Building a House

1 Peter 2:4-10

Reflection:

            As I type this, I can hear the sounds of hammers and the occasional “pop” of a nail gun. Just outside my window, there is a group of dedicated volunteers building a new storage garage on the church grounds.

            If you would have come by the church a few days ago, you would have seen a pile of plywood, a stack of trusses, and various other building materials laying on a concrete slab. Today, the work of our volunteers has transformed that seemingly random stack of materials into a building that will soon be used for a specific purpose.

            Peter, in his first letter, uses this same image for the church. Visiting the temple to offer sacrifices and “pay” for sins is no longer an option for his readers. So, he says, let us be built into a spiritual house for God – like living stones. Then, built by God into that structure, we will be used for a specific purpose – to “proclaim the mighty acts” of God.

            I see this happen every Sunday. A seemingly random collection of people from every different background are gathered, empowered, and sent to serve. Once we were not A PEOPLE, but now we are God’s people.

            So, the next time you are in church, listen carefully. You may not hear the “pop” of a nail gun, but you may just notice the construction of a holy people…

Prayer: Gracious God, you gather us and empower us for a purpose – to be the place you dwell in the world. Help us to serve our purpose well, and function as a place where all people can come to be connected with your love and your will for their lives. Amen.

Gratitude & Grass Seed

2 Corinthians 9:1-15

The Collection for Christians at Jerusalem

Now it is not necessary for me to write to you about the ministry to the saints, for I know your eagerness, which is the subject of my boasting about you to the people of Macedonia, saying that Achaia has been ready since last year; and your zeal has stirred up most of them. But I am sending the brothers in order that our boasting about you may not prove to have been empty in this case, so that you may be ready, as I said you would be; otherwise, if some Macedonians come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—in this undertaking. So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you, and arrange in advance for this bountiful gift that you have promised, so that it may be ready as a voluntary gift and not as an extortion.

The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. As it is written,

‘He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;

   his righteousness endures for ever.’

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us; for the rendering of this ministry not only supplies the needs of the saints but also overflows with many thanksgivings to God. Through the testing of this ministry you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others, while they long for you and pray for you because of the surpassing grace of God that he has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

Reflection:

            When we lived in North Dakota, I learned how to spread grass seed (not a skill often useful growing up in Arizona!) The very first time I did it was when we put more dirt in the front yard of the parsonage, in order to landscape it a bit.

            Months later, you could still see the effects of my mistake. I begun spreading seed up against the side of the house, and continued out toward the street from there. Up close to the house, not much grass took root. Reading today’s passage reminds me why…

            You see, when I first started scattering seed, I was in a mindset of scarcity. I didn’t know how long the seed would last, so I “sowed sparingly.” As I got further away from the house, I slowly became more confident that we would have enough seed. The further from the house I got, the more “bountifully” I sowed.

            As Paul says, “the point is this;” if our eyes are always on the reserve, we will always sow sparingly, never sure there will be enough. Instead, we must make a conscious decision to focus on the goal.

This Sunday, we will talk more about how God sows…and how we are encouraged to sow in response. (I’ll give you a hint: I bet the grass in the Garden of Eden was lush and full!)

Prayer: God of all good gifts, inspire in us the joy that recognizes your blessings and is eager to give so that others might be blessed as well. Amen.

Hopefully Anchored

Hebrews 6:18b-20a

“…we who have taken refuge [are] strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us. 19We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, 20where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered…”

Reflection:

Every day I live, I become more and more convinced that the opposite of fear is hope.

The profound passage above is one of those that many people never realized was in the Bible. The beautiful image of hope as “a steadfast anchor of the soul” is one that takes some time to ponder…

Sometimes, the faithful thing to do is to pull up anchor and let God lead you like a river’s current.

Sometimes, even the attempt to control the current is an exercise in arrogance and futility at the same time.

But sometimes, the waters churn and crash so much that the only thing to do is to drop anchor and pray.

My family experienced one of those times recently. On Wednesday, word came that my uncle, in desperation and despair, ended his own life. The pain this has caused in my family is a bit like the crashing waves…

I share this, not to “air our dirty laundry” or tell something that shouldn’t be told, but because I believe that as a pastor, my most profound “job” is to point others to the hope that sustains us in this life.

Whether you have lost a family member to suicide, struggled with suicidal thoughts yourself, or simply know the pain of enduring challenges and changes you hadn’t wished for, I have no doubt that every single person reading this message (and the one writing it) have need to drop anchor occasionally; to buffet ourselves against the onslaught of trouble.

But remember, the opposite of fear is…HOPE.

Hope that Jesus’ death really did destroy the ultimate power of death…

Hope that the struggles we endure here never have the final say…

Hope that the curtain of the temples HAS been torn in two and we all have access to God’s love…

Hope that my uncle, though he suffered terribly in this life, now rests in the arms of love…

Hope that nothing, truly nothing, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

That’s the hope that anchors me in this time…and the hope that will anchor you when the waters churn and crash.

Thanks be to God for hope, for Christ, for a love that is more powerful than even the most difficult death.

Prayer: Gracious God, we pray that you ground us, anchor us, in your unending love for us. Help us to see past our struggles to see every tomorrow resting in your hands…Amen.

Being a "Hose" for Jesus

James 3:13-17

(click link to read passage before reading reflection below)

Reflection:

Martin Luther didn't really like the book of James. He thought it didn't talk enough about the free grace of Christ, and instead put too much emphasis on good works.

However, there is a key piece of wisdom in the above passage. At first glance, the first verse may seem to support Luther's reason for disliking James. "Show by your good life that your works are done…" But look at the context. In essence, James is reminding us that any good works done for selfish ambition are actually unspiritual and devilish.

No, the "good works" of which James speaks spring forth from wisdom. Biblical wisdom is the human imitation of divine care for all. Just look at the adjectives James uses in that final verse: this wisdom is peaceful, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. Doesn't sound like any human wisdom I've ever encountered.

So, before we lose our Lutheran grounding in God's undeserved grace by focusing on how we can be such great people, let's remember that the above adjectives describe divine love, and our challenge is simply to pray every day, every hour, even every minute, that as much as possible, that divine love flows through us to others.

It's a bit like being called to be a hose. I know that sounds weird...stick with me.

Hoses don't do anything special. In fact, if they are not plugged into a source, they don't do anything at all. But when they are plugged into a source, they simply take the water they receive and deliver it somewhere else. The fact that it is able to carry out that task doesn't make it a really good hose, or worthy of any special praise (imagine patting it and saying "good hose!"). No, that's ridiculous - that's just what hoses DO - they take water from the source and deliver it where it is needed.

So it is with our good works. We take the wisdom, grace, humility, and love we receive from God, and simply offer those things to those we encounter. We don't need a big pat on the back, or for someone to make it all about us. It's just what Christians DO.

That's how a Lutheran reads the book of James (at least how this Lutheran does…)

Prayer: God of grace, make us a conduit for your love today, that others might come to know, not how great we are, but how great you are. Amen.

Does Everything Happen For a Reason?

"We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose..." (Romans 8:28)

"Everything happens for a reason..." (American "proverb" that many assume is based on Biblical principles)

Reflection:

My wife loves knitting. And she's good at it.

She keeps telling me "Russell Crowe knits" to remind me it's not just for women.

I say, "Good for Russell Crowe..."

I was watching her knit an especially challenging project one time - a project that included several balls of yarn. She'd pick up one color and bring it in, then the next, then the next.

The balls of yarn were all beautiful colors - except one. There was one ugly, bland brown ball of yarn.

But what amazed me was that, as the project developed, her masterful skills threaded that single strand of brown in and out of the other colors until the entire thing was stunning - truly a work of art. I guess that's what really talented knitters can do. Even that ugly brown ball of yarn became part of something beautiful.

In my life as a pastor, I hear people say "Everything happens for a reason" a lot. It is a source of comfort for many; the idea that when something bad happens, even though we might not understand the purpose, there must be one...

But what if there isn't?

What if, sometimes, bad things happen? Either because of our poor choices, or chance, or genetics, or the poor choices of others? What if, sometimes, things just happen even if we wish they wouldn't?

See, the reason I don't like that phrase is that it assumes God is a big puppet master. If someone is in a car accident, and there is a fatality, this phrase silently insinuates that God caused the death...

Why? To teach others a lesson? That's not the God I believe in, and it's not the God pictured in the Bible, if read as a whole.

Maybe, God is like a master knitter, taking the ugly, the bland, the painful, the impossible, and still weaving those threads into the whole fabric that is your life?

What if God is really that talented and good and kind and gracious?


What if, in the fabric of my personality, gifts, and flaws, God has allowed even the hardest experiences I've had to be part of the beautiful whole? 


What if all things really DO work together for good for those who love the Lord, because God's determined not to waste any of our experiences?


What if, by God's grace, the ugly experiences can in the end make us more gracious, forgiving, and open? 


Does this mean God caused our pain to make us that way, or does it mean God is busy knitting?


Today, my prayer is that whatever you are going through, you trust in the promise that whether you sense it or not, God is busy knitting in your life, too...

A Trust Fall

Psalm 146 (click link to read passage before reading Devotion below)

"The world's going to end - do you know where you're going?"
"Repent or burn!"
"Believe!"

These are all slogans of a brand of Christianity I struggle with.
The first two, you probably agree with. You probably struggle with that mindset as well.
The third one, though - why would a pastor say he doesn't like encouraging people to believe?

It is because the Biblical idea of "belief" has been hi-jacked by our cultural baggage.

The math teacher tells you to "believe" that 2+2=4.
The history teacher tells you to "believe" that the Holocaust did, in fact, happen.
The preacher tells you to "believe" in Jesus.

These three are not the same.
The first two have to do with my head...what I think. What I believe to be factually true.

When the word "believe" is used in the Bible, however, it is much deeper than that.
Believing in Jesus doesn't mean agreeing with the intellectual idea that he died and rose again.
Believing in Jesus is much more like the picture above.
Reach out to him.
Let yourself fall into his arms.
Trust him.

If you're like me, though - you don't force yourself to trust someone. It isn't an act of will.
It is a by-product of a relationship. You spend enough time with someone, you learn that they mean what they say, you begin to trust them.

Today is my last blog entry before the Apocalypse. According to Familyradio.com, the "rapture" will occur tomorrow evening, May 21st, at 6:00 PM. While I could write a whole blog entry about how this is the "wrong" way to read the Bible, and how I think it is precisely this brand of Christianity that most turns people off, I will simply say this:

I trust in God's unbounded love for all. Period.
I don't trust in humans' ability to figure out the "hidden math" in the Bible.
I don't trust in a fringe group's ability to frighten people into believing in a non-Biblical picture of Jesus.
I don't trust in my own abilities, because those are limited, too...
I trust in God's unbounded love for all. Period.

So, if tomorrow's the Apocalypse, bring it on.
If not, fine - Sunday's sermon is already written.
Either way, I believe I am falling into the arms of love...

Why Being A Christian Is Harder Than It Looks

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’

Romans 12:19

‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…’

Matthew 5:43-44

Reflection:

On Sunday night, Jess, the kids and I were still at my mother’s house in AZ, on vacation. We had just put the kids to bed, and we were looking forward to playing card games with my mom because it was our last night with her. Then, a text came over my mom’s phone. “Turn on the TV – big news!”

We then sat for the next hour watching the details as they came in. Photos of Osama bin Laden, archive footage of the towers falling on 9/11/01, and tons of talking heads telling us what they thought this meant. As our President spoke and confirmed the rumors, I felt a sense of national pride, a sense of relief, and a sense of disturbed sadness all at the same time.

The first two emotions were motivated by my patriotism, my sense of fairness, and my assumption that bad people deserve bad things. The third emotion, though – the disturbed sadness – I believe came from my life studying the Bible.

You see, we often want Christianity or Jesus to validate, confirm, or support the basic reactions and emotions we have as people. We want there to be some verse in the Bible that tells us it is OK for us to joyously celebrate this man’s demise. He was a mass-murderer for crying out loud! Isn’t it OK to be thrilled he’s dead, God?

Jesus had a lot of encounters with people who wanted him to validate their human emotions of vengeance, greed, or fairness. The disciples had an argument in front of him about which one of them was the greatest, but Jesus re-directed their conversation. A lawyer approached him, asking what he had to do to earn his way into heaven. Jesus re-directed the question. People lined the streets with palm branches in hand, expecting Jesus to offer military revenge to the occupying Roman army. Jesus re-directed their eyes to the cross.

Thus, my disturbed sadness…because from studying and reading the Bible, I know that the part of me that is a citizen of this country still has to come under the part of me that follows the God of all people. I know that we have to struggle with the things that Jesus said and did, because he does NOT simply justify or validate our human need for revenge or what we think is “fairness.” I know that asking God to be fair actually means I’m out of the promise, as well. I know that expecting God to judge like I would is a problem, because I judge imperfectly.

So, my emotions about the news stay mixed up and confused, and I’m OK with that. I am relieved that someone who caused such suffering is no longer able to do so. I am saddened that sometimes in this broken world, violence is a necessary evil (and I am able to recognize it still as an evil, no matter how good it feels). And I am attempting to trust in the two verses I placed above. As difficult as it might be, I can even pray for the soul of this murderer…because it is God who has the final say, not me.

Sometimes, being a Christian makes you do things you never thought you’d do.

Prayer: God of love, mercy, and grace, we pray for all those who suffered because of bin Laden. We pray for all those who bravely brought him to human justice. And we pray for ourselves, that we might find peace and humility in trusting that your justice will always have the final say. Amen.