I had been mulling over a sermon series on the shared purpose of Christians. We all have the same purpose... how we live it out varies according to our gifts.
Our shared purpose includes: loving God passionately and our neighbor as ourselves in response to God's love for us (Matt 22). Being equipped for ministry in the world by our spiritual gifts (Eph 4) Being in ministry with the overlooked (Matthew 25). Caring for Creation (Gen. 1). All of this leads to making disciples through relationship (Matt 28).
During my mulling, Pam Downey, our youth director, came and shared a fabulous idea for an image. She wrote this:
I believe the Holy Spirit is a piece of us - kind of like a jigsaw puzzle - and if we could all just put it together we would see the picture laid out before us and maybe, just a little bit, blaspheming the Holy Spirit means removing yourself from the puzzle and therefore leaving it incomplete which means there are two parts that can't touch, and you've broken the chain.
But I've put that together with a Scrabble analogy as well - specifically if you take away one of the components of the game - specifically the letter E (letter E = 12 of the 100 game tiles - over 10%)
A) the game's not impossible - but you've made it far harder than it has to be
B) how many words are you now unable to make (ex. peace, hope, love, friend, health... culminating of course with Jesus)
The idea that the Kingdom comes clearer when the puzzle pieces God has given us in each of our lives are used for their intended purposes is a really cool image.
Then today I came across this quote about Martin Luther King Jr.
"For me, one of King's most salient teachings was his conviction that each of us holds some of the truth. He believed that our processes of listening and speaking to one another became the hallowed communication by which our lives are transformed, and be which we understand the power of love Jesus spoke of."
Dee Dee Risher, Reclaiming the Dreamer, The Other Side Magazine Jan/Feb 2003
It seems the Spirit is working to bring this altogether. So we are going to use a video project focusing upon each of the five themes to create a short video for each week in worship. Patrick Donnelly and Gina Troy will be using their gifts to make this happen.
I'm excited for worship! The series begins next week, January 11.
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Thursday, December 18, 2008
The Kingdom
In United Methodist world, we have a term for our servants who go out on short term mission trips of 5-10 days. We call them Volunteers in Mission. VIM is the shorthand term. (I understand some have suggested that it should really be called Disciples in Mission, but DIM sounds comical, doesn't it?)
I am serving in my Conference as the VIM Coordinator, working with a fabulous team of laity and clergy. One of the people I have met along this journey is a lay person in New York.
We were chatting by email, and he shared that he has been working to bring together a consortium of churches, non-profits, and secular groups to focus upon the significant challenges that youth in their community face. They have a drop out rate of 28%... and all of the attending challenges that go along with that like substance abuse, etc.
He said that getting folks to the table has been the easiest part. Deciding what one aspect of helping youth they will focus upon has proved to be the challenge. In addition, the most difficult folks in this process have been.... the pastors.
I groaned out loud when I read this. It was a forehead smacking moment because sadly, this is pathetically common. In my reply to him I said:
How hard is it to live out Matthew 25, and Luke 4? I wonder what the world would look like if we pastors could let go of visions of building our own small kingdoms and embrace God's big Kingdom? I think the small kingdoms look so attractive,manageable and fun; and there are so many workshops around on how to build them. The big kingdom is so much more mysterious and messy.. and yet.... and yet.... it is God's
I am serving in my Conference as the VIM Coordinator, working with a fabulous team of laity and clergy. One of the people I have met along this journey is a lay person in New York.
We were chatting by email, and he shared that he has been working to bring together a consortium of churches, non-profits, and secular groups to focus upon the significant challenges that youth in their community face. They have a drop out rate of 28%... and all of the attending challenges that go along with that like substance abuse, etc.
He said that getting folks to the table has been the easiest part. Deciding what one aspect of helping youth they will focus upon has proved to be the challenge. In addition, the most difficult folks in this process have been.... the pastors.
I groaned out loud when I read this. It was a forehead smacking moment because sadly, this is pathetically common. In my reply to him I said:
How hard is it to live out Matthew 25, and Luke 4? I wonder what the world would look like if we pastors could let go of visions of building our own small kingdoms and embrace God's big Kingdom? I think the small kingdoms look so attractive,manageable and fun; and there are so many workshops around on how to build them. The big kingdom is so much more mysterious and messy.. and yet.... and yet.... it is God's
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Peace that passes all understsanding
It is nearly time for my children to awake this Sunday morning. I am putting the final touches on my sermon as I go over it this morning. And Ray is in the hospital, receiving IV antibiotics for an infection that could be very harmful. It has been a difficult few days.
I never cease to be amazed at God's grace poured out in the midst of trial. I have seen it in the folks who have helped care for my children, prayed for us, called us, run errands for us. I have thought again about how God promises to care for God's children. I feel very cared for.
When Ray was first diagnosed on Thursday with the possibility of MRSA, which is complicated by his artificial heart valve, I felt on edge and teary for the first 24 hours. That has given way to God's amazing care for us. I feel a certainty in my spirit that everything will be OK. I don't mean that in the platitude sense of the word. I don't mean I am sure "everything will turn out the way I want it to." I mean that no matter what happens, even if "the worst" were to happen, I know God is with me, is with us, and God always provides.
This is how I am defining the peace that passes all understanding. It doesn't preclude other emotions. Mysteriously, this peace permeates all of it, and carries me along.
So today I am looking forward to worship, to pouring my heart out again before God, and to placing myself and those I love into God's tender care yet again...it is an ongoing process.
I love the words from Isaiah 61 this morning:
1. The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
2. to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3. to provide for those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, to display his glory...
10. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
my whole being shall exult in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11. For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
to spring up before all the nations.
It makes me want to put on some bright outrageous looking "garments of salvation"
I never cease to be amazed at God's grace poured out in the midst of trial. I have seen it in the folks who have helped care for my children, prayed for us, called us, run errands for us. I have thought again about how God promises to care for God's children. I feel very cared for.
When Ray was first diagnosed on Thursday with the possibility of MRSA, which is complicated by his artificial heart valve, I felt on edge and teary for the first 24 hours. That has given way to God's amazing care for us. I feel a certainty in my spirit that everything will be OK. I don't mean that in the platitude sense of the word. I don't mean I am sure "everything will turn out the way I want it to." I mean that no matter what happens, even if "the worst" were to happen, I know God is with me, is with us, and God always provides.
This is how I am defining the peace that passes all understanding. It doesn't preclude other emotions. Mysteriously, this peace permeates all of it, and carries me along.
So today I am looking forward to worship, to pouring my heart out again before God, and to placing myself and those I love into God's tender care yet again...it is an ongoing process.
I love the words from Isaiah 61 this morning:
1. The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
2. to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3. to provide for those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, to display his glory...
10. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
my whole being shall exult in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11. For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
to spring up before all the nations.
It makes me want to put on some bright outrageous looking "garments of salvation"
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Sabbath, Yoga, Advent
Monday is the day I set aside for Sabbath. Despite all of my reading, preaching, and blogging about Sabbath, I am not sure I am doing so well on the sabbath front. I do take the day away from the office, away from email, and focus upon my family and upon caring for myself. But I also end up doing a bunch of household chores that need doing. Some Mondays I find I feel more like I have connected and rested than others.
This week was a special gift. Although Ray was in bed with a migraine, Jacob and I had a great day together. It was one of those magical days where he listened to me almost every time I asked something of him. He put his little hand in mine as we did errands. He snuggled with me. He drew me pictures. He soaked in the time in the library with such pleasure it made my heart warm.
Ray was able to get up and felt well enough for me to make the yoga class I have begun taking on Monday afternoons. It has been a great class for me for two reasons. One is that it is challenging, which I like. The other is that this teacher has a habit of asking us to set an intention for the class in a word or short phrase. It is fascinating to listen to my heart to hear what words emerge. This week I thought of my words from last week: hope, clarity, peace. But every time I returned to these words, they came back as hope, clarity, purpose.
Apparently, I need to spend some reflecting upon purpose. Since Advent is a time for just such a thing, I'll take that as a nudging from the Holy Spirit.
This week was a special gift. Although Ray was in bed with a migraine, Jacob and I had a great day together. It was one of those magical days where he listened to me almost every time I asked something of him. He put his little hand in mine as we did errands. He snuggled with me. He drew me pictures. He soaked in the time in the library with such pleasure it made my heart warm.
Ray was able to get up and felt well enough for me to make the yoga class I have begun taking on Monday afternoons. It has been a great class for me for two reasons. One is that it is challenging, which I like. The other is that this teacher has a habit of asking us to set an intention for the class in a word or short phrase. It is fascinating to listen to my heart to hear what words emerge. This week I thought of my words from last week: hope, clarity, peace. But every time I returned to these words, they came back as hope, clarity, purpose.
Apparently, I need to spend some reflecting upon purpose. Since Advent is a time for just such a thing, I'll take that as a nudging from the Holy Spirit.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Council of Bishops on Political Discourse
I just received notice in my email that the Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church has issued a statement that I am glad to see happen. It is heartening to see such relevance. I am tired of the deterioration of the political campaigns into negativity.
I am especially concerned by the vocalization of public racism that has been increasingly interjected into public discourse. Some local examples two different folks have shared with me:
1. At a sign waving event for Obama here in Cecil County, three different people loudly shouted racial epithets at the sign wavers.
2. I was talking with a local woman who said she has lost track of the number of folks who have told her "I can't vote for the colored guy."
The Council of Bishops, in their wisdom, is calling on all sides to act respectfully. So, here it is:
The Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church has issued a statement with regards to the upcoming presidential election in November.
Public discourse, especially in this season of presidential elections, has often deteriorated into acrimonious, disrespectful and divisive rhetoric. Such speech, in the interest of short-term political gain, will make it more difficult for the nation to unite to work together on the great challenges that face the United States and the world today.
We urge all United Methodists to daily pray for the upcoming elections, its candidates, voters and leaders. We further encourage you to contact the presidential and vice presidential candidates and their campaigns and call them to commit themselves to conduct their debates, their advertisements and all their public speech in ways that honor the principles of fairness and accuracy.
Call them to focus on the critical challenges that threaten the future of our national and the world: poverty, war, racism, inequality of opportunity, the current financial crisis and terrorism in all of its forms.
I am especially concerned by the vocalization of public racism that has been increasingly interjected into public discourse. Some local examples two different folks have shared with me:
1. At a sign waving event for Obama here in Cecil County, three different people loudly shouted racial epithets at the sign wavers.
2. I was talking with a local woman who said she has lost track of the number of folks who have told her "I can't vote for the colored guy."
The Council of Bishops, in their wisdom, is calling on all sides to act respectfully. So, here it is:
The Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Church has issued a statement with regards to the upcoming presidential election in November.
Public discourse, especially in this season of presidential elections, has often deteriorated into acrimonious, disrespectful and divisive rhetoric. Such speech, in the interest of short-term political gain, will make it more difficult for the nation to unite to work together on the great challenges that face the United States and the world today.
We urge all United Methodists to daily pray for the upcoming elections, its candidates, voters and leaders. We further encourage you to contact the presidential and vice presidential candidates and their campaigns and call them to commit themselves to conduct their debates, their advertisements and all their public speech in ways that honor the principles of fairness and accuracy.
Call them to focus on the critical challenges that threaten the future of our national and the world: poverty, war, racism, inequality of opportunity, the current financial crisis and terrorism in all of its forms.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Slots Debate
The debate on slot machines (Question 2 on the ballot) is in full swing.
I just read this blog post by Allan J. Lichtman, who is a professor of history at American University and a national political analyst. Very well written laying out salient reasons to oppose slot machines. The most important to me is that this really is designed to take advantage of our most vulnerable citizens, for these are the folks who lose money they cannot afford. Public ethics matter. We have seen the importance of ethics in the economic crisis. I really believe that Maryland is better than this, more ethical than approving slot machines.
There is also an event on Friday October 17 at 7p.m. at Pleasantview Baptist Church in Port Deposit. It is a forum entitle "The Truth About Slots."
They have assembled an quite a slate of speakers, including;
Aaron Meisner, Chairman, StopSlots Maryland
Dr. Valerie Lorenz, an eminent therapist in gambling addiction
Peter Franchot Comptroller of Maryland
Michael D. Smigiel, Sr., of the MD House of Delegates
And especially two more: Joe Pfister, a recovered casino gambling addict who experienced first-hand how the gambling casinos can entice and victimize the unwary, including experienced, successful, citizens.
John Bowers, a local horseman, former jockey, owner, breeder, and trainer of thoroughbred race horses, with an eye-opening story to tell.
I will not be in attendance; this conflicts with a long standing meeting in PA for me. But I be there in spirit.
I still cannot get over the fact that Marylanders are actually giving serious consideration to amending our constitution to permit gambling. And the fact that one of the parlors would be in our back yard in Perryville is troubling.
My mother received a telemarketing call yesterday urging her to support the referendum question. The pro-slots folks have lots of money to spend. The opponents are working hard to get the word out without benefit of telemarketers or paid people knocking on doors (and lying about the issue, saying it will fix health care and prescriptions, etc).
So please spread the word and pray hard.
I just read this blog post by Allan J. Lichtman, who is a professor of history at American University and a national political analyst. Very well written laying out salient reasons to oppose slot machines. The most important to me is that this really is designed to take advantage of our most vulnerable citizens, for these are the folks who lose money they cannot afford. Public ethics matter. We have seen the importance of ethics in the economic crisis. I really believe that Maryland is better than this, more ethical than approving slot machines.
There is also an event on Friday October 17 at 7p.m. at Pleasantview Baptist Church in Port Deposit. It is a forum entitle "The Truth About Slots."
They have assembled an quite a slate of speakers, including;
Aaron Meisner, Chairman, StopSlots Maryland
Dr. Valerie Lorenz, an eminent therapist in gambling addiction
Peter Franchot Comptroller of Maryland
Michael D. Smigiel, Sr., of the MD House of Delegates
And especially two more: Joe Pfister, a recovered casino gambling addict who experienced first-hand how the gambling casinos can entice and victimize the unwary, including experienced, successful, citizens.
John Bowers, a local horseman, former jockey, owner, breeder, and trainer of thoroughbred race horses, with an eye-opening story to tell.
I will not be in attendance; this conflicts with a long standing meeting in PA for me. But I be there in spirit.
I still cannot get over the fact that Marylanders are actually giving serious consideration to amending our constitution to permit gambling. And the fact that one of the parlors would be in our back yard in Perryville is troubling.
My mother received a telemarketing call yesterday urging her to support the referendum question. The pro-slots folks have lots of money to spend. The opponents are working hard to get the word out without benefit of telemarketers or paid people knocking on doors (and lying about the issue, saying it will fix health care and prescriptions, etc).
So please spread the word and pray hard.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Religion and Politics
I wrote this article for the newsletter. I am sharing it here as well, with active links to the voter guides I mention.
Religion and Politics
Perhaps you have heard me share one of my favorite analogies for faith: think about a pie. Imagine every "slice of your life" like family, school, work, activities, friendships, etc. Now, rather than imagining faith as one section of the pie, think of it as the pie plate. There is not any part of our lives apart from God. Our faith informs and sustains all aspects of our journey.
Practicing faithful reflection about all aspects of life is a vital faith practice. God wants to be a part of every decision, and has some guidance to offer. From whether to eat out tonight, to what kind of car to drive, what kids activities are important, to how to vote…all can be informed by our faith. I find it takes practice.
In the United Methodist tradition, we teach the use of Scripture, Tradition (church history and doctrine), Experience (our own experiences of God) and Reason (our God given brains) as the basis for knowing God and making decisions.
Our church has official positions on just about everything. However, to be a "good" United Methodist, there is not a requirement to agree with all of the positions. Our tradition teaches the use of Scripture, Tradition, Experience, and Reason in community and as individuals. All this is rooted in the understanding that we all "see through a glass dimly" as Paul says. One of the basic values of Jesus that is expressed in United Methodism is that God welcomes ALL people, no matter what.
As we approach another election season, I encourage you to think about how your faith informs your choices. In our Social Principles, we find these words: While our allegiance to God takes precedence over our allegiance to any state, we acknowledge the vital function of government as a principal vehicle for the ordering of society. Because we know ourselves to be responsible to God for social and political life, we declare the following relative to governments:
B) Political Responsibility—The strength of a political system depends upon the full and willing participation of its citizens. The church should continually exert a strong ethical influence upon the state, supporting policies and programs deemed to be just and opposing policies and programs that are unjust.
As citizens of God's Kingdom, our allegiance is always to God first. We have the privilege as voters in this country to have input into how our government is run, and it is both a privilege and an obligation that is to be informed by our faith.
Inside this issue, you will find a voters guide prepared by a Christian organization known as Sojourners. It has close ties with our denomination. In addition, there will be available in church a 12 page voting guide prepared by our denomination. It lists United Methodist positions on issues, and then lists the platforms of the two major parties on the issues.
I encourage you to use both guides as a resource. Read Scripture. Pray in discernment. Take seriously the truth that we are God's citizens first and always and that we are called to put others before ourselves. Also, please don't think that you must be in agreement with everyone else in our church. I know that we share a diversity of opinion on various issues among our church family. I believe it is a testimony to the power of the Holy Spirit whenever unity exists among diversity. May we never lose sight of what matters most: Jesus Christ. I hope these resources help you to feel more spiritually prepared this election season.
Striving to be faithful,
Pastor Amy
Religion and Politics
Perhaps you have heard me share one of my favorite analogies for faith: think about a pie. Imagine every "slice of your life" like family, school, work, activities, friendships, etc. Now, rather than imagining faith as one section of the pie, think of it as the pie plate. There is not any part of our lives apart from God. Our faith informs and sustains all aspects of our journey.
Practicing faithful reflection about all aspects of life is a vital faith practice. God wants to be a part of every decision, and has some guidance to offer. From whether to eat out tonight, to what kind of car to drive, what kids activities are important, to how to vote…all can be informed by our faith. I find it takes practice.
In the United Methodist tradition, we teach the use of Scripture, Tradition (church history and doctrine), Experience (our own experiences of God) and Reason (our God given brains) as the basis for knowing God and making decisions.
Our church has official positions on just about everything. However, to be a "good" United Methodist, there is not a requirement to agree with all of the positions. Our tradition teaches the use of Scripture, Tradition, Experience, and Reason in community and as individuals. All this is rooted in the understanding that we all "see through a glass dimly" as Paul says. One of the basic values of Jesus that is expressed in United Methodism is that God welcomes ALL people, no matter what.
As we approach another election season, I encourage you to think about how your faith informs your choices. In our Social Principles, we find these words: While our allegiance to God takes precedence over our allegiance to any state, we acknowledge the vital function of government as a principal vehicle for the ordering of society. Because we know ourselves to be responsible to God for social and political life, we declare the following relative to governments:
B) Political Responsibility—The strength of a political system depends upon the full and willing participation of its citizens. The church should continually exert a strong ethical influence upon the state, supporting policies and programs deemed to be just and opposing policies and programs that are unjust.
As citizens of God's Kingdom, our allegiance is always to God first. We have the privilege as voters in this country to have input into how our government is run, and it is both a privilege and an obligation that is to be informed by our faith.
Inside this issue, you will find a voters guide prepared by a Christian organization known as Sojourners. It has close ties with our denomination. In addition, there will be available in church a 12 page voting guide prepared by our denomination. It lists United Methodist positions on issues, and then lists the platforms of the two major parties on the issues.
I encourage you to use both guides as a resource. Read Scripture. Pray in discernment. Take seriously the truth that we are God's citizens first and always and that we are called to put others before ourselves. Also, please don't think that you must be in agreement with everyone else in our church. I know that we share a diversity of opinion on various issues among our church family. I believe it is a testimony to the power of the Holy Spirit whenever unity exists among diversity. May we never lose sight of what matters most: Jesus Christ. I hope these resources help you to feel more spiritually prepared this election season.
Striving to be faithful,
Pastor Amy
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Prayer
I didn't get to my morning devotions until 1p.m. So it seemed appropriate that one of the prayers included in my devotional guide is ....
For Spiritual Concentration
God, help my thoughts!
They stray from me,
setting off on the wildest of journeys.
When I am in church,
they run off like naughty children,
quarrelling and making trouble.
When I read the Bible,
they fly to a distant city,
filled with temptations.
My thoughts can cross an ocean with a single leap.
They can fly from earth to heaven and back again,
in a single second.
They come to me for a fleeting moment,
and then away they flee.
No chains, no locks can hold them back.
No threats of punishment can restrain them.
No hiss of a lash can frighten them.
They slip from my grasp like tails of eels.
They swoop hither and thither like swallows in flight.
Dear Holy Christ, who can see every heart
and read every mind:
Take hold of my thoughts.
Bring my thoughts back to me,
and clasp me to yourself. Amen.
The book I am using cites this as a Celtic prayer. Those Celts seem to have been wise, honest, fun folk.
(This appears in a book called This Day: A Wesleyan Way of Prayer by Laurence Hull Stookey.)
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Wrestling
This was our annual week at Camp Pecometh. On our way home last night, Ray had the idea to stop at Downey's Chicken in Chestertown. We have said at least a dozen times that we want to try their food. As expected, it was delicious.
Camp is wonderful in many ways, and this was our most wonderful year yet. Jacob is out of diapers. Shannon was in the day camp week. They were both happy and enjoying themselves all week. Happy kids make for... yep, happy parents.
It was also a bit stressful, in that I am still sitting here on Saturday afternoon wrestling mightily for a clue about my sermon. Usually I have studied the scripture with others on Wednesdays, and then have been thinking about it all week. Not so this week.
The first somewhat unique insight that I have had after many hours of study and prayer is one that feels frighteningly personal. Two weeks ago, I preached on Jacob wrestling with the Lord in Genesis. Last week, I preached on fear as it relates to Jesus and Peter walking on water. This week I am reading the stories of the Canaanite woman Jesus rebuffed and her tenacity in verbally besting Jesus and about Joseph meeting up with his brothers in Egypt (which must have been emotionally trying for all involved on a number of levels). My insight? That sometimes the life of faith is about tenacity, about holding on, until things feel right again.
I am reminded of three things. First, at the preaching conference I went to this year, one of the speakers talked about preaching being the act of placing ourselves on a platter for all the hearers to dissect. Second, one of my clergy friends' mother's comments that you can always tell where a preacher is by what they are preaching. Third, I remember a friend from Seminary who lamented "once, just once, I want to hear someone preach an honest sermon about struggling while they are actually struggling, not referring to some past struggle."
Preaching is such a vulnerable act. It is feeling especially true today. I suppose that is part of the honest walk of faith- trusting God enough to be honest about where we really are on the journey. The life of faith is not all sweetness and light...much as I wish it would be. There is plenty of honest struggle, doubt, and fear... and somehow God takes it and uses it for God's purposes. I never cease to be amazed.
Camp is wonderful in many ways, and this was our most wonderful year yet. Jacob is out of diapers. Shannon was in the day camp week. They were both happy and enjoying themselves all week. Happy kids make for... yep, happy parents.
It was also a bit stressful, in that I am still sitting here on Saturday afternoon wrestling mightily for a clue about my sermon. Usually I have studied the scripture with others on Wednesdays, and then have been thinking about it all week. Not so this week.
The first somewhat unique insight that I have had after many hours of study and prayer is one that feels frighteningly personal. Two weeks ago, I preached on Jacob wrestling with the Lord in Genesis. Last week, I preached on fear as it relates to Jesus and Peter walking on water. This week I am reading the stories of the Canaanite woman Jesus rebuffed and her tenacity in verbally besting Jesus and about Joseph meeting up with his brothers in Egypt (which must have been emotionally trying for all involved on a number of levels). My insight? That sometimes the life of faith is about tenacity, about holding on, until things feel right again.
I am reminded of three things. First, at the preaching conference I went to this year, one of the speakers talked about preaching being the act of placing ourselves on a platter for all the hearers to dissect. Second, one of my clergy friends' mother's comments that you can always tell where a preacher is by what they are preaching. Third, I remember a friend from Seminary who lamented "once, just once, I want to hear someone preach an honest sermon about struggling while they are actually struggling, not referring to some past struggle."
Preaching is such a vulnerable act. It is feeling especially true today. I suppose that is part of the honest walk of faith- trusting God enough to be honest about where we really are on the journey. The life of faith is not all sweetness and light...much as I wish it would be. There is plenty of honest struggle, doubt, and fear... and somehow God takes it and uses it for God's purposes. I never cease to be amazed.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Playing
I have had several ideas for my first post since I returned. I walked into my office to find it cleaned up and a big welcome back banner with notes from our commuity. What a gift!
I am preaching on the Kingdom of Heaven today from Matthew...always thought stirring.
But this morning, I am thinking of the conversation with my daughter last night, and it keeps coming back to me.
We are often the last two at the table becuase she is a slow eater. She brought up the subject of playing with younger kids. She told me, again, that she likes to play with older kids, not younger ones. Why does she have to play with younger kids? I asked how she would feel if the older kids she likes to play with decided they don't like playing with her?
I explained that it's not an option to play only with older kids...as a Christian, she is nice to everyone.
Then I asked about her younger brother: "What about Jacob? You like playing with him"
Her reply was "yeah, but I love him."
Ahhh... love... it makes all the difference.
I am preaching on the Kingdom of Heaven today from Matthew...always thought stirring.
But this morning, I am thinking of the conversation with my daughter last night, and it keeps coming back to me.
We are often the last two at the table becuase she is a slow eater. She brought up the subject of playing with younger kids. She told me, again, that she likes to play with older kids, not younger ones. Why does she have to play with younger kids? I asked how she would feel if the older kids she likes to play with decided they don't like playing with her?
I explained that it's not an option to play only with older kids...as a Christian, she is nice to everyone.
Then I asked about her younger brother: "What about Jacob? You like playing with him"
Her reply was "yeah, but I love him."
Ahhh... love... it makes all the difference.
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