The Wisdom of Childhood

Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Mark 10:14

This is a popular verse...but the wisdom behind it is definitely not popular.

As I thought about this simple verse this morning, I found myself wondering what it is about children that makes them uniquely suited for the Kingdom of God. Why does Jesus say the Kingdom belongs to "such as these?"

When I think about the difference between adults and children, one word emerges in my thoughts...independence.

As children, we are dependent on those around us. We aren't afraid to ask for help, because part of our identity as children is that we need the adults in our lives. As we grow, we enter a time of our lives when we feel, more or less, independent.

And as I think about this today, I am reminded of a beautiful piece of wisdom shared by a comedian and speaker, Kevin Kling. (He is not well known, but members of St. Luke may know the name because I have a quote from him included in the signature line of all my e-mails).

Kevin Kling was born with one arm smaller than the other and disabled. Then, later in life, he was in a motorcycle accident that paralyzed his "good" arm. His sense of humor and depth is tangible when you hear him speak, and part of his strength.

His quote that comes to my mind this morning is: "If you are able-bodied, just remember that is a temporary condition." (He says this with a smile).

Indeed, there is deep truth in that. It is only for a middle period in our lives that we feel independent. We come into this world dependent on others, and if we are lucky, we leave in a similar way. (I say "if we are lucky" because that means we have lived a full, long life).

So, we are more obviously dependent on others for roughly a third of our lives. 

There is deep wisdom in those times...wisdom that sounds and looks like this:

Romans 8:26

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.

Psalm 46:1

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

1 Peter 5:7

Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.

Today, I declare my dependence. I am a child of God. Loved beyond measure. Provided for. Never abandoned.

This Declaration of Dependence, I believe, is fertile ground for the Kingdom to grow in me...and in you.

Prayer:

God, help me to be still. Help me to cast my anxieties on you. Help me to come to you as a child, trusting in your love more than my own successes or failures. Amen.

Stars and Sparrows

There are many things that are unfathomable; things too large for my mind to contemplate...


But the mere fact that my mind can't hold something doesn't keep it from being true.


This morning, one of the first news stories I read was about a signal that has been received from outer space. Astronomers with the "Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence" (SETI) are now training their telescopes on the distant star system from which the signal came, to see if they receive any other signals.


Maybe it's a sign of another civilization, and maybe it's not. Maybe we'll never know. What struck me was the talk about the sheer size of the universe...


The star system from which the signal came is 94 light years away. This means that if we left today to visit this star, and we were capable of traveling the speed of light, it would still take us 94 years to get there. My grandchildren, if they lived long lives, might be able to see the arrival, but my kids and I would be gone by then.

Really trying to think about a distance like that makes my head hurt.
I don't know about you, but the sheer size of the universe is something that is impossible for me to comprehend.


One of the senior astronomers of SETI shared some numbers:


It is estimated that there are over 1,000,000,000,000 (one trillion) planets in our own Milky Way galaxy.


Even with our limited human capacity, we can see 100,000,000,000 (one hundred billion) other galaxies.


So, just for fun...if every other galaxy was exactly the same size, that means there are something like...


100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 planets.


A quick google search reveals this number is 100 sextillion.


I simply cannot begin to comprehend a number this large.
But that doesn't make this fact untrue...it just means I have too small a mind to truly understand it.


Then, after reading that article, I turned to my morning devotion, which pointed me to these two readings from the Bible:


Out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man. The man gave names to all. Genesis 2:19-20


Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. Luke 12:6


It is unfathomable to me that God can deeply care for every person, let alone every creature.
But the fact that I can't understand a love that expansive doesn't make it untrue.


So today, I am simply sitting in awe of these two things I have read, and I think they are deeply connected. Even the deepest love I have ever felt for another person doesn't compare to a Love that is poured out on every person and creature, and even flung in a sextillion different directions.


My problems look pretty small in the context of a Love that expansive.


May you and I rest in unfathomable Love today...


Prayer:
God, give us a sense of deep peace today. You, and your love, are in control. Help us find rest in this fact, whether we can comprehend it or not. Amen.

Favoritism and the Human Condition

They were words uttered by a mortal...but there is something that reflects the divine in the statement above.

It's deep in us...that inherent urge we have to know who is in the "us" group (and thus safe) and who is the "them" group (and thus a threat). That urge helped our most ancient ancestors survive a world of dangers...but it doesn't serve us well now...and it doesn't reflect anything of the divine.

No matter what the category is; race, political affiliation, class, neighborhood, what car you drive, whether you have kids or not, whether you are single or married...and a million others...we find ways to separate ourselves from others. In our enclave of like-minded people, we feel safe, understood, and RIGHT.

The scriptures make it clear, many many times, that this is does not reflect God's will or character.

My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favouritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? - James 2:1

Favoritism is, after all, only a kinder word for this same tendency...and we know where this tendency leads us. We've seen it in news reports all summer.

In short, being a part of the kingdom of God is a constant challenge to us, because if we take it seriously, it forces us to work every day to dismantle this tendency inside of us, and inside of the systems and structures we have built. This is part of how we build for the kingdom of God...working every day, in small ways, to make this world look as much as possible like the world to come.

Prayer:

God, soften my heart today to those I have judged as inferior. Help me to see your love poured out on those I am sure are wrong and those I am sure are different in ways I cannot accept. May your love humble me today, and gather me with all your children at the foot of your cross. Amen.

Stretch our Hearts

The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our ancestors; may he not leave us or abandon us, but incline our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, his statutes, and his ordinances, which he commanded our ancestors. 1 Kings 8:57-58


There is one beautiful word in this prayer from King Solomon that struck me when I read it...


INCLINE.


But this is one of those words that is even more beautiful when you look at the original Hebrew behind it. The Hebrew word literally means "stretching out of us." The prayer is simple: that God would cause our hearts to stretch out of us toward him.


And here's the thought this brings to mind:
Maybe a desperate reaching out for God is just as effective as a well-worded prayer...
Maybe stretching out for help, even when you are not sure what you need, is precisely the first step to knowing God's presence.


So, if you have a well-worded prayer on your lips today, God bless you.
But if all you can muster is a moment of silence, asking God to stretch you toward him, go for it!


May God stretch our hearts today.

Fire and Warmth

When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, ‘Do not weep.’ Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, ‘Young man, I say to you, rise!’ (Luke 7:13-14)


Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved. (Psalm 80:19)


A funeral procession was walking by.
A woman weeps for the death of her son.
And Jesus dared to touch the coffin.
He wasn't supposed to do that.
The rules that governed who was declared "clean" and "unclean" were very clear: death made you unclean.
In short, the brokenness of death was contagious.
So...don't touch.


But, he touched.
And it turned out...the brokenness of death didn't rub off on Jesus...the vibrancy of Jesus' life rubbed off on death.
That day, LIFE was contagious...not the other way around.
And it has been so ever since.


Fire works the same way.
The warmth of a campfire overcomes the chill of a cool evening...not the other way around.


The fire of God's love warms our hearts, and then radiates through our lives to warm those around us.


So, throw another log on the fire.
Read a passage of scripture.
Take 30 seconds of silence to ask God to speak to your heart.


Today, may we pause to let God's love shine on us...and may the fire of his love warm us and all those we meet today.

Seeking

May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Psalm 40:16

As I read the passage above this morning, one word stuck in my mind. SEEK.

SEEK. It makes me think of the song I sang in Sunday School and at camp as a kid: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God...and his righteousness...and all these things will be added unto you...Allelu...Alleluia."

SEEK. It makes me think of the words from Jesus: "Seek and you shall find, ask and the door will be opened to you."

SEEK. It makes me wonder...do we still seek God daily, so we can rejoice and be glad?

Those of us who attend church often, I believe, are in danger of feeling as though we have "found."  We are in danger of feeling comfortable with the little bit of time we spend in the Bible together each Sunday and not invest any of our own time in Bible study. We are in danger of thinking that the prayers we offer as a group on Sundays are enough for us.

But that's not active seeking. Sunday worship can make us rejoice and be glad, but only for an hour a week.

What would it look like to understand ourselves as lifelong seekers? To daily ponder a verse like the one above, even briefly; to daily pray, even with imperfect words; to daily seek, search for, and yearn for God...

What would it look like? Well, according to Psalm 40, it looks like rejoicing and gladness. I could use more of that...not just on Sundays, but every day.

PRAYER:
God of joy, give us the courage to set aside a few moments each day to seek you, and find the joy you have in store for us. Amen.

Facing Sacred Moments

You say, “I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.” You do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. Revelation 3:17

"Things, when magnified, are forgeries of happiness, they are a threat to our very lives...the higher goal of spiritual living is not to amass a wealth of information, but to face sacred moments." (Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath)

I am struck by the humility brought by age and perspective. It is a nearly universal experience; most people I know would say that the more they learn, the more they realize what they don't know. The more birthdays that pass, the less reactive we need to be, because our perspective has been expanded...we realize that all change is temporary.

And, as the passage from Revelation reminds us, humility is at the heart of the good news. We are, in ways we admit and ways we don't, imperfect. In short, admitting our hands are empty is the only way to have room to receive the gifts intended for us. Recognizing the temporary nature of all our possessions and accomplishments allows us to simply "face sacred moments."

There will be many sacred moments today. May God grant us the humility, peace, and attentiveness to face them.