Monthly Archives: October 2015

Credo is Love

john 16-33Living in the Spirit
October 31, 2015

Scripture Reading: Mark 12:28-34

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ –Mark 12:28-31

This story, told here in Mark, but also reported in both Matthew (22.32-42) and Luke (10:22-32) is the heart of my personal credo. I do not live it as fully as I would like, but I trust that if I live it to the very best of my ability, I will be on the path God set out for me. When I fail, if I seek forgiveness from God, I trust that God will guide me back to the path. I also trust that God’s path is the best path for me.

What does it mean to truly love God? I spend more time, than I am sure God appreciates, griping in prayer about trivial things that in the long run do not matter. God’s patience is amazing, but often my gripe sessions with God rids me of the doubts or fears or issues of self-worth that are limiting me in loving the other, the neighbors that God also wants me to love. Thus God is an enabler of love. Love is the needed ingredient in this world to bring the Kingdom of God to full fruition. I am a partner with God when I do love the other. Truly loving God, I think, is best realized when I am doing my part by loving my neighbor that sometimes I can only do because of God’s amazing love.

Prayer: Forgive me God when I get in the way of being the persons you created me to be. Thank you for your patience and your grace. Let your love flow in and through me until Your Kingdom comes, Your will is done. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights
reserved.

Dead Works

purposeLiving in the Spirit
October 30, 2015

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 9:11-14

For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to worship the living God! –Hebrews 9:11-14

How do we identify dead works? Are they the routines we do through life whether they are accomplishing their purpose or not? Did they actually ever have a purpose? Are they something we inherited from our families or work or school that we do without thinking? Are they perfectly good activities that are not gaining the results desired?

I have been through a lot of management classes as a government employee trying to make government operate more like private business. The people who press these issues are missing one important ingredient: whether it is in private business’s mission statement or not its sole purpose is to make a profit. That singularity of purpose makes it easy, for example to walk away from a store, fire all the employees, and open another store somewhere else or drop the production of a product because it did not sell well but might have been of high quality even better than anything else like it.

The sole purpose of government is to provide for the common good. In a recession, while the economy takes a nose dive, public assistance programs increase, sometimes markedly, while their income source, tax collections, goes down. Government does not have the luxury of just walking away and saying we will see you when the economy turns around. I think we also would agree as tax payers that we want the best bridges for the long-trim rather than a trendy one that will have to be replaced sooner than later and hopefully before it collapses beneath our car’s weight.

Our purpose as children of God is to love God and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Anything that separates us from that purpose is dead works. The challenge is to understand what it really means to love and then do it.

Prayer: Lord, you set examples of your love on page after page of our Bibles. Help us discern how your examples work in our world and then help us do it. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights 
reserved.

Good Things that Have Come

Living in the Spirit
October 29, 2015This is an image file scanned by a Microtek scanne

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 9:11-14

But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. –Hebrews 9:11-12

A horrible tragedy occurred in Stillwater, Oklahoma on October 24, 2015, a car rammed head on into a crowd of people at a parade killing four, injuring dozens. A two year old little boy, a first child thus the only child, in a family was among those killed. He was medi-flighted to the Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City and all that could be done to save him was, I am sure, done. Yet he died and his parents made the wonderful decision to donate his heart to save another child in another place awaiting such a gift of life. What precious parents this young couple were hoping in their grief to spare another family the same great loss. They emulated the God of Love who allowed God’s own son to give his life for the good things that resulted.

We must never take our salvation for granted. The grace God extended to us by the gift of a Son to teach us, to show us the ways of abundance as children of God, and ultimately to give his life in achieving his purpose cannot be diminished. It indeed is the greatest gift ever given.

I have often thought that if the people had turned around and followed the ways of Jesus, He would not have been executed and God’s kingdom would have flourished throughout the earth. I fear we humans have not learned from 2000 years of experience that the good things of God are far superior to the tantalizing things of the world even in the presence of the grace of God. We still have the opportunity to Turn back, O man, forswear thy foolish ways. old now is earth, and none may count her days as the old hymn* says.

Prayer: God of Grace, forgive us for falling back into ways that do not lead to life as you designed it. Make us cognizant of the roles we play in changing the world to a place of shalom. Surround the family described here with your love and grant them the healing of their souls in this great loss. Amen.

*From Turn Back, O Man by Clifford Bax see at http://www.oremus.org/hymnal/t/t811.html. You also might recognize it from the musical Godspell

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights 
reserved.

saints and Saints

being love living love graphic finalLiving in the Spirit
October 28, 2015

Scripture Reading: Psalm 146

Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
   I will sing praises to my God all my life long.  

Do not put your trust in princes,
   in mortals, in whom there is no help.
When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
   on that very day their plans perish. –Psalm 146:1-4

A wave of thoughts flashed through my mind as I read this Psalm designated for use on All Saints Day. Do not put your trust…in mortals, which all saints are. Interesting. The other instant theme that popped into my head was all the bluster and bravado with which our lives are being blasted by the various candidates for office. Do not put your trust in princes. Perhaps this Psalm was the source of our governmental policy to trust but verify.

As far as the saints are concerned, I am of the lower case faction of sainthood. I think we are all called to be one belonging to the entire company of baptized Christians as Paul addresses us in 1 Corinthians 1:1. Indeed I have known mentors in my own life for whom I would capitalized the “S” and there certainly are many of our ancestors in faith who have demonstrated levels of devotion and dedication that probably do deserve the honorific that goes with the capital “S”. The irony to Paul’s writing is that he is surely one deserving of the honor.

How do we deal with governmental leaders regarding trust? First, I think we must recognize that they are all human and as capable, as each of us are, of making mistakes and having to recover from them. More importantly though for those of us who live in a democracy, we must be trustworthy ourselves in our selection of leaders. The only purpose of government is to foster the Common Good. Governments cannot create a world where we can each have our cake and eat it too but that is what we all seem to want. I see a lot of anger and fear and even hate driving our stances on how to foster the common good and that is just not possible. The very essence of the Common Good is loving our neighbor as we love ourselves. We know the Author of that commandment; we would do well to follow it in every aspect of our lives including our governance.

Prayer: Lord, I rededicate my life this day to living your commandments of love. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Praying without Ceasing

God's presenceLiving in the Spirit
October 27, 2015

Scripture Reading: Ruth 1:1-18

No, my daughters, it has been far more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the Lord has turned against me.’ Then they wept aloud again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

 So she said, ‘See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ But Ruth said, ‘Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die—there will I be buried. May the Lord do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!’ –Ruth 1:13b-17

I am sure to Naomi it seemed like God had forsaken her having to immigrate to a foreign land, followed by the death of her husband and both of her sons. She perhaps could not see through all that grief, God had sent her Ruth, a daughter-in-law who would accept Naomi’s God and dedicate her life to the care of Naomi.

I was only five when my father’s mother died so I only have vague memories of her. I remember her telling me that I was not to turn the knobs on the gas range in the kitchen. Funny the things that stick in a kids mind. I remember sitting on the little seat at her “dressing table” and her powdering my back with a big soft puff. I remember her face when my aunt pulled back the cover to show me that she was at peace in death. More than anything else, I remember that she and my mother were best of friends. My mother loved my paternal grandmother like Ruth loved Naomi.

My grandmother buried two husbands both leaving her with young children to raise. Her life was not easy. I also remember her working in the kitchen talking quietly to God many times a day. She practiced the presence of God by praying without ceasing. Naomi apparently did too.

Prayer: Omnipresent God, we lift our hearts in praise for your relentless accompanying us through all our hardships and all our joys. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Refugee

refugees4Living in the Spirit
October 26, 2015

Scripture Reading: Ruth 1:1-18

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion; they were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. These took Moabite wives; the name of one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. When they had lived there for about ten years, both Mahlon and Chilion also died, so that the woman was left without her two sons or her husband. –Ruth 1:1-5

It is an ancient story told many times in the Bible, leaving one’s homeland to survive. In the story above a family became refugees because of drought. Today refugees are created from war, various climate change events, oppression, and poverty. Our great challenge is to determine the best way to help people dealing with the issues that force them from their homelands. There are no easy answers. Is it better to help people remain closer to home in refugee camps with the hope that they well be able to return home soon or to move them from their culture to a strange land?

We non-native Americans in the United States are the descendants of immigrants some of whom were refugees although they may not have been formally recognized as such. Refugees are people by definitions who must leave their home area for their own safety or survival.* One of my ancestors came in 1630 as a pilgrim escaping religious persecution so technically he could have been considered a refugee, I suppose. I am not sure but one might have come to the US as a result of the potato famine in Ireland. That was the reason many of my hometown German neighbors traveled to the US in the late 1800’s. I don’t really know why my other ancestors came. I assume they were at least looking for a better life.

With refugees pouring out of the Middle East and Africa escaping war and oppression, it might be a good time to come to terms with the ideas of refugees for they are our neighbors and we are called to love them as we love ourselves.

Prayer: Lord, according to the book of Matthew you were a refugee in a foreign land when your parents escape with you to Egypt to save you from the terror of Herod. Help us to see you in each of the refugees we have an opportunity to serve whether near to their homeland or here in ours. Amen.

*http://education.nationalgeographic.com/encyclopedia/refugee/

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Let Me See Again

What do you needLiving in the Spirit
October 25, 2015

Scripture Reading: Mark 10:46-52

Many sternly ordered [the blind man] to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way. –Mark 10:48-52

If we trace the events in the gospels that describe Jesus’ interactions with individuals he often asks the question, or some form of it, in our scripture today: What do you want me to do for you? It is the question he is always asking each of us. For most of us it is a really hard question to answer. The blind man already had the answer before the question came. He wanted to see again. What he most likely really wanted was to be self-sufficient again and to be whole but to attain such independence he had to see.

Jesus was a very practical mystic, I think. He understood the desires and dreams of the people. He did not condemn and he did not itemize sins. Most likely he knows what is separating us from God, but until we see the divisive parts of our lives we cannot turn away from them. Even when we face the truth about ourselves, it is very hard to change the habits of our hearts. God can enable us to change. I like to think of us as changing back to the person we were created to be in the first place before we allowed the world to reshape and remold us.

When I first read this scripture in preparation to write about it, I thought it included something about the man being blind from birth but that is in another gospel. Perhaps it was a different blind man in the other recounting, perhaps the authors just remembered it differently, or wanted to stress a different part of the story. We often run the four very distinct gospels together. I do believe it is important for us to also see that we are not called to discern what is separating another from God. The gospels’ variety of perceptions of Jesus are important to us today as we celebrate the beauty of God’s diverse world within the wideness of God’s love for all.

Prayer: Lord, I really don’t want to see my faults but I do long to be whole. Grant me the courage to see what I need to see to make wholeness a reality and make me a better conduit of your love for others. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

God’s Terms

exhausted playersLiving in the Spirit
October 24, 2015

Scripture Reading: Mark 10:46-52

They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ –Mark 10:46-48

Have mercy on me is the prayer I pray when I do not know what else to pray. Strong’s Concordance of the Bible* expounds on the meaning of mercy as used in this scripture using the example, acting only on [God’s] terms. Mercy used in this sense calls out asking for God to act in accordance with God’s covenant of loyalty. It is the only prayer left when one has no clue what else to do about a situation. It probably should be the first prayer we pray.

I am not suggesting that we should not try to solve our own problems. The key here is to have a relationship with God that is always present, always a part of any action that we take. Paul uses the example of an athlete who stays in top shape ready to run any race at any time. We hear this all the time in descriptions of teams particularly toward the end of the game. Often the commentators will say something like “the defensive players are grabbing their legs and catching their breath. They don’t have much left in them.” The commentators will then often begin to talk about the other team’s outstanding strength and fitness coach.

Jesus is our spiritual strength and fitness coach. His life of prayer and communion with God are woven throughout the gospels. He practiced other spiritual disciples like worship, study, fasting, solitude, and more. We would do well to follow his example.

Prayer: Have mercy on us Lord. In your own good way enable us to live life’s that are pleasing to you. Amen.

*http://biblehub.com/greek/1653.htm

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Restore my Soul

livinginlove2Living in the Spirit
October 23, 2015

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 7:23-28

Furthermore, the former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office; but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues for ever. Consequently he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. –Hebrews 7:23-25

Jesus Christ lives to make intercession for us is what the scripture above says, if we approach God through him. Here salvation appears to be a process of continuing relationship with God through Jesus Christ who is ready and willing to save us each time we get ourselves or find ourselves in situations from which we need salvation. Salvation in not just something we check off our bucket list.

I personally probably get into more trouble regarding living in synch with God when I try to ferret out exactly what God needs to do regarding my situation and hand Jesus my laundry list for the work needed like giving a handyman his assignments for the day. Rather presumptuous of me wouldn’t you say? Jesus is not a handyman sent to clean up after us. It seems to me in the life of Jesus Christ while here on earth, he was most often a teacher helping us learn from our experiences, enabling us to see alternatives to the actions that got us in a mess in the first place, and finally restoring our souls to wholeness so we can continue fruitfully in his service.

The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. (Psalm 145:8) There is nothing we can say or do that will come as a surprise to God. Being able to come to God through Jesus Christ and lay our deepest concerns before him will only result in his confident assurance that he is with us no matter what. We are the ones who at times choose to stray.

Prayer: God of Grace, forgive me when I turn away and seek solutions to life’s challenges without recognizing that you are beside me all the time. Tutor me, enable me, restore my soul so that I can serve you more nearly. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Eternal Leadership

christ-priest-000Living in the Spirit
October 22, 2015

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 7:23-28

For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he has no need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for those of the people; this he did once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests those who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever. –Hebrews 7:26-28

The author of the book of Hebrews is referring back to Psalm 110:4 when he talks about the difference between the Levitical priesthood of the law and the priesthood of Christ: The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’ The priest appointed per the law is at the least subject to death. Christ’s appointment by God’s own oath is an eternal assignment.

There is something very comforting about knowing who our leader is and always will be and something very challenging. The Oklahoma City Thunder changed coaches this year. I would say they had a pretty good coach and as far as I can tell, this early in the season, they gained a pretty good coach. These coaches have slightly different styles of coaching, run different plays, and have different areas of concern. Some players probably excelled better under the first, some will under the second, and most will take advantage of the change to their benefit by quickly adapting to the new system. We all learned different things from different teachers and if we were wise we adapted to the changes. With Christ we are challenged to adapt our lives to his way of being and loving forever. We do not have to worry about our leader changing unless we wander off and try to find another leader for whom we do not have to make as many adaptations or we at least think we won’t. This is the challenge. The comfort comes in knowing that we are loved forever by Christ and he will always want the very best for us for eternity.

Prayer: God of Eternity, protect me from the temptations to follow the lesser path that looks easier. Make me moldable to your way of being and reshape me to be more and more like you. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.