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What Does Getting an IV ( Or going to a Dentist) and the Lord’s Supper Have in Common
Devotional and Discussion Quote of the Day:
23 For I received from the Lord the teaching that I passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread, 24 gave thanks to God, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in memory of me.” 25 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup and said, “This cup is God’s new covenant, sealed with my blood. Whenever you drink it, do so in memory of me.” 1 Corinthians 11:23-25 (TEV)
10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” Psalm 46:10 (NLT)
477 Why do you neglect those corners in your heart? As long as you don’t give yourself completely, you can’t expect to win others. What a poor instrument you are! (1)
On Thursday, I had some medical tests done. As I was laying there on the hard gurney, the nurse told me to stay still, as she was going to ram a large (it looked six inches long and an inch wide) needle into one of my veins. “Hold still,” she says.
Yeah. Be still. Uh huh,
Think about this, you are laid back in the comfortable dentist chair, and the dentist smiles and says, this will hurt just a little, as he takes tools that barely fit in the room, and comes at you with sinister glee glowing from behind his mask.
“Just be still,” he cautions. The only problem, in both those our nerves, betray us. We lie there, shaking, our bodies tense and on edge, not sure how painful this will be. Our minds are trying to find something to distract us, something else upon which to focus. Is it over yet?
So what do these two phobias of mine have to do with the Lord’s Supper?
The stillness we need to have is part of it.
But so is the trust that what is going to happen to us is going to be for our betterment.
I think many of us approach communion to casually. Do we realize that this is God, Jesus’ precious Body give for us, His blood shed for our sins, that we are going to take? Are we still enough to realize that we aren’t just symbolically in the presence of God, we really are?
Do we realize that God’s presence will cleanse, restore, and bring healing to our broken lives, our hurting souls?
Paul tells the church to examine themselves, to recognize His presence, that to fail to do so has resulted in some spiritually falling asleep, and in some cases, death.
We need to be still; We need to take the time to know He Is God, our God, the God, who loves and cares for us. It’s not for His ease, or because He is impatient, it is for our best, for our healing, for our comfort.
Imagine if you spent the time in a dentist’s chair paging through His resume, interviewing other patients, trying to critique his prior operations, and pontificating and debating about why He is better than the dentist three doors down. Imagine,as the arm is cleaned, and the needle approaches that vein, you spend time trying to determine whether it would be better to place it somewhere else, or arguing about the history of plastic versus metal needles, and occasionally wondering about the use of leeches?
Relax, breath deep, know the presence of God. Drop to your knees in awe (if you can get back up!) and savor the moment, the Body and Blood, given and shed for you……
He is God!
He is with you!
This is what you’ve been told to seek, this moment, this precious time…. breathe slowly, find that point where you revere and adore Him, and where that reverence is balance with a flood of joy. As you are still and know that He is God as His love and mercy wash away all that is not this moment, God and His family…
this moment we need!
Be still…. for just a moment longer…
Smile, and know you life is in His hands…..
AMEN
Be still… be still and know He is God.
Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 1168-1170). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
The Transformation of Easter: Pt VII A Relationship of Unity
The Transformations of Easter
The Change of our Relationship with Each Other
John 17:11b-19
† IHS †
May the grace of God so flood your soul with mercy and peace, that you easily realize how many others dwell with you in Christ!
My Struggle with Cynicism
I’ve got a confession to make.
Some of you, for example, Chris and Tom, know that I am somewhat of a cynic.
I wasn’t always, you can ask Kay, but as I’ve ministered in the church, I’ve become more cynical over the years.
Once upon a time I would look at a passage like today’s gospel with great expectation, great hope, great enthusiasm for the day where I would see this unity happen. Where simply because we preach Christ crucified, unity happens, and the Church throughout the world drops all of the squabbles, all of the politics, all of the guilt and resentment, all of the pride that announces we are right, and they are wrong, and we would gather around the altar and share in the biggest communion service ever seen.
Now I am somewhat of a cynic, because there are days I don’t think it will happen in my lifetime, or if it does, it is because we have buried important parts of doctrine. Things like the death and resurrection of Jesus, or the presence of the Holy Spirit, fulfilling the promises of Jesus, promises made to us in our baptism.
Part of the cynicism comes from being a history geek. I know the times that unity was a driving force in the church, like in the 2nd great Awakening, or in the time of Gregory VII and even St. Francis of Assissi, and the results always seemed to be more division, or peace through the use of force. I see the other times, when hanging on to the correct teaching of the faith resulted in division, and death. Even now, I see political games being played in denominations and churches. I can see a lack of unity, and indeed, a desire for division.
So my cynical side says that such unity, throughout the church isn’t as possible. Which leads me to the question. If it is impossible, why did Jesus pray for it, and why didn’t God answer Jesus prayer?
The Standard of Unity
The idea of unity here in John’s gospel, in this incredible prayer, is a high level of unity. Hear again verse 11:
Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are.
Unity in the church, among the people of God is described as being united, just as the Father and Jesus are united. That’s pretty close, so close that we can’t understand it. For God is three persons, yet completely One.
That is pretty united. Paul describes the unity of the church this way
10 Let us have real warm affection for one another as between brothers, and a willingness to let the other man have the credit. 11 Let us not allow slackness to spoil our work and let us keep the fires of the spirit burning, as we do our work for God. 12 Base your happiness on your hope in Christ. When trials come endure them patiently, steadfastly maintain the habit of prayer. 13 Give freely to fellow-Christians in want, never grudging a meal or a bed to those who need them. 14 … as for those who try to make your life a misery, bless them. Don’t curse, bless. 15 Share the happiness of those who are happy, the sorrow of those who are sad. 16 Live in harmony with each other…. Romans 12:10-16 (Phillips NT)
So I hear these words, and I hear Jesus prayer for unity, and I feel like the police officer in Les Mis, hopeless in view of the injustice, the division, and the fighting that goes on in Christ’s church, throughout the world.
Were we ready for the Ascension? Did the Father answer the prayer
On my more cynical days, I wonder if either the Father didn’t hear Jesus prayer, or whether the church isn’t the church.
On my less cynical days, I wonder if the Ascension was a bit premature, that Jesus should have waited 2 or 3 thousand years before returning to the Father. I mean, if He was here…. We wouldn’t be in this situation, would we?
I mean – we are just God’s kids, and you know what would happen if you leave your kids home alone for a few days…
Because even church leaders can act like a bunch of spoiled kids at times.
Jesus gave Himself… The Memorial Acclimation’s promise
So where is the hope that confronts our sin of disunity, our pride, our inability to love each other?
Go back to Jesus prayer,
Holy Father, you have given me your name;* now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are.
We find our unity as a result of God protecting us, giving us sanctuary. As He gives us His peace, as He assures us of His presence, of the Holy Spirit’s comfort. We find ourselves relaxing, restful, and trusting Him to maintain it. For as we know we are safe, we drop our defenses, we forget to be anxious about people betraying or sinning against us, and we reach our in the love of Christ to them.
The is why later He prayers,
17 Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. 18 Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. 19 And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.
We’ve talked about holiness before. Rather than being perfect or pure, the idea is to be set apart to something. Jesus asks the Father to make us holy, even as He is holy. Remember Jesus addressed God as Holy Father?
Here is the truth, God sets himself apart for a relationship. A relationship with us, and Christ makes that relationship possible, by setting Himself aside a sacrifice. His sacrifice on the cross which opens the door for the Father sanctifying us, by giving us the Holy Spirit to dwell in us, to abide with us.
And unity is the result of this holiness. For as we enter into a relationship with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we find that we are together in that relationship.
I said before I can be cynical, I neglected to say that in one of those cynical moods, I find hope. For I realize that what it takes to overcome my cycnicism is the same thing it takes to create unity. The miracle of the blood of Christ, sacrificed for us, to create the relationship, a relationship described in this new covenant. We can’t find the unity and the peace we need around a negotiation table, or in the vote of a congregation, or a synod.
It has to originate from the baptismal font, where Christ claims us as His own, and from the altar, the feast where we realize the depth of His love for us. That is what has made the difference here in our congregation. It is what can make the difference in the church at large.
And as I see that unity come to fruition here, I know it can envelop others. That is why we are sent by Jesus, even as the Father sent Jesus to be our sacrifice. To reach out to them, to invite them into our sanctuary, into our fortress, into the place where God protects us. Not this building, but this relationship, God and His people, together.
To share that peace which goes beyond all comprehension, and guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen!
A Way to Deal with Spiritual Insomnia…
Devotional Thought of the Day:
6 I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn, yes, more than sentries long for the dawn.
27 Anyone who eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Master irreverently is like part of the crowd that jeered and spit on him at his death. Is that the kind of “remembrance” you want to be part of? 28 Examine your motives, test your heart, come to this meal in holy awe. 29 If you give no thought (or worse, don’t care) about the broken body of the Master when you eat and drink, you’re running the risk of serious consequences. 30 That’s why so many of you even now are listless and sick, and others have gone to an early grave. 1 Corinthians 11:27-30 (MSG)
1 It is taught among us that the sacraments were instituted not only to be signs by which people might be identified outwardly as Christians, but that they are signs and testimonies of God’s will toward us for the purpose of awakening and strengthening our faith.[2]
They should, therefore, constantly exert themselves to have the faithful know and live the paschal mystery more deeply through the Eucharist and thus become a firmly-knit body in the unity of the charity of Christ.9 “Intent upon prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4), they should devote their labor to this end that all those committed to their care may be of one mind in prayer10 and through the reception of the sacraments may grow in grace and be faithful witnesses to the Lord.[3]
316 You tell me: “Yes, I want to!” Good. But do you “want to” as a miser wants his gold, as a mother wants her child, as a worldling wants honors, or as a poor sensualist wants his pleasure? No? Then you don’t “want to”!
It was a long time ago, thirty-five years ago when the nights seemed so long. I was young, working as a dishwasher at a Denny’s back in New Hamshire. I worked the graveyard shift, the eleven to seven am a shift. I would go from there off to high school. There was a point on those nights, I can never forget.
When you work those shifts, or if you are just having a tough time sleeping, there is a time where the darkness begins to crush you. It is about two hours before the sunrise, until the moment the hint of dawn starts to lighten the sky. I would run up the ladder, get out on the roof, and watch the miracle of a sunrise.
But oh, the pressure of night in the two hours of the night! It causes a sense almost like claustrophobia, as you wonder whether the night will ever end.
As I read the first quote above, the psalmist is comparing his hunger for God’s presence to the night guard waiting for dawn, those feelings resonated within me. And It resonated so much, that the blog came about.
I think there are times we get spiritual insomnia. We forget God is here, and we get overwhelmed by the darkness that is in life. The evil that casts it dark shadow over us, that would oppress us with that same feeling that occurs in the hours before dawn. The more the darkness crushes us, the harder it is to remember that dawn is coming, the harder it is to remember His light has shown in our lives… and still does.
No wonder Paul will talk of those who have fallen asleep and even died because they didn’t recognize the Body and Blood of Christ!
I put two quotes, after the scripture quotes, one from the Lutheran Book of Concord, one from the Roman Catholic documents. Both talk of the strength found in the sacraments, especially the Eucharist The strengthening of faith, the communion that grows strong among the people of God. It is something we agree on, this recognition of God’s presence, and His work in our lives. His supernatural work seen as the Holy Spirit, strengthens, cleanses, heals, comforts and makes new.
The God we encounter as we are fed His Body and His Blood.
As His light again is brought into our lives.
As it shatters that darkness that we feel crushing us. I’ve been in those darks nights, I’ve felt the pressures, the anxieties, both from physical darkness and spiritual darkness. Perhaps that is why I so desire and love to share in Communion, why I appreciate it so much. It is more refreshing than even the dawn.
So run to the altar, desire God’s presence as St Josemaria challenges us to desire it. Even as that desire grows, know how He comes to you, through His Word, through His sacraments,
And find the rest those who work at night find, as their day ends with the dawn.
[1] Tappert, T. G. (Ed.). (1959). The Book of Concord the confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (p. 35). Philadelphia: Mühlenberg Press.
9 Pius XII’s encyclical letter, Mediator Dei, Nov. 20, 1947: A.A.S. 39 (1947) p. 97 ff.; Paul VI’s encyclical letter, Mysterium Fidei, Sept. 3, 1965.
10 cf. Acts 1:14 and 2:46.
[2] Catholic Church. (2011). Decree concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church: Christus Dominus. In Vatican II Documents. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
Given for YOU (plural!)
Devotional/Discussion Thought of the Day:
2 How I want to be there! I long to be in the LORD’S Temple. With my whole being I sing for joy to the living God. 3 Even the sparrows have built a nest, and the swallows have their own home; they keep their young near your altars, LORD Almighty, my King and my God. 4 How happy are those who live in your Temple, always singing praise to you. Psalm 84:2-4 (TEV)
22. Whenever the Sacrament of Baptism is duly administered as Our Lord instituted it, and is received with the right dispositions, a person is truly incorporated into the crucified and glorified Christ, and reborn to a sharing of the divine life, as the Apostle says: “You were buried together with Him in Baptism, and in Him also rose again-through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead”.40
Baptism therefore establishes a sacramental bond of unity which links all who have been reborn by it. But of itself Baptism is only a beginning, an inauguration wholly directed toward the fullness of life in Christ. Baptism, therefore, envisages a complete profession of faith, complete incorporation in the system of salvation such as Christ willed it to be, and finally complete ingrafting in eucharistic communion. (1)
“…for, thank God, a seven-year-old child knows what the church is, namely, holy believers and sheep who hear the voice of their Shepherd,” etc.”
I am sitting in my office, the first day “back” from a short vacation with my mother.
I am filled with anticipation for tomorrow, even as I thumb through my mail and lose some of that joy. For some would try and use their “authority” to convince me what i know about my congregation isn’t true with the church at large. That somehow there is a “us and them” in the Church.
You see, there is something special, something sacred, as the people of God are gathered to the altar, and as baptized believers, share in the body and blood of Christ. As I communed at another congregation on the other side of the United States last week, my heart looked forward to being “home”.
That is how I look at the divisions that exist in the Church. There are some that won’t be healed until we are all home, before the Father. He will settle the squabbles that exist between various siblings in the church. But being “home” means celebrating the feast with all who are believe and are baptised. For from God’s perspective, we cannot deny our brothers and our sisters, united in Christ at baptism, are indeed brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus.
Some discuss this in arrogance and pride, rather than sorrow and regret They put in roadblocks to the unity that is the Church in Christ by focusing ont he division, not the hope. They weep, not over the brokenness of the church, but over those who would look to that brokenness being healed in Christ. ( By the way, I am not talking of just one incident, or from just my own denomination)
I love the way Vatican II puts it in the quote above – we are linked together, all who are reborn in Christ. It’s a beginning, a start to seeing us all linked at the altar, the foretaste of the feast to come. Our baptism gives the vision of what should be, what will be in Heaven, and yes, something that should be worked towards here. Not dismissed with a – well that is them, and this is us mentality.
I also love the way the Lutheran confessions, in a section that deals with those (the Roman Catholic hierarchy at that time – but equally applicable to divisive types of today) describe the church as a child would, “the believers and sheep who hear the voice of their Shepherd.”
I read those words and hear the voice of Jesus, “take and eat, this is my Body, given for you” and “take, drink of this all of you, it is my blood of the new covenant, shed for you for the forgiveness of sin”
There is our goal, to hear the voice of the Shepherd, to grow in unity until we realize that we are one in Christ. Just as He and the Father are One. What begins in baptism is our goal, our desire, just as it is His. Complete unity, because He has lovingly healed the brokenness, giving us new life.
It is that unity in Christ, the miraculous unity of baptism in Christ, that gives me joy. I look forward to sharing in that unity tomorrow, as people gather here, as they hear of the peace promised and given by the Lamb of God, as they commune together with God. As we deal with division, as we deal with brokenness and separation, may we never forget that His feast is what we were re-born to share.
His love, His unity, trusting in Him and His work.
Lord, Have mercy on us all.
(1) Catholic Church. (2011). Decree on Ecumenism: Unitatis Redintegratio. In Vatican II Documents. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
(2) Tappert, T. G. (Ed.). (1959). The Book of Concord the confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (p. 614). Philadelphia: Mühlenberg Press.
The Method That Works When Dealing With Evil…
Devotional Thought of the Day:
No doubt about it! God is good— good to good people, good to the good-hearted. 2 But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness. 3 I was looking the other way, looking up to the people 4 At the top, envying the wicked who have it made, 5 Who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world. 6 Pretentious with arrogance, they wear the latest fashions in violence, 7 Pampered and overfed, decked out in silk bows of silliness. 8 They jeer, using words to kill; they bully their way with words. 9 They’re full of hot air, loudmouths disturbing the peace. 10 People actually listen to them—can you believe it? Like thirsty puppies, they lap up their words.
11 What’s going on here? Is God out to lunch? Nobody’s tending the store. 12 The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches 13 I’ve been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me? 14 A long run of bad luck, that’s what— a slap in the face every time I walk out the door.
5 If I’d have given in and talked like this, I would have betrayed your dear children. 16 Still, when I tried to figure it out, all I got was a splitting headache... 17 Until I entered the sanctuary of God. Then I saw the whole picture: 18 The slippery road you’ve put them on, with a final crash in a ditch of delusions. 19 In the blink of an eye, disaster! A blind curve in the dark, and—nightmare! 20 We wake up and rub our eyes… . Nothing. There’s nothing to them. And there never was. 21 When I was beleaguered and bitter, totally consumed by envy, 22 I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox in your very presence. 23 I’m still in your presence, but you’ve taken my hand. 24 You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then you bless me. 25 You’re all I want in heaven! You’re all I want on earth! 26 When my skin sags and my bones get brittle, GOD is rock-firm and faithful. 27 Look! Those who left you are falling apart! Deserters, they’ll never be heard from again. 28 But I’m in the very presence of God— oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord GOD my home. God, I’m telling the world what you do! Psalm 73:1-28 (MSG)
212 That Christ you see is not Jesus. At best it is only the pitiful image that your blurred eyes are able to form … Purify yourself. Make your sight cleaner with humility and penance. Then the pure light of love will not fail you. And you will have perfect vision. The image you see will really be his: Jesus himself. (1)
Evil.
We encounter it daily.
You see it as the acts of ISIS are discussed, we hear that some think that police are evil, or politicians, or maybe someone close to you. Someone who has betrayed you, or disappointed you. We wonder why there can’t be anything done against evil, whether it is some physical action that stops their work, or a physical judgment in which we can all rejoice.
Psalm 73 looks at this issue, why those who are evil can appear to be successful, we might even dare use the word blessed. But the psalmist can’t even bring himself to ask publicly that question. To do so would betray the people he is set aside to lead in worship and praise of God. But this existence of evil, is too much, and that they succeed, and are not punished, there is no logic to this. There is only questioning, and even that we feel seems to be wrong. For to question, does that mean we don’t trust God?
The answer is not found in words, they fail.
It is found in the sanctuary, the Holy Place, the temple of God. It is found as we realize the presence of God in our lives, in the comfort His presence brings.
That is why I am so completely overwhelmed when we commune, as we receive the Body and Blood of Christ. There is something that is not only humbling, as the Psalmist mentions, but healing as well, Comforting, Assuring, building our confidence in a way that goes beyond words. God, giving Himself, to rid us not only of the evil in the world, but the evil in our lives.
His promise, His action, His death on the cross – giving His life, for us. Letting His blood be poured out, so the nations could be reconciled.
As St. Josemaria says, it is then, our vision cleared by seeing Christ, humble and at peace, we can turn evil over to God. We know His protection, His peace.
We can even find rest, knowing that He is Lord, and Savior, and the One who loves us.
So if you have to deal with evil, at whatever level. Look to Christ – let Him cleanse you.
He will.
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 604-607). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Black Saturday: Where His ENTIRE church finds Unity… His Grave
Devotional Thought of the Day:
20 “I pray not only for them, but also for those who believe in me because of their message. 21 I pray that they may all be one. Father! May they be in us, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they be one, so that the world will believe that you sent me. John 17:20-21 (TEV)
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as there is one hope to which God has called you. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 there is one God and Father of all people, who is Lord of all, works through all, and is in all. Ephesians 4:4-6 (TEV)
2 Certainly not! We have died to sin—how then can we go on living in it? 3 For surely you know that when we were baptized into union with Christ Jesus, we were baptized into union with his death. 4 By our baptism, then, we were buried with him and shared his death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from death by the glorious power of the Father, so also we might live a new life. Romans 6:2-4 (TEV)
I spent much of last night in turmoil, not fully asleep, but hounded by grief.
Grief caused by the brokenness of the church. A Church that is not just divided, but shattered, and continually reacts to the brokenness with fear instead of faith, loathing each other, rather than loving each other, harassing each other, rather than praying for healing. I see other Christians, including pastors and priests, leading people away from trusting in God, to rail at politicians instead of respecting them and praying for them. I see the self-righteousness that brings all this division, the condescension of Christians claiming to be holier than the world, and groups of Christians holier than another. (and catch myself at it too… none are immune to this sin)
I wonder what happened to the church described in the Creeds Where is the church that is one, that is holy (set apart to God), catholic (united in our trust of God) and apostolic (sent, even as Christ was sent)
I grieve over what I saw yesterday, and today. I wonder what those who are being martyred in other parts of the world would think, if they see what divides us. I long to see the church be one, and yet, am so driven away by pathos, the outpouring of negative emotion, that I desire to no longer be a part of it.
It is black saturday. The day without the Lord, the day He found rest in the tomb.
The day we should find our unity.
Not because we are without Him, by no mean, we weren’t on the day after he was betrayed, beaten, mocked, abandoned, crucified.
We aren’t without Him on Black Satruday, when He lies entombed, crushed by sin.
We are there with Him, drawn into Him during His crucifixion, drawn into Him by the love poured out like a flood, united to His death in our Baptism – as Paul says.
Drawn into Him, called, gathered, united to Him in His death.
That is where we find unity, that is where we become one church, where we find the one faith, where God is our God, working through all who have been granted repentance, who have come to trust in Him, who know His mercy and love. You can’t be divided from Him, and as we die to ourselves as we are united with Him, our pride, our anger, our angst, our hurt dies as well.
If we are to be a resurrected people, a transformed people, a converted people, a delivered people, we each have to realise we are there with and that others are as well.
Unity as a church, no THE CHURCH, starts in the tomb.
Does that mean we will all get along, that sin won’t creep into the church, that we will all agree on every article of our faith? No, we won’t. That’s not what is promised, yet. But the healing that will be found will overwhelm that sin, the sin already paid for, and allow our hearts to embrace those whom Christ has embraced.
There is hope, even when we are in the grave, a hope we will realize tomorrow, as we exclaim, He is risen!
We are united in that as well, for if we die with Him, if we are united to Him in His death, we will be united to Him as we are raised to a new life with Him.
I am depressed today, mourning for a broken church. Yet, in the grace with Christ, I know there is Hope for tomorrow. I know there is hope for His Church.
For we will be one, holy, catholic and apostolic church. His death, burial and resurrection guarantee it.
Do We Serve God, or Does God Serve Us?
Devotional Thought fo the Day:
18 And I told them how God had been with me and helped me, and what the emperor had said to me. They responded, “Let’s start rebuilding!” And they got ready to start the work. Nehemiah 2:18 (TEV)
1 Don’t let your life be sterile. Be useful. Blaze a trail. Shine forth with the light of your faith and of your love. With your apostolic life wipe out the slimy and filthy mark left by the impure sowers of hatred. And light up all the ways of the earth with the fire of Christ that you carry in your heart. (1)
When elected President of the United States of America, John F. Kennedy directed the citizens of the USA to ask themselves a question. Occasionally, I’ve heard that question adapted to the church, especially when a church is low on funds or wants to start a new ministry. The adapted question reads something like this:
Ask not what God can do for you, ask what you can do for God (or at least for His church).
When I hear such motivational malarky (an old-fashioned word for bullshit) it irritates me slightly. Okay, more than slightly. Not because God’s people shouldn’t be active in ministry, they must be. But the reason for such activity is not to do something for God as if to earn His favor. Or to do something for God, as if to repay some debt. Our living as Christians isn’t something that has to be manipulated.
I’ve heard a similar question asked about church. Do we go to church to serve God or to let God serve us. Matter of fact, there are great debates about this, with judgment being poured out on those who think otherwise. Both sides take up their positions, prepare their defenses, pump up their disciples, and start tossing cliche’s and one-line statements of wisdom.
It is the same question – do we serve, or are we served? Is it all about pleasing God, or do we expect to be made happy.
It is neither. Both sides of the question have overlooked the obvious.
it is not about who does what for whom.
It is about communion. It is about knowingly living in the presence of God. As Nehemiah wrote, “God had been with me”. as St Josemaria wrote, “with the fire of Christ you carry in your heart” For them, what is to be done pours out of that intimate relationship with God. Not from demanded obedience, but from hearing Him, (Greek and Hebrew scholars who are struggling with this, go look up the word for hear.)
Whether it is giving a thirsty man a cup of cold water, buying a homeless lady breakfast, visiting that person who is bedbound and can’t live a normal life, or kneeling and receiving the body and blood of Jesus, given and shed for you; our actions aren’t about who benefits. it’s not a God scratches our back, we will scratch His.
It’s about walking with God, about rejoicing in His presence. To use an old phrase, it is about abiding with Christ or practicing the presence of God. (Except it isn’t practice!)
It is a Heavenly Father, walking through life with His children, even when our Father has to pick us up and carry us, because the road seems too tiring, to long.
So don’t ask what God will do for you, or what you will do for God. Don’t go to church expecting to be served, or struggling with whether your service will be acceptable.
Simply be in the presence of God, enjoy His company, let Him be your Father and know you are His children.
The rest? It will become obvious.
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 171-173). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Need Something to Sacrifice For Lent? Give up Your Isolation!
Devotional Thought of the Day:
19 And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart, 20 so they will obey my decrees and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God. Ezekiel 11:19-20 (NLT)
933 Jesus, may my poor heart be filled from the ocean of your Love, with such big waves that can cleanse me and expel from me all my wretchedness. Pour those most pure and ardent waters of your Heart into mine, until my desires for loving you are fully satisfied and I can no longer hold back my response to your divine ardour. My heart shall surely break then, dying for Love, and pour out that Love of yours which, in irresistible and most fertile, life-giving torrents, will reach other hearts that will beat through contact with these living waters, with the pulsating force of Faith and Charity. (1)
At all times and in every race God has given welcome to whosoever fears Him and does what is right. God, however, does not make men holy and save them merely as individuals, without bond or link between one another. Rather has it pleased Him to bring men together as one people, a people which acknowledges Him in truth and serves Him in holiness. He therefore chose the race of Israel as a people unto Himself. (2)
For many of us, this is the last day before the beginning of Lent.
I’ve already seen people posting on FaceBook and Twitter the things they are going to give up. The usual list appears, chocolate, sugar, alcohol, they’ll read the Bible where they used to watch their favorite television shows, they’ll give up going to the movies, using the money to help those in homeless shelters. Even some have dared say they will give up FB, or Instagram, ( maybe this explains snapchat invitations rising?
People are willing to give up things that do them damage, to attempt to control the cravings that so easily entice them, To enter into a time of discipline, to make sacrifices. Those that have been at it for a while also know they need to replace these things with better habits. If they do not the temptation will rise, and failure will happen like it did with our New Year’s resolutions.
I have a suggestion if you are still looking for something. Even if you have already decided on something, consider this as well. It will be tough; it will be challenging. It will cost you something you are not that willing to give up.
Give up your isolation, your individuality. Give up your defensive walls that have been so carefully erected and protect your pride and self-esteem. Get involved in people’s lives! Let them into your life. Even those with whom you struggle to get along. Talk to them, invite them to sit next to you at church, or go and sit near them. Find ways to let them into your life, and love them.
This isn’t easy, yet for those who trust in Jesus, it is His nature. It will take faith, not in your strength, not in the hope they will change, but in trusting in Jesus promise. Remembering God is with you, right there in those moments, you can depend on His promise, that all will work for good. He knows your love, He chose you, He will take care of you.
It is God’s design, it is how we are to live, not just loving God but loving His people, and all the people whom He would call His own. The words from Vatican II struck me this morning, as did St. Josemaria Escriva’s. The nature of being transformed by God’s love gives us a new heart, a heart from which His love pours out, to those around us.
So go and get involved in that Bible Study, even encourage someone to join you. Take a step of faith and take on a new ministry at church. Buy that homeless guy lunch; talk to that lady sitting by herself at the table next to you as you eat dinner with your family at a restaurant. (Even invite her to join you!)
Trust in God’s love! Know He is with you! See Him in each of those you meet! Then this sacrifice of you, will not seem like a sacrifice at all. It will be a great joy!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 3294-3298). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
(1) Catholic Church. (2011). Dogmatic Constitution on the Church: Lumen Gentium. In Vatican II Documents. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
God, Do You Really Want Me to Go Through THIS?!!?
Devotional Thought of the Day:
16 Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it. How terrible for me if I didn’t preach the Good News! 1 Corinthians 9:16 (NLT)
4 I replied, “But my work seems so useless! I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the LORD’s hand; I will trust God for my reward.” Isaiah 49:4 (NLT)
902 I didn’t think God would get hold of me the way he did, either. But, let me tell you once again, God doesn’t ask our permission to “complicate” our lives. He just gets in: and that’s that! (1)
As I look at my life, there is a strong temptation to question God’s wisdom, or perhaps His sanity.
Not that doing so is a good practice, please note, I said temptation. And like Jeremiah, and Isaiah, I sometimes struggle with why God would lead me the way he has, and like Isaiah, I wonder if I will ever get to see the results.
I preach about God’s faithfulness, and I know it is true. I have seen it over and over in my life. Yet there are times where the attitudes of Jeremiah and Isaiah aren’t just interesting passages, they are words I think, and say. Lord, really? Couldn’t you find someone who could do this better? Couldn’t you find someone with a stronger faith, who was more patient? Couldn’t preaching about the peace of Christ be more… peaceful?
Those times don’t last for months, but they can flow from one day into another. They never get past Sunday, or the Wednesdays during Advent and Lent where we share in the Eucharist, where we receive the Body and Blood given and shed for us.
I wonder what would happen if every pastor was honest about those times where God “complicates” their lives? How would their congregations react? Would they be supportive? Would they dismiss the pastor? Would they work harder in the harvest fields? Would it strengthen their faith, or weaken it? What about their peers in ministry, how would they see them?
Looking back, after most of those days when I feel like a Jeremiah, or an Isaiah, I find that God has been at work in ways beyond anything I can share here. I can see why being brought low in Spirit is a blessing, why being humbled is part of the cross we bear.
I’ve learned to just let the emotions run for a little while, and then remember the hope we have in Christ Jesus. That He will sustain us, that the peace and sustenance we’ve been given. That is why the Liturgy fo the Lord’s Supper becomes so much a blessing.
As we sing the sanctus, to realize we are singing of His holiness with the whole company of heaven, including Jeremiah and Isaiah. God proved faithful to them, and the promises He made through them, and He will be to us.
As we sing the Agnus Dei, to realize the Body and Blood of Christ is there, so He has been given for us, to take away our sins, to have mercy on us, to grant us peace…..
As we hear a welcome to the table, as we take and eat, and take and drink, we realize again that we dwell in Him, and that He has bound us to Him in the New Covenant.
As we (a Lutheran practice) leave the altar, we sing the song of Simeon, and realize that He is our salvation, that He is our light and life, and the glory of His people.
I can’t stop the days like Jeremiah’s, I can’t diminish the feelings like Isaiah. Not on my own. Yet walking with Christ, there is hope, and there is a peace so blessed, I can take the time to pour out my heartache, to give Him frustrations and my doubts. His peace allows for such blessed times.
I pray this for you as well, that you would realize the peace, and let it strengthen you to do so, whether you are ordained or not, for we all are His priests. We all serve, and He will use us in places beyond anythings we could imagine, or want.
AMEN
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 3193-3195). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Truth Building Confidence
Truth Giving Confidence
Titus 1:1-9
† IHS †
May these words reveal the grace of God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, the grace that assures you of His love, His mercy and His desire that you spend forever with Him!
Eucharist Dismissal
As people prepare to stand up from this rail, having received the very Body and Blood of Christ in the sacrament we call the Lord’s Supper, or the Eucharist, or simply Communion,
I follow a pattern, words long used in churches from here to Siberia, and on every continent, and even heart in space.
May this precious body and blood of Christ, strengthen your faith unto everlasting life. Depart in Peace.
I may adjust it a little here, and there, to match what God has revealed to us this day, through the readings, the worship, and the prayers. For example this day, it may sound like,
Dear friends, may this precious body and blood of our Lord, shed for you, build your confidence in God’s desire and promise to share eternity with you… and until that day, He will sustain you in His peace1
For what the Lord’s Supper does, it builds and strengthens our confidence in God. That is how the Lord’s Supper teaches you about Christ. For He is the truth that will give you the confidence that you have an eternity to spend with God.
That is the faith that Paul shared with Titus, his true son in the faith, and it the trust we have and share, in Christ Jesus.
It is the message we have been entrusted with sharing, as we journey through this life, as God’s promise of living with Him forever comes more into view.
The Guarantee of the Promise
As I look at scriptures like those we’ve heard and sung today, as you consider the words, you realize that the core message is a promise. A promise that we’ve been entrusted with, all of us, to share with the world. Chris and I can lecture for hours, days, weeks (?) on the promises of scripture that God has made. How He has bound Himself to those promises. That’s what the covenants are about, every agreement God makes with man in scripture.
They all boil down to one simple concept, to one promise. It is about the parties to the covenant. Not SuperBowl parties, but the participants, the community established and bound together in the covenant. Think about marriage, there are many promises made, many facets of it, but what really matters is the husband and wife are together, bound together as one, So it is with Biblical covenants.
Every covenant God has made has looked forward to one thing, that God would make us His people, that we would realize He is our Father, our God. That is the promise! We would live forever with Him, in that incredible relationship.
This is a incredible promise! Because we have done things that would ruin the relationship. We’ve done things we can justly be blamed for, that we may still struggle with guilt over. As we’ve confessed, we’ve not done things right, we haven’t loved our neighbors, or even our family.
Yet God’s promise, seen at the cross, is that sin won’t keep you away from Him. Yet those who lead in the church need to encourage you to live godly lives, and show those who oppose God’s ways where they are wrong. We’ve got to live lives that don’t compromise that – that testify that we believe God’s rule is the rule…..
But we always have to reveal that God will not just wipe us out, pour His wrath upon us, but rather will reach out to us, reveal His message of love, to reveal the promise – you are His people… He is your God.. forever!
At this right Time, it is revealed….
That is what was revealed at the cross! That is where Jesus died for all our sins to be forgiven. That we don’t have to live with anxiety caused by guilt or shame, where we don’t have to live, bound by resentment.
As we take this bread, this body of Christ and eat it, we know it was given for us. As we take this cup, this blood of Christ, we know His life was given, in order that all the debt of sin would be paid.
That this precious Body and Blood of our Lord and Savior, is given to strengthen our faith, this faith that all who share, Paul, Titus, you and I share. His body, given and shed for us, the promise of spending time with God, forever.
Agnus Dei / Nunc Dimitis
As we get closer to communion, as you rise from the rails and return to you seats, hear the words of we sing before and after…..
This is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the World… Grant us peace!
and
I have seen my salvation….a light to guide the gentiles, the hope of all Israel.
As you do, may you faith, your confidence that comes from knowing the Truth, the Truth about God our Father, revealed it Christ grow, and may you realize His peace.
AMEN.
