011
Frankly, My Dear...
I’ve always loved “Gone with the Wind.” It’s an amazing movie and a great story. I love watching Scarlet’s antics, and for as many times as I’ve seen the story, I still find myself urging her to get over her foolish infatuation with Ashley and to see Rhett for the good and desirable man that he is. And I am always disturbed that when she FINALLY can see Rhett for who he is – when she finally realizes that he’s the man she should have been pursuing all along – it’s then that Rhett has had enough.
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| "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." |
Just when Scarlet finally realizes she loves him, Rhett no longer cares – he no longer loves her, his patience has run out, her callous disregard has hurt his heart one too many times. "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." It just kills me every time.
I realized that our romance with God has much in common with the story of Scarlett and Rhett. We, fickle people, are like Scarlett. We run after all sorts of inappropriate lovers, sometimes for reasons we think are love, sometimes for purely self-serving motives to keep pain (or the bill-collector) at bay.
We have our Charles Hamiltons that we use to mask our disappointments and keep our desired lover close. We have our Frank Kennedys that we cling to for expediency – for support, for money, to keep us out of the poor house. And of course we have our Ashley Wilkes, the lover we place on a pedestal, the one we long for most earnestly, and yet who is so dreadfully wrong for us. These mis-guided loves represent all the idols we chase after in life: power, money, sex, status – you name it!
And all the while we’re chasing about after these other lovers, Rhett Butler – God – is pursuing us. Gently. Patiently. Biding His time. Laughing at our foolishness and loving us anyway. Confident that eventually we’ll come to our senses, that eventually we’ll realize our folly and turn to Him at last.
The notable difference, of course, is that God, unlike Rhett, will never give up on us. Rhett is just a man, after all, and reaches a point where the continued hurt and rejection is just too painful to bear. But there is NOTHING we can do to alienate God. No matter how misguided, how foolish, how selfish, how hurtful we behave toward God, He is always there waiting for us to finally figure out that He’s the one we should have been pursuing all along.:
All day long I have held out my hands
to an obstinate people,
who walk in ways not good,
pursuing their own imaginations—
To consider the amount of hurt and pain that God must surely endure in order to wait for us to quit our foolish infatuations and turn to Him at last – well, I find it quite astonishing. Even the extraordinary Rhett Butler reached the end of his patience, but not God. Think about it!
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