Tag Archives: Working together in love

Work of Love

Advent

December 21, 2021

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 52:7-10

How beautiful upon the mountains
   are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
   who announces salvation,
   who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’
Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
   together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
   the return of the Lord to Zion.
Break forth together into singing,
   you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
   he has redeemed Jerusalem.
The Lord has bared his holy arm
   before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
   the salvation of our God.

A wood stove heated our home when I was a child. One of my first jobs on the farm was to carry an arm full of kindling to the house while my Dad had an armload of heavy wood cut to the size that would fit in the stove. I remember well my Dad unbuttoning the sleeves of his shirt and rolling them up his arm to give him more power to cut the long logs into stove-size fuel. He had muscular arms and raised the ax high above his head, bringing it down in a swift and powerful chop. The phrase to roll up one’s sleeves and get busy stems from such work. Isaiah may be using that analogy when he writes that The Lord has bared his holy arm, indicating he has done, is doing God’s work and perhaps raising the question, are we?

God did not send Jesus to save God’s people to sit on our laurels—to be satisfied with past success and do nothing to achieve further success. God had a definite plan when the world was created based on love and interdependence. When God’s people resist doing their part, God sent prophets to remind us who we are and what our purpose is. God finally sent God’s Son as the ultimate gift of grace and salvation.

I like the imagery of rolling up one’s sleeves and getting to work for those who want to rest on laurels. The Lord set the example for us when he bared his holy arm. Isaiah might not have known how prophetic he was when he wrote this poem, but one cannot help but envision Jesus’s bare arms stretched on a cross on our behalf. Jesus called us as disciples to continue the work that God expected for us. As we celebrate such a gift as this, let us roll up our sleeves and love the world into becoming the Kingdom God desired.

Prayer: Lord, help us see where love is needed and guide us in filling the gaps.  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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Better Together

Living in the Spirit

August 17, 2021

Scripture Reading:
Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-18  

‘Now therefore revere the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.’

Then the people answered, ‘Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; and the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.’ –Joshua 24:14-18.

When reading scriptures related to idols, I fear that our minds go to effigies that people venerated, laying gifts at their feet. Our idols are more subtle but not significantly different. We worship power, wealth, prestige, and anything that will put us ahead of others. While these are attributes of the world, we have adapted them well into our systems of faith. In-crowds oversee most houses of worship and denominational leadership.

 I was guilty of building such a system when I started supervising staff in my government role. In a training session on types of personalities in which all my staff participated, I was shocked to see that a third of them fit the same profile that I did. The designation was the least prevalent in the general population. I was partial to people like me. From that point forward, I intentionally tried to be opened to other types of viewing the world. It takes more work on everyone’s part to bring different perspectives together, but the results are worth the breadth of understanding.

That is the beauty of the USA. We have among our population people from all over the world with varied skills and talents. We are at our best when we recognize all our people’s vast talents and experiences, including those whose families arrived generations ago and those coming today. There is nothing in God’s divine plan that outlines a hierarchy of worth. All God’s children were created with something good to contribute to building a better world. Our job as Christ-followers is to do everything we can to enable all to fulfill their call to serve the Lord together.

Prayer: God, help us see the talents and skills of others and guide us in enabling all to fulfill your purpose. 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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

The Importance of Remnants

Discipleship

February 9, 2021

Scripture Reading:
2 Kings 2:1-12

When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you.’ Elisha said, ‘Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.’ He responded, ‘You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.’ As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha kept watching and crying out, ‘Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!’ But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. –2 Kings 9:12

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.

Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. –Hebrews 12:1-3

Losing a mentor is tough. It marks the time when one is left alone without that steadfast presence of the one who has guided us thus far.  No wonder Elisha grasped his clothing and tore them in pieces at Elijah’s departure. Asking for a double share of Elijah’s spirit tells me Elisha was ready to step out in faith and fulfill his calling.

I also like the statement from Hebrews quoted above. We have an entire history of God’s acts and followers on which to build our work. That great cloud of witnesses ebbed and flowed over time. Large crowds gathered around Jesus. Yet, his Word was shared by a few until it reached the whole earth. Remnant is the word often used in the Bible to describe those small groups who preserver and keep the faith.

If we are feeling like a remnant, that may be a good thing to be. My mother was an excellent seamstress. She preferred to create something new from used clothing, like the clothing Elisha tore from his body. Mom used every piece of fabric available. Her favorite quilt was called a crazy quilt. It consisted of little fragments of cloth sewn together, perhaps trimmed a bit, in every which way until it became a thing of beauty that was also a source of warmth during the coldest times. I think right now; we are being called to be the remnants that gather to bring the beauty and warmth of God’s love to a divided world.

Prayer: Lord, piece us together to bring your loving warmth to the whole world. 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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

God’s Oneness

Lent
April 11, 2017

Scripture Reading: Acts 10:34-43

That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.’ –Acts 10:37-43

My background is in planning.   After developing a vision, mission, goals, and objectives it is important to track progress to determine if our actions are attaining the desired outcomes. Acts is a report of progress made by the followers of Jesus immediately after his death and resurrection. Acts is a wonderful lesson in how the best laid plans often go astray*. Those pesky temptations of greed and pride and desire for power seep in when least expected. By chapter five we learn of a couple, Ananias and Sapphira, misrepresenting their donation trying to have their cake and eat it too, I guess. Reminded me of when I first moved to the city and learned that membership in certain churches looked good on a resume. Developing a plan with multiple humans is hard. Sticking to it is even harder. Changing it when indicated is the toughest thing of all.

The thing is God created us to work together. Instilled in us skills and knowledge designed to complement each other and produce synergy where the result is greater than the sum of its parts. Such communities of faith work best when their starting point and their continuing emphasis is on being in alignment with God. And yes we even fight over what that might look like but the God who made us is more powerful than all those pesky distractions and will lead us where we need to go as surely as rivers run to the seas.

Prayer: Lord, during this Holy Week, rekindle our desire to be one with you and with each other. Amen.

*The saying is adapted from a line in “To a Mouse,” by Robert Burns : “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft a-gley.”

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 America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.