Joy

Third Week of Advent
Monday December 16, 2013

 Read: Psalm 42 

As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When shall I come and behold the face of God?
My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me continually,
‘Where is your God?’—Psalm 42:1-3 

Many years ago I worked with a group who was producing a documentary on the plight of poor children in Oklahoma. One interview has been indelibly etched in my memory. A ten year old girl was asked leading questions by the interviewer who was particularly insightful and kind. He asked her to tell him about anything that scared her. She recalled the night the police came to their apartment door, pounded on it, and called out her father’s name. Her mom motioned for her and her younger siblings to be very quiet. No one answered the door. Suddenly a loud thud rang out and the door fell to the floor. Armed police rushed in surrounded her father and with guns aimed at him dragged him from the room. She had not seen him since. The mother and four young children stayed awake the rest of the night, huddled back away from the now broken door and cried until they had no more tears. Later, her mom told her that her dad had gone to some place called prison and he would not be back for a long time.

 These children and their mother were thirsting for a Savior as much as a disparate deer longs for water when there is none. We know what our Savior would have done. Are we following his example or are we like the people in our Psalm taunting them calling out ‘Where is your God?’

 I have no idea what the nature of the crime was for which the father was convicted. The arrest had occurred a few months before the interview. The mother applied for welfare, received it, and by the time of the interview had gotten a job and a different place to live. She no longer received a welfare check but she did received food stamps, child care, and Medicaid to supplement her meager income.

 The interviewer asked the ten year old, “If you had a thousand dollars what would you do with it?” She replied, “I’d get my mom a car so she wouldn’t have to walk so far to work.”

 Prayer: Savior, empower us to be doers of the word so that all children can experience the joy of your love. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Joy

Third Week of Advent
Sunday December 15, 2013

 Read: Luke 1:46b-55

 And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Luke 1:46b-49

Ever since I started being involved in Advent worship planning, I have had a problem with Joy coming before Love in the traditional themes for the season. I seem to remember that once it was the other way around, but I cannot find proof of that. Isn’t joy an outcome of love? Of course such traditions are not absolutes, but suggested disciplines that help us be more intentional in our spiritual journey. So I guess I could privately switch them around, but anymore the hymns that we use and the worship aids that are available place joy before love.

 And then I read the scriptures for today. The song of Mary clearly expresses this young woman’s joy at being called to serve God before the arrival of her child.  Another suggested reading, Isaiah 35:1-10, speaks of joy over the eventual return of the ransomed to Zion. Joy seems to be the purest emotional response to love whether in the past, now, or in the future. The world was born of love in the act of creation and joy was perhaps what God experienced when he saw the created as good. Even in the darkest of times when the Israelites were held in bondage, a remnant of them never lost their joyful connection with God.  

When considering Mary’s actual life experiences, there were most likely good times and bad, but we see her most in the bad. Watching her son journey toward danger and later standing at the foot of his cross, she lived through events that no mother should experience. Often described as meek and mild, Mary demonstrated more intestinal fortitude at a very young age than most of us would or could. I cannot help but think she had seen the failures and frailty of her people, the oppression of the powers that ruled, and the desperate need for the promised Savior. Her love was surely laced with joy even in her deepest sorrows as she understood or came to understand the magnitude of her son’s mission.

 In the world today as we strive for wholeness, oneness, and justice, the joy of fulfillment of even the tiniest step toward the Kingdom of God is ours for the taking as God sends us forth into the world as conduits of God’s love.

 Prayer: O Love that will not let us go, this week as we explore Joy, help us be aware of its relationship with Love. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Saturday December 14, 2013

 Read: 1 Samuel 2:1-8

 There is no Holy One like the Lord, no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.
Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.—1 Samuel 2:1-3

A friend recently told me she was disturbed by the scripture that she had read that morning. It told of extreme poverty leading to starvation that resulted in mother’s agreeing to eat their children. I said in my great knowledge, “I have read the entire Bible more than once and do not recall ever reading that.  Are you sure that is in the Bible?” She promptly found a Bible and proved my memory of detailed Biblical stories to be lacking. (See 2 Kings 6:28) Sometimes we read what we want to read; take in only that which we can either readily understand or that agree with our predispositions. Sometimes we are challenged to dig deeper, look at the story from another’s perspective, place it in context, and glean from it what is pertinent and what is not to our lives today. As we seek shalom for all, we may want to practice the ways of the God of knowledge who weighs action carefully by broadening our world view.

 On Tuesday we considered the noise of the news we have available to us today. I would encourage all to dig deeper to find out more about the issues that concern us. Here is a listing of just a few books that others and I have found helpful and you might too. 

Shelly Tochluk, Witnessing Whiteness: The Need to Talk About Race and How to Do It (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2010) ) This book is designed to both help whites gain a clearer picture of what it means to be white in America while also providing insight for peoples of color who may be helped in understanding the things about white people that mystify them.

 Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D., Philip E. DeVol, and Terie Dreussi-Smith, Bridges Out of Poverty: Strategies for Professionals and Communities (aha Process Inc, 2011).  See also http://www.bridgesoutofpoverty.com. This is a must read for anyone grappling with the challenges of freeing people from the chains of poverty. 

Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America (Picador, 2011). Author Barbara Ehrenreich goes undercover to see what it would be like to live on the salary paid to waitresses, etc. It is an insightful book. 

Books I have not read but are recommended by people in the know who have:
Michelle Alexander, Cornel West (Introduction), The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (The New Press, 2013). This book takes head on the challenges of racism in our prison systems.—Recommended by Rev. Jesse Jackson, from OKC

 Anne Leonard, The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff Is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health-and a Vision for Change (Free Press, 2010). This book basically covers the chain of human consumption. It entails the beginning of a consumer item to its death, and includes the story of all the resources used along the way.
                                                                            —Recommended and annotation by Cal Corbin   

Jared Diamond, Collapse; How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 2004). Yes, it is huge. However, I think that the Prologue (23 pages, A Tale of Two Farms),  plus the final chapter (40 pages), together are excellent summaries of the challenges and the few rays of hope. Diamond writes with passion but without getting emotional or overwrought. As a good academician, he tells the reader what he is going to say, says it, then tells the reader what he said. Although the book is almost a decade old, I think his points remain relevant. Not for the faint of heart or soul.—Recommended and annotation by Susan Hauser. 

Carroll, Daniel, Christians at the Border: Immigration, the Church, and the Bible (2008) along with Sojourners, Strangers In the Land–a study guide based on the Carroll book.
—Recommended by Richard Klinge

Gomez, Jose,  Immigration and the Next America: Renewing the Soul of Our Nation (2013) Written by a Catholic Archbishop who has been involved in the fight for the human rights of the undocumented for decades.
                                                                           —Recommended and annotated by Richard Klinge

 Prayer: Holy One, increase not only our knowledge but also our understanding as you call us to action. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Friday December 13, 2013

 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When they came together, the Lord made her conceive, and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi, ‘Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without next-of-kin; and may his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has borne him.’ Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her bosom, and became his nurse. The women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, ‘A son has been born to Naomi.’ They named him Obed; he became the father of Jesse, the father of David. –Ruth 4:13-17 

Jesus was born of the house of David.  

Ruth’s story is indeed a tale of wellbeing. Her husband had died as well as his father and brother. In a patriarchal land there was not much hope for women left alone. Naomi, her mother-in-law, encouraged both Ruth and her sister-in-law to return to their parents. Ruth chose to stay with Naomi. And so these two women returned to Naomi’s people. She was an Israelite. Ruth, however, was a Moabite, a foreigner crossing into perhaps hostile territory. Naomi was welcomed and apparently Ruth was too. The Israelites by law were instructed to leave some of their crops at harvest for the poor. Ruth gleaned the grain for their food until a kinsman, Boaz, saw her and told her to take grain from the regular crop. He later married her and became the father of Obed, the grandfather of Jesse, and the great grandfather of David the ancestor of Jesus. 

This is a short story packed with loss, life, and love; traditions of welcoming the stranger and feeding the hungry; and courage, lots and lots of courage. Ordinary things lead toward extraordinary outcomes. The Prince of Peace is coming soon. Are we ready?  

Prayer: Immanuel, grant us wellbeing so that we can be a source of wellbeing for others. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Thursday December 12, 2013 

Psalm 146:5-10

Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord! 

If we were to take a piece of paper and write all the words we can recall that described wellbeing what would it include? Perhaps we might include good health, enough money to take care of the family, resources to send the kids to college, safety from terrorists, having a home? These are all good and important parts of our lives. Maybe we would get a little extravagant. That might include wealth or a luxury car.  

Would we have listed a relationship with God, hope in the Lord, faith forever, justice for the oppressed, food for the hungry. Or taking it a step further, the freeing of prisoners, sight for the blind, and Gods abiding protection? It is this latter list of things that the Psalmist outlines as the sources of happiness. Would we include our care for each other even strangers as a part of our wellbeing? 

The Peace of God, Shalom, certainly includes our personal wellbeing but it goes further. It includes the wellbeing of all God’s children. It implies that if we have the Peace of God we also have a responsibility to care about and facilitate the Peace of God in the lives of others.

 Prayer: Merciful Parent, entrust us with your vision of a world where all is well. Show us the paths to get there from here. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Wednesday December 11, 2013

 Read: Genesis 15:1-18 

Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.’ But Abram said, ‘O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless’… [God] brought him outside and said, ‘Look towards heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ Then [God] said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’ And he believed the Lord; and the Lord  reckoned it to him as righteousness.—Genesis 15:1b, 5-6 

I love to sing Handel’s Messiah. It is particularly performed at both Christmas and Easter, which is most fitting. It tells of the infinite nature of God and God’s plan for us all.  Much of life seems like the sopranos singing and holding for a long time those really high notes in the Messiah‘s “Halleluiah Chorus”. I am an alto and I get to sing the repeated forever and ever over and over, which are written in my vocal range. Somehow being busy makes the time pass more quickly. Abram had been holding the long notes for a lot of years and was giving up hope of ever having an offspring. God tells Abram to look at the heavens and count the stars to get the number of descendants he would have. Do you think it seemed at least a little implausible to him? It surely did to Sarah later in the story. At the close of the conversation God says, As for yourself, you shall go to your ancestors in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. (Genesis 15:15) Most of Abrams life was wrapped up in this one story that projects to 400 years after Abrams death. God clearly has a different sense of time than we have.

 Shalom is based on God’s time. It has no beginning and no ending. God’s desire for the wellbeing of all God’s children is infinite. We in the 21^st century somehow fit nicely into that framework. What we do today will impact the world beyond our imaginations into the future. It is time for us to set our clocks to God’s time and our purposes to God’s purposes as we progress toward the realization of the fulfillment of God’s kingdom.

 Prayer: Ancient of Days, help us to get in sync with your purpose and the role we are to play in its attainment. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Tuesday December 10, 2013

 Read: Isaiah 41:14-20 

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
…so that all may see and know, all may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this,
   the Holy One of Israel has created it.—Isaiah 41:17, 20

I have been a news hound most of my life—inherited that trait from my father probably. Anymore though listening to the news is like hearing a room full of out-of-tune instruments being played. The people being interviewed are talking over the reporters, rarely answering the questions they are asked, and taking advantage of some free air time to push their ideology. It is hard to know who to believe so we do not believe any of them. It gets worse during political campaigns. I just want to run away and hid because no one seems to be addressing the most important issues that we face.  

One of the historical messages of the prophets is to talk about the things that really matter as opposed to what others want us to hear. Isaiah is doing that in our scripture reading for today. He is telling the Israelites even though they are now in captivity they will have a straight and flat road home when they return from Babylon with plenty of water to drink. In some instances prophets directly confronted those who were trying to pull the wool over the Israelites eyes. Jeremiah did this when he accused false prophets of making promises they cannot deliver. They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, ‘Peace, peace’, when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 6:14) Of course, the prophets paid a high price for being so outspoken. They were tortured and exiled. When we really do not want to hear the truth, maybe even out-of-tune instruments sound good to us.

 Shalom, God’s peace, gives us the confidence we need to keep moving toward the full rule of God where love is the only reality that matters. Christ is coming. Christ has come; we call him the Prince of Peace. Christ will come again.

 Prayer: Lord who is peace, grant us the gift of your peace that exceeds understanding. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Monday December 9, 2013 

Read: Isaiah 24:1-16a 

They lift up their voices, they sing for joy; they shout from the west over the majesty of the Lord.
Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord; in the coastlands of the sea glorify the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
From the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise, of glory to the Righteous One.
—Isaiah 24:15-16a 

Shalom is like grace, it is a gift. It cannot be earned, bought, or bartered. It can be requested but it might also be offered to us as we are called to serve. Gideon was the son of a farmer during a time when Israel’s enemies were routinely destroying Israel’s crops leaving its people destitute and starving. An angel appears to Gideon to tell him that God was with Gideon and that he was a mighty warrior. I don’t think Gideon thought of himself as a mighty warrior.  He asked for a sign—wanted proof that this “angel” was for real. Gideon gathered up gifts of what food they had for the angel. The angel laid it on a rock and caused fire to come from the rock and totally burned up the food. At that point the angel had Gideon’s attention as he said, ‘Help me, Lord God! For I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.’ But the Lord said to him, ‘Peace be to you; do not fear, you shall not die.’ Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it, The Lord is peace. (Judges 6:22b-24a) Gideon was still a reluctant mighty warrior and if you read the story completely you will see that he does a double check to make sure God was behind his calling, but he did indeed lead his people out of oppression. His answering the call was preceded by the receipt of God’s shalom. 

As we once again wait in these increasingly darkening days of Advent and as we considered what it is God wants of us, let us never forget that before we even begin the journey we have the assurance that God’s peace will follow us. 

Prayer: Yahweh, we thank you and lift our voices in songs of joy for your gift of shalom. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Shalom

Second Week of Advent
Sunday December 8, 2013 

Read: Isaiah 11:1-10 

A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might,
   the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.—Isaiah 11:1-2 

While the theme of the second Sunday in Advent is often peace, the Hebrew word shalom may encompass a richer, deeper meaning, wellbeing. As we prepare for the coming of the Christ this week, we will explore shalom. 

Christians have long viewed the scripture today as the foreshadowing of Jesus and we would do well to read the whole citation as it weaves a way of being that closely relates to the ways of Jesus. The peace of God, shalom, is always used in social settings. While internal peace may be necessary to be a part of a community of peace, it is never described as the primary focus of shalom. 

Jesus did fear the Lord in awe, respect, reverence, and piety. I sometimes wonder if those of us who live in lands of plenty with perhaps inflated senses of self-sufficiency, give much thought to fearing God. We do so at our own peril for God’s love is for all God’s children and God’s expectation is that we share God’s love with all God’s children. It is a daunting challenge when one thinks about it and a challenge beyond our grasp save for the mighty acts of God that enables us to love the other. In sharing responsibility for the wellbeing for all, we first must tenaciously rest our own wellbeing with God. 

This Shoot of Jesse is described as not judging by what he sees and hears but by what is right. He is an advocate for the poor and the meek. In his world lambs and leopards rest together with their young as do bears and cows. Lions become vegetarians and children play safely next to poisonous snakes. There is no violence.  

Do we not all long for such a world? What is our role in making it a reality? How do we discern what is right in the complex world in which we find ourselves? How do we rise above the inertia of our complacency and see what is right and what is not for all God’s children? 

Prayer: God with us, open our hearts and minds to receive this week your gift of wellbeing. Open our eyes that we might see ways we can serve you toward the realization of wellbeing for all. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.

Hope

First Week of Advent
Saturday December 7, 2013

 Read: Isaiah 40:1-11

 A voice cries out:
‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low;
   the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.
Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together,
   for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’—Isaiah 40:3-5

 The Lord is coming. We need to get ready. The Lord is coming. We need to clear the debris and clutter out of our lives, anything that might be blocking communion with God. The Lord is coming and will set all things right. 

The Book of Hebrews describes hope as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul. (6:19) In our scripture today, Isaiah is saying that hope is real and within our reach. 

The Children’s Defense Fund’s logo is a child’s picture of a child on a boat adrift at sea. It includes this prayer: Dear Lord, be good to me the sea is so wide and my boat is so small. http://www.childrensdefense.org/ 

All of God’s children, no matter their age, need steadfast anchors for their souls. This advent let us each find a way to give this gift of Hope to another and in so doing share the love of God. We might start with ideas from our devotions this week but I am sure you can make a list of your own.  Here are few to get us started:

• Have you measured your carbon footprint? Go to http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx and see how you do and then set goals as a family to reduce your carbon footprints. Your friends with asthma or COPD will appreciate your enabling them to one day leave their homes when bad air days are gone.
• Provide proactive justice. Review the Children’s Defense Fund Cradle to Prison Pipeline® Campaign at http://www.childrensdefense.org/programs-campaigns/cradle-to-prison-pipeline/. See anything that might work in your community. Work with your congregation on project(s) that will prevent children from being sucked into the prison pipeline.
• Who offers English as a second language classes in your home town? Are such classes needed? Do they need volunteers?
• Does your church employee staff in a child care, mother’s day out program, or any other activity? Are those people being paid a living wage by your church? It is harder than you think, particularly if you are trying to hold the costs down for your participants. Check out what a living wage is for your area at this website http://livingwage.mit.edu/. If you are not paying a living wage set a goal to do so and work toward it. If you own a small business and are not yet paying a living wage, explore this possibility also. You might consider what kinds of tax breaks etc. might be necessary for you to make a living wage a reality for your staff. If you do, share those ideas with your elected representatives.
• How is your local school doing?  Talk to teachers, principals, and students. Ask your school what they need, identify what you or your congregation can do to help, and do it.
• Your ideas: 

You do not need to do everything. You are called to do something. Find your niche and make a difference. 

Prayer: Holy One, walk with me as I move out into the world to bring hope and share the love of God. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.