Do I have ashes on my face? some thoughts for ash Wednesday

Hi all.  Below is the message I shared last night at our service of the imposition of ashes (I know, we do it a day early, but it comes after our Shrove Tuesday pancake supper and it works for us!)  Hope you can find meaning in these words.


Lent is a time of Preparation
It is all about getting ourselves ready to celebrate and receive the gift of love, grace and salvation that is offered to us in and through Jesus Christ, fully embodied by his sacrifice on the cross
This year as we journey together through Lent, we will be focusing on submitting different parts of our lives to God. 
It isn’t just coincidence that we begin this time of preparation with the marking of ourselves with ashes
It is a unique action in our life of faith together, in that it isn’t an action that is for God.
We usually spend a lot of time and make a point of ensuring that worship isn’t about us, but about God.  But the imposition of ashes is really for us.
We put ashes on ourselves to remind us of the proper perspective we must have of ourselves and the proper understanding we need of our relationship with God.
Despite all of our efforts to the contrary.  Despite what we would like to believe and what we try to project to the world
We are in fact dirty, stained and marked by the sin we have allowed to take root in our lives.
The ashes we wear are a symbol of that stain.
We will spend all of Lent focused on Submitting to God, but before we can submit to God we must first look at ourselves and honestly admit that we need help, that we have fallen short, that we have and continue to sin. 
We begin the submission of our lives to God by first admitting and confessing our sins – not to dwell on them or so that we might feel guilt.  But so that we might have a measure of understanding as to the depth and breadth of God’s grace, mercy and love for us. 
Once we have admitted and confessed our sins to ourselves and to God, then we can submit them to God, giving them to God and letting go of the hold they have over our lives
We begin Lent with ashes and confession, not to inflict guilt or a somber mood, but so that we gain perspective as to just how profound what Jesus did for us through his birth, life and death on the cross is. 
Hard as it is to accept our failures, it may be even harder to confess them - even privately in prayer to God. However, that is what God asks us to do:  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
We will take the next several minutes in silence to do this in a tangible way.
(Sadly, you can’t participate in the prayer stations with us) But here is what we did: Around the room were ‘stations’ that consisted of a grocery bag full of sand with a cup in it.  Everybody had their own brown paper bag as well.  At each station was also a piece of paper that described a kind of sin, had a Scripture verse and asked questions about to get us thinking about if we had committed that type of sin.  If you had you were instructed to fill your bag with a cup of sand.  
Immediately below, I have listed the wording from each of the seven stations:

Greed
"From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for

gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit. (Jeremiah 6:13 )

 Take a moment and think about this last week.

Were you selfish?

Did you take more of something than you needed?

Were you greedy with your money? Time?

Do you wish you had more money, things, or toys?

Laziness

Through laziness, the rafters sag; because of idle hands, the house leaks.  (Ecclesiastes 10:18)

This week, did you choose to play on the computer, watch TV, or lay around the house, instead of working, doing schoolwork or chores around the house?

Did you oversleep last weekend?

Did you watch TV or a movie instead of doing something you know needs doing? 

Losing your Temper/ Hate/Prejudice

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

(Ephesians 4:31)

Did you lose your temper with your kids this week? Or with your parents? Or your brother/sister? Or friend?

Is there someone you treated badly lately?

Do you find yourself hating your enemies (personal and national)?

Jealousy/Envy
You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? (1Corinthians 3:3)

Do you wish you had something your friend has?

Are you jealous of their car, iPod, girlfriend/boyfriend, husband/wife, house or family?

Do you wish you looked like someone else? 

Pride/Arrogance/Vanity
Pride goes before destruction, 
   a haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18)

Do you spend over 10 minutes looking in the mirror every day?

Is there anyone you think you are smarter than, better than, prettier than?

Did you refuse to apologize even though you knew you were wrong?

Have you tried to make someone feel stupid?

Have you called someone an idiot, moron or any other negative term? 

Overindulgence
Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. (Philippians 3:19)

Do you have a bad habit that you just can’t quit?

Have you overeaten lately?

Have you bought things you didn’t need?

Have you shopped for clothes even though you have a full closet?

Is there something you can’t quit even though its harmful to you or those around you? 

 Lying/Cheating

No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence. (Psalm 101:7)

Is there someone you have been dishonest to recently?

Have you lied to your parents?

Have you cheated on a test?

Have you hidden the truth?

Have you been dishonest with your spouse?

Have you taken credit for something that’s not yours?

We have now spent time first remembering and admitting our sins,

When we submit our sins to God the cease to be the source of guilt and become the first signs of the healing presence of the Holy Spirit.

Because it is not until we have accepted the fact that we are broken and stained and that we are powerless to fix ourselves that the grace of Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit can wash us clean and restore us to who God created us to be.

So we come tonight to accept these ashes because these ashes, while a sign of our brokenness and death in sin are a mark inviting the grace of God, the love of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit into our lives.

At this point we read responsively a prayer of penitence and then came forward to receive the imposition of ashes.  After receiving the ashes, we then put our bags of sand (which we had been holding the whole time) at the foot of the cross).

Sorry Billy, we did actually start the fire or thoughts on sin and letting Go

Today is one of those days that being a pastor means I get to do something that not only wouldn't count as work for most people, but that most people would simply have no occasion to do.  This morning I spent about an hour burning palm branches - from last year's palm Sunday service.  
I did this because we need ashes for the Ash Wednesday service - which we actually do tonight after our Shrove (or Fat) Tuesday pancake supper.  So today I got to burn stuff (which really is pretty fun - but don't try it at home kids, I am a seminary trained professional) to prepare for our service tonight.  
The imposition of ashes is really about reminding us of our mortality (ashes to ashes, dust to dust) and of our sinful nature.  And as I was burning the palm branches I spent some time thinking about the ashes as a metaphor for our sins, and I realized that it really is pretty spot on.  Maybe the rest of you have always got this, but it is a new insight for me, so let me share.  
We all carry around with us things we have done (or not done) that we regret.  We all have sins that we are struggling with and that while maybe not always on the front burner of our thoughts are somehow present with us.  
The palm branches I burnt this morning have been like that for me, they have sat on top of my book shelf for almost a year.  While most of the time they go unnoticed, every once in a while - a couple times a week maybe (and almost every Sunday) I catch a glimpse of them and I am reminded of what they represent.
For the Palms thats okay, because they remind me of my first Lent and Easter season with Good Shepherd, so they are happy reminders.
But we all know not all of the things we have in our lives, in our hearts and that we carry around in our minds are happy reminders, many are those regrets and sins that weigh us down.  
The goal I think is to let go of those things so that they no longer weigh us down or hold us back.  It doesn't take a seminary trained professional to tell you that.  Every self help book and Oprah expert will say something like that or to that effect.  
Letting Go of the sins (or mistakes) and regrets of your past is the only way to really be able to live into the future God has planned for you and the future you were made for. (or something like that).  
Again, I think burning the palm branches is a good metaphor for how we let go of or get rid of the things in our life that weigh us down or remind us of our failures and shortcomings.  But here is the thing, right now I smell terrible.  I don't smell nice like a camp fire, I smell distinctly like something burnt and it really isn't a pleasant smell.  
So while I have, mostly, gotten rid of the palm branches (there is of course some ash left over) the stench of them is still stuck on me.  In our metaphor you could say that I did the best I could to let go of and get rid of my sin, regret and mistakes - but something of them, the pungent burnt odor of them, remains.  
The best we can do on our own to wash away or get rid of our past mistakes, regrets and sins still leaves a residue in the air and stuck on us.  But this is, of course, what Jesus came for.  When we allow Jesus into our lives and we submit our lives to him - giving over everything, even our tightly clenched regrets and mistakes.   Then and only then are we truly washed clean and made new.  
When we try to do this ourselves the best we can hope for is to be left with a foul smell on our skin and our clothes, but when we ask for Jesus to make us new, that is what we become, new creations made perfect again by the strength and power of Jesus' sanctifying, sacrificial love.  
The ashes of tomorrow (or tonight) are meant to remind us not of our mistakes and shortcomings, but of the depth of God's grace and the power of Christ's love.  

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:^[a] The old has gone, the new is here!

Amen.  

Professor McGonnagall has nothing on Jesus or We need Jesus to transfigure us

Below is the message that I shared yesterday with Good Shepherd.  Yesterday was Transfiguration Sunday, which of course gets me thinking about Harry Potter, but not much else.  I think that is too bad, because I think there is a lot for us up on the mountaintop of Jesus' transfiguration.  Below is my attempt to share some of that.  See you tomorrow.  

Matthew 17:1-9 (New International Version, ©2011)

 ¹ After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. ² There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. ³ Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

 ⁴ Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”  ⁵ While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”   ⁶ When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. ⁷ But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” ⁸ When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.  ⁹ As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

This week, as we are on the precipice of Lent we remember the Transfiguration of our Lord.  It is a event that we don’t pay much attention to.  It is sometimes forgotten, almost always overlooked and usually misunderstood.

But it happened for a reason, it is in our bibles for a reason and we mark and remember it for a reason. 

To get a better understanding of what really happened on that mountain, let’s try and look at the context of the situation

Peter has just, in the previous chapter of Matthew, confessed Jesus is “the Christ, the son of the living God…”, but shortly after this inspired confession of faith, Jesus began giving his disciples some profoundly disturbing news.  He would be captured and put to death – and on the third day, he would rise again. ”  

However, the promise of the resurrection was either not heard or it sounded too preposterous.  The disciples didn’t so much as refuse to listen, but were unable to comprehend the idea that anything could happen to Jesus, an idea strengthened and solidified by their belief that he was, in fact the savior. 

Of course, Jesus had more news as well.  He told his disciples that if they were to truly, really follow him then they would likely suffer the same fate – And then urged them to take up their cross and follow him.  

With words of challenge ringing in their ears, Jesus invites his closest disciples – Peter, James and John –  up to the top of the mountain with him.

Without any warning or fanfare Jesus is transfigured before their eyes.  His physical appearance has changed, but it is more than that.  This is something supernatural and unique.  Suddenly they see Jesus in a new and entirely different way. 

“Transfigured” is the word the Gospel uses and apart from Harry Potter, most of us have no reference for understanding the meaning of the word. 

But the recording of the event itself in Matthew gives its own definition of the word.  They saw Jesus “glorified” or “illumined” in a way they had never seem him before. 

Clearly, they saw a vision – and the vision was of Moses and Elijah talking to Jesus.  On hearing the voice of God, they fell on their faces in fright: “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.  Hear him!”

The whole thing happens so fast we are left, as I am sure the disciples were, not really sure of what we have seen or experienced.

And 2000 years later we are still left with the question of what we would do if we were on that mountain with Jesus and we had seen him transfigured. 

While none of us has witnessed the transfiguration, we all – I would imagine – have had an experience of connecting to God.  We have all had a moment, no matter how fleeting and brief of connecting to or seeing God.  And these places where we meet Jesus – where we meet Jesus and see him for who and what he is on the Mountain Top – the same mountain top of the transfiguration (I think this is why, unlike almost every other ‘mountain top’ story in the bible, the mountain where the transfiguration takes place is not named – it is simply called ‘the mountain top’.  I think it is supposed to connect and relate universally)

But this mountain top is not where Jesus stays – and, as we are called to follow Jesus – it is not where we are to stay either. 

So the real question about the transfiguration isn’t, ‘what happened on the mountain top?’ or ‘what is/was it?’ – that is actually pretty clear, it was the disciples that were with Jesus finally getting a glimpse of the full glory of who Jesus is.  It was a peek at Jesus as he really is, as who he really is. 

But really, the question is – ‘what do we do now?’ or more pointedly, ‘where do we go from here?’  We have to ask these questions because once you have seen Jesus for all that he really and truly is, something has to happen.  This is why Peter – foolish, speak before-he-thinks Peter wants to build monuments to Jesus, Moses and Elijah, he knows that what he has just seen and he now knows who Jesus really is.

The transfiguration serves for Peter, and for us, as the visual reveal and reinforcement of the truth of his verbal confession a few days earlier, that Jesus was, in fact ‘The Christ’

This Transfiguration, this revelation of the reality of who Jesus is requires a response.

Something has to be done in response to the revelation of who Jesus is and his place within the law and the prophets (Moses & Elijah). 

And really the only appropriate response is to allow the truth and reality of who Jesus is to transform, transfigure and change us.

Because after all, Jesus isn’t really being transfigured, but rather the disciples were simply given a glimpse of who and what Jesus really is and was.  So, when we see Jesus for who and what he really is, we are the ones that are transfigured or changed. 

When we come down from the mountain -  which is what we must do.

Our lives should be transformed, changed, and altered. And not just in some minimalist ways. We should be transfigured. We should take on the appearance of Jesus. We should take on the qualities of Jesus.

We should live life with grace and tranquillity. We should radiate love and kindness. We should be overflowing with exuberance and excitement. Because those are the very things that Jesus displayed.

We must be transformed. We must be changed. We cannot look at the loving face of God and not take on his appearance, his countenance, his grace and his love.

We must get alongside those who walk the journey with us, to share their pain, their sorrow, their frustrations, their joys, their happiness, their lives. To share something of our understanding of God’s love, and to learn lessons ourselves.

To get the picture of what it might look like to be transformed and transfigured by a mountain top experience with Christ, we need only to look at Peter

Peter hears the voice of God announcing that this Jesus is none other than God's beloved Son and so the most important thing Peter can do is simply listen to him. In that moment everything for Peter, I suspect, was still...and clear...and made sense.

But of course it didn't last. Peter pulls himself off the ground, perhaps wondering if anything had actually happened or whether he had imagined it all. And then on the way down the mountain Jesus will again intimate of his impending death and destiny. Peter will struggle to listen, to follow, to be faithful. Actually, he will more than struggle, he will fail. And Jesus will reach out, raise him up again, and send him forth. I have a hunch that each time Peter fell down and got up again, he would look back on this day and recall those words, "Just listen to him!"

Peter is in the midst of his transfiguration – when he fails, falls, and is lifted up again and realizes that above and beyond everything else, he is called to listen to Jesus.

This pattern, I think, shapes the life of every Christian.

We, too, of course, try our best, sometimes succeeding and sometimes coming up short. We, too, have moments of insight and moments of denial.

We, too, fall down in fear and are raised up again to go forth in confidence.

We, too, that is, are called to listen, called to discern God's way in the world, called to partner with God and in this way be transformed.

As we hear and remember the story of God’s transfiguration, let us remember that in the story too is the story of Peter’s transfiguration. 

And in Peter’s story we see the path of our own transfiguration. 

And to remember that in all of us the transfiguration begins when we Listen to God, get up and follow Christ back down the mountain into the world that needs his transforming love just as much as us. 

Amen.

Little things mean a lot or Oh, the places you'll go

This week Charlie celebrated his 100th day of kindergarten, which is apparently a big deal.  It was also Dr. Seuss' birthday, which meant that there were special activities all week for him and his class.  Each day there was something - misfit dress day, mismatched shoes day, 100 things in a bag day (really).  

None of these things were a big deal, at all, and participation was not in anyway required, but Charlie likes to follow the rules and participate in this type of stuff.  The one minor problem is that this 'little stuff' is not exactly my strong point.  Traci and I together are pretty good about covering all the major, important bases in life and as parents.  But little stuff, like remembering show and tell or library book return dates or which day Charlie is supposed to wear different socks and shoes usually fall to me - because Traci is already at work - and the details are just not my biggest strength in parenting or in life.  

But somehow, between Traci and I we managed to be ready everyday this week (and his bag of 100 army men even went in a day early!).  I'm sharing this, not because I was able to get my act together, but rather because of the impact that it had on Charlie's week.

I can't really communicate just how much fun Charlie has had at school this week, how excited he has been to go to school and participate in the activities or how much he has just been in a great mood all week.  Maybe this will give you some idea: on Monday we found out that he will have to go to school on Saturday in a few weeks - its a makeup day for all the snow.  Now this would seem like bad news, but at least in part because of all the fun he has had this week, he can't stop talking about 'getting to go to school on Saturday'.  Last night we counted the days until that Saturday and the night before we counted how many weeks.  

Charlie is thrilled about going to school on Saturday and part of it is because we managed to do a few little things this week to help him connect and engage at kindergarten.  There is a lesson for our walk with God in there somewhere, right?  

Here is what Jesus has to say about small, little things or the 'details', taken from the parable of the three servants: 

Matthew 25:21 (NIV)   ²¹ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

So for Jesus, faithfulness - or doing well with a few things or small and little things is a big deal.  It is a big deal because it is faithfulness. Faithfulness leads to more blessing and more responsibility. 

For Jesus it is not the size or the number of things that matters, it is the faithfulness to them. When we are faithful God responds to that faithfulness by entrusting us with more.  

I truly believe that God has amazing (big) plans for my life and for each of our lives.  But I think we often lose the path to those things because we miss the little steps of faithfulness along the way.  

In honor of Dr. Seuss, think of it this way: God has planned amazing places for you and I to go.  We will see, but to get to those places we must respond in faith and faithfulness to the things that God has already entrusted to us.  

It doesn't matter if there are only a few things or if those things seem small, even meaningless.  God has given them to us, entrusted us with them, therefore they must have value!  

The only way to see the places God has intended us to go is to be faithful to God where you are right now, with what God has given you right now.  

Jesus says to us, if we are faithful, 'Oh, the places you'll go!'

Why I need Rhianna to get out of my head . . .

So, I had a unsettling experience this afternoon as I was heading home for lunch.  I got in the car and The Rhianna song, "S&M' was on.  If you are not familiar with the song, those letters do in fact mean what you think they mean.  As such, regardless of the musical merits of the song (Rhianna does know how to write hit songs) I am not a big fan.  
But this is where the really disconcerting part came in - without realizing what I was doing, I started singing along.  I did not know that I knew the words to the song, but there I was, singing right with her.  Now to be fair, its not like its a complicated chorus and it is catchy, but still.   I was really pretty upset that I knew the song enough to sing along with it, as I really don't like the message of the song, so it got me thinking . . . 
I think I am going to be walking a little bit of a fine line with this post, so before I go any further I share two Scripture passages:


2 Corinthians 6:14
Don't become partners with those who reject God. How can you make a partnership out of right and wrong? That's not partnership; that's war. Is light best friends with dark? Does Christ go strolling with the Devil? Do trust and mistrust hold hands? Who would think of setting up pagan idols in God's holy Temple? But that is exactly what we are, each of us a temple in whom God lives. God himself put it this way: "I'll live in them, move into them; I'll be their God and they'll be my people. So leave the corruption and compromise; leave it for good," says God. "Don't link up with those who will pollute you. I want you all for myself. I'll be a Father to you; you'll be sons and daughters to me." The Word of the Master, God.


Matthew 15:10
He then called the crowd together and said, "Listen, and take this to heart. It's not what you swallow that pollutes your life, but what you vomit up."


I think, at first glance, these two verses might seem a little contradictory.  I don't really think so, though.  The Matthew passage, at its parallel in Mark have Jesus making it clear that it isn't what goes in your stomach (or for our purposes, what goes in your ears) is not what pollutes you or makes you unclean.  Instead,  Jesus says it is about what we do, not what we eat or drink or listen too (???) that is what matters.  
Now, I am certainly not going to argue with Jesus, and I don't even want to.  One of the things about my relationship with Jesus that I really appreciate is the freedom we have to be ourselves - and I think that definitely includes listening to what we like.  
But now to the 2Corinthians passage, particularly this part: "Don't link up with those who will pollute you. I want you all for myself. I'll be a Father to you; you'll be sons and daughters to me." The Word of the Master, God.   
What I think is important here is the fact that our thoughts are almost always the basis of our actions.  We do certain things on instinct or without thinking, but most of the time the things we choose to do are things that we have first thought about doing.  Jesus seems to think so too as he makes the point that thinking about adultery, or murder, etc. is the same - from the perspective of sin as doing those things.  
So if our thoughts matter, I guess what I am saying is that the things we allow to influence our thoughts matter too.  
And that is what brings us back to Rhianna - and, of course, this isn't about Rhianna at all but rather what we choose to listen to, watch or read.  If, without any conscious effort I have memorized 'S&M' by Rhianna, isn't it logical to assert that the song - and more importantly, the meaning and values of the song - had at least some influence on my thoughts.  
I want to be clear that I am not advocating only listening to Christian music and only watching and reading Christian shows or books.  
But what I am saying is that if we are serious about our relationship with God and if we are serious about trying to follow God's will and plan for our lives then we must take seriously the things that we allow to have voice in our hearts, minds and lives.  
What that looks like for each of us, I suspect, will be different - just as we are all different, but I think it is important for us to at least be thinking about and prayerfully considering what it is we listen to, read and watch.  
I for one am hoping I don't secretly know any more Rhianna . . . although I do really like the New P. Diddy one, but that is a blog for another day.  
God Bless.

Whatever happened to Bobby McFarrin? or Don't Worry . . .

Below is the message I shared at our inaugural 'Shepherd 701' service on Sunday night.  It deals with, what I think is a foundational issue for our day to day walk with God: Trust.  I don't think we can begin to let go of the worry in our lives until we start to trust God with all of our lives.  Thanks for reading!


 Matthew 6:24-34 (The Message)

 ²⁴"You can't worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you'll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can't worship God and Money both.

 ^25-26"If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds.

 ^27-29"Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.

 ^30-33"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

 ³⁴"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

When we look at this passage it is easy to focus on what seems to be the primary message – Don’t Worry

I say that it is easy to focus on that message, but that in no way means that it is an easy message to live up to or put into practice in our lives.

For most of us, worry is a fairly constant companion in our daily lives.  We are surrounded by things to worry about:

At work or school – the big assignment that is proving difficult or the colleague or class mate that is mad at you

At home – any member of the family that might be struggling at school or work

Worries about the economy, about terrorism (where having specific threat levels seems designed to encourage worry), about any number of things

And I could go on and on, from situation to situation in our lives and give examples of legitimate reasons to worry, but I don’t need to – because all of us can easily think of them on our own. 

We are surrounded by worry and things to worry about

Our culture perpetuates and encourages this worry:

The local and national newscasts, not to mention cable news networks, seem to draw almost exclusively on our anxiousness and worry to bring viewers in – ‘what you are drinking that is probably killing you  . . . .news at 11’

So much of the advertizing that we see is simply an attempt to create a fear or worry so that we will be prompted to buy the ‘solution’

I’ve already mentioned our response to real threats in our world, like terrorism with ‘threat levels’ and the like.

Into this situation Jesus comes with a plea – a command, actually – ‘Do not worry’

To understand how that is even possible, it is important to look at the beginning of this passage:

Our passage starts, not with the call not to worry, but with the assertion that no one – none of us – can serve too masters.

I don’t want to get too caught up in a discussion of money, which these verses often lead too.

But I want to point out that Jesus is not saying money is bad.  Instead, Jesus is simply highlighting money as a bad boss – or Lord, which is a better translation for the word master we often hear in this passage, or even the word ‘god’ which is used in the translation we heard a moment ago. 

We don’t talk about ‘Lord’s very often any more, but a Lord is someone who demands and deserves our loyalty, allegiance and worship

So again, Jesus isn’t saying that money is bad, per se, rather he is lifting it up as one of the many things that makes for a bad and unworthy Lord in our lives. 

When we lift up something as ‘Lord’ in our life, part of what we are saying is that we believe this person or thing, as in the case of money, can meet and satisfy our deepest needs. 

The problem with money, or any other thing but God being our Lord is that it is finite.  There is not an unlimited supply of money – or power, or influence or any thing in this world

So if it is money that grants safety and security, then we must immediately participate in the practice of counting, tracking, stock piling and striving for it – because there simply will never be enough

Into this economy of scarcity Jesus provides a different opportunity:

The alternative Jesus invites us to consider is entering into relationship with God, the God who is infinite and whose love for us and all creation is infinite as well. Love operates from a different "economy" than money

When Traci was pregnant with Jack, I had what I think is a common concern – how in the world could I love anyone as much or in the way I loved Charlie?

But that question, as I found out is to misunderstand the infinite nature of love.

When Jack finally came, I didn’t have to divide the love I currently had so that he could have some.  Instead, I suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere had more love to give and share.

No doubt you've noticed the same thing: how the more love you give away, the more you have. Love – and especially God's love – cannot be counted, tracked or stockpiled. And when you live in this kind of relationship of love and trust, you've entered into the realm of abundance, the world of possibility, the world of contentment. Suddenly, in this world – Jesus calls it the "kingdom of God" – not worrying actually becomes an option.

It is hard to believe in this world and this life of abundance that Jesus proclaims.

It is so difficult because so much of our lives and so much of our world is thoroughly invested and entrenched in the world of scarcity

This idea of abundance is ultimately the practical thing those that had Jesus killed could not abide by or stand for.

Because those in power were so invested in the world of scarcity that abundance was down right frightening, even threatening. Scarcity, after all, creates fear, and fear creates devotion to those who will protect you (think "threat levels again).

Abundance, on the other hand, produces freedom.   God doesn't operate from scarcity; God operates out of abundance.

 God resurrects – which, when you think about it, is the ultimate act of abundance: creating something, once again, out of nothing, drawing light from darkness, giving life to the dead.

This is the world Jesus invites us into: a world of abundance, generosity, and new life.

But it is also a world of fragility, trust, and vulnerability. Lilies and birds, after all, can't defend themselves but must trust God's providence and love.

And trust is the fundamental issue.  Who or what we choose to trust determines what economy and what worldview we are participating in:  are we going to accept the economy of scarcity and the worldview of finite resources that we all must – literally fight over and for OR are we going to accept Jesus’ invitation to participate in an economy of abundance based on a worldview centered on the infinite nature of God’s love for us. 

We are constantly surrounded by images of scarcity and the ‘reality’ of the world’s economy of fear, scarcity and worry. 

Jesus provides us with a different image and a different way to live our lives. 

When we begin to put our trust in him, not only do we begin to let go of fear and worry for ourselves, but we plant the seeds of the kingdom of God in the here and now by providing the world around us with a alternative picture of what life can look like.

The life of Jesus, even including his death on the cross, is a life exploding with a witness to the infinite abundance of God’s love. 

Jesus life gives us picture after picture, scene after scene of reason to trust in God’s faithfulness, love and providence. 

When we trust in Jesus – and make the God of abundance our Lord, we begin to provide for others pictures and proof of the infinite reality of God’s love. 

And in the light of that, very real love we are able to say – Do not worry.

Amen.

Photoshoots with Jesus or something like that . . .

Below is the message I shared yesterday with Good Shepherd.  It was an abbreviated message as we spent a large portion of our worship time participating in prayer stations.  You don't get to do those with us, but hopefully there is still something of interest and value to you here.  

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (Common English Bible)

¹⁶ Rejoice always. ¹⁷ Pray continually. ¹⁸ Give thanks in every situation because this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 6:5-15 (The Message)

⁵"And when you come before God, don't turn that into a theatrical production either. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for stardom! Do you think God sits in a box seat? 

⁶"Here's what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won't be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.  ^7-13"The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They're full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don't fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this: 

   Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are.  Set the world right; 
   Do what's best— as above, so below.                                                Keep us alive with three square meals.  Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.  Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. 
   You're in charge!  You can do anything you want! 
   You're ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes.

^14-15"In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can't get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God's part.

Yesterday our family had the rare opportunity to participate in a photo shoot for a friend of Traci’s from High school – The Boys, Traci & I all had to dress in a certain way – this was a ‘no sock’ photo shoot!

Furniture & decorations were rearranged or put away.  Legs, arms, bodies and faces had to be posed and positioned in certain ways.  We even had specific actions to do – or pretend to do – at one time or another – they boys ‘surprised’ us, we were ‘reading’, at so on.

Julia – Traci’s friend – was very good with the boys and is a gifted photographer.  But the simplest and most accurate word to describe what we were doing yesterday is – Fake. 

A slightly less harsh way to describe the action yesterday morning is ‘staged’. 

All of the actions that were captured might have happened naturally, all of the situations and movements were prearranged, choreographed and coordinated. 

What does this have to do with prayer or anything related to faith, you might be wondering? 

I think it is a great metaphor or comparison to how we often view or approach prayer.

When it comes time to pray we think we have to talk a certain way – how many of us pray with words and in a style that is different than every other time we communicate, flowery language, overly formal, etc?  Be in a certain position – on our knees?  Standing up?  Eyes closed?

But hopefully in over the last month we have started to think about prayer in a slightly different way. 

Just like the actions in the photo shoot yesterday, there is nothing wrong with on our knees, eyes closed formal language prayer. 

But it is just the tip of the iceburg, just the beginning of the life of prayer that we are called to. 

What the photo shoot was missing – and what many of our prayers are missing is authenticity and a connection to what is really going on in our daily lives.

God doesn’t want a staged photo opportunity or a rehearsed speech.  What God wants is snapshot after candid snapshot of who we really are, where we really are and what we are thinking and feeling.  Right now.  

We are called to walk through our everyday lives open to the leading of God’s Holy Spirit. 

We are called to ‘pray without ceasing’ which really means to constantly be in a state of openness to God’s leading and to always be actively seeking God’s leading, direction and guidance. 

What this means is that every moment, every situation, every action is an opportunity – and a direct invitation from God – to be engaged in conversation with God, to be open to the leading of God’s Holy Spirit and to offer up our circumstances and ourselves to be used by God. 

The fact that every situation is an appropriate one for  prayer, that means that there are many different kinds of prayer:

You can read or say verses of Scripture as a prayer

There are ‘breath prayers’, where you offer up a moment of prayer to God in the time it takes to take a breath or say a single word – like amen, or a short phrase – like may your will be done, God.

We all know of the more formalized kind of prayer

There are many different forms for this type of prayer

The ACTS prayer is a good one: ACTS standing for Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication

And, of course, we have spent some time over this last month looking at probably our best example of dedicated or formalized prayer, the prayer Jesus taught his first disciples and then us – The Lord’s prayer

At this point we spent about 10 minutes ‘doing’ prayer stations based on each of the petitions in the Lord’s prayer.  The last ‘station’ was an opportunity to rework the Lord’s prayer and sort of make it our own

Since you can’t participate in the prayer stations with us, I invite you to take a moment to look at the Lord’s Prayer – each of the petitions individually and see how you might be able to ‘rewrite’ it and make it your own. 

Petition One – Hallowed be your name:

Petition Two – May your kingdom come:

Petition Three – May your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven:

Petition Four – Give us this day our daily bread:

Petition Five – Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors:

Petition Six – Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil

Amen.