God's Economy

The epistle of Ephesians is historically thought to be written by Paul, although scholars have questioned it. However, this letter (whoever wrote it) is no doubt a letter written to a people in conflict, a community in crisis. Therefore, the overwhelming theme of Ephesians is Unity.

So, it’s telling that right out of the gate in this first letter (Ephesians 1:3) the writer begins by reminding them that God has already given them everything they need.

This theme isn’t an anomaly in scripture (2 Peter 1:3). This is God’s Economy..

We have everything we need.

a.    We live out of a source of God’s abundance versus the myth of scarcity.

b.    We can’t be deceived by the culture of scarcity that sears our consciousness with thoughts of lack and insufficiency.

c.     When we live out of scarcity, we fight, we bicker, we think we have to tear others down, in order to build ourselves up. 

There is no need to fight over the crumbs, when our God is the King who invites us to sit at the table.

God’s economy is steeped in ENOUGH.

There is ENOUGH in the world.

a.    There is enough in this world. There is enough time, enough resources, enough compassion, enough love.

b.    There is enough and we are enough.

c.     None are deserving…but every one of us is worthy.

God’s abundance is all around us…

a.    The answers to our questions are within us, the resources we need to accomplish the goal has already been given to us.

b.    We just have to Open Our Eyes to See it.

So, instead of looking for excuses for why it can’t be done, we must be willing to dream big and allow God to fill us with a vision, and then look for ways to get it done.

"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.” 

~Shel Silverstein

"Living Out Loud" Pastor's Steve Meditation for August 30

Introduction

Pastor Ray began this series on “Tending the New Creation” by reminding us of Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthian church that, in Christ, there is a new creation; everything has become new!  Today, we will continue to follow Paul as he exhorts the Corinthian church to live into this new life.  

Paul has had a rocky history with this church, which he founded.  Through his surviving correspondence with them (we know there were other letters because he refers to them), he has described them as a contentious, carping group that include a few wealthy members who disregard the needs of the poor members, even to the point of eating the best food and getting drunk when they come together, before the poorer members can get there.  In Second Corinthians, it appears that the relationship between Paul and the Corinthians has become strained and Paul is at pains to defend his ministry.  In the course of describing his own ministry, he puts it in the context of his understanding of what God is doing in the world through Christ.  In Chapter 5, he says that God as reconciled the world to himself through Christ.  Today we will read Chapter 6.  We will read today’s scripture in the contemporary translation of The Message.  So, as Paul might say in his affectionate exasperation with the Corinthians:  Pay Attention! as we read 2 Corinthians 6:1-13.

Meditation

There has been much attention given this summer to relations between black Americans and the police.  And rightfully so.  The prevalence of social media has exposed pervasive practices of prejudice and oppression that many of us in privileged communities had thought were only aberrations. There are two common responses.  Both are dualistic, us-them, responses.  Some respond by putting the blame on the black community.  But those with eyes to see and ears to hear can not accept that.  There is a second, common dualistic, us-them, response; this time putting the blame on law enforcement while we try to stand back and separate ourselves from those behaviors and attitudes.  In this response, we pretend that law enforcement (or those “bad” departments or officers of law enforcement) have nothing to do with “us.”  But officers in law enforcement are simply us in uniform.  Reform is required, but it is not simply reform of law enforcement; it is reform of societal values and biases that are reflected by some in law enforcement.  If you are of a certain age, you will recall the old Pogo cartoon strip; and perhaps, in particular, one strip in which Pogo stands looking at the reader and says, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” 

 

On Friday, August 21, the Dallas Morning News reprinted an article from the New York Times which they, somewhat questionably, included in the “personal finance” section.  This article, without the angst and drama and emotion of events that make the headlines, is still chilling.  The title of the article was, “College degree isn’t equalizer among races.”  The article cited a recent Federal Reserve report that found, as expected, that people with college degrees fared better economically than similar people without degrees.  This was consistent across all demographics.  Hispanics with a college degree were better off than hispanics without a college degree.  Blacks with a college degrees were better off than blacks without a college degree.  Whites and Asians with a college degree were better off than whites and Asians without a college degree.  However, if the data is compared across races, the picture is troubling.  In the period under study, from 1992 to 2013 (which included three recessions, including the severe 2007-2009 downturn), the median net worth of whites with a degree increased about 86 percent.  Asians did even better, gaining nearly 90 percent.  In that same period, the median net worth of blacks with a college degree not only did not match the increase of whites and Asians, but actually declined nearly 56 percent.  The report’s carefully worded conclusion is that “higher education alone cannot level the playing field.”  What the authors apparently were not willing to say is that, for the vast number of people of color, there is a pervasive pattern of discrimination and oppression within our society that no amount of individual effort at “bettering oneself” can overcome.  What it did not say is that pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps can only get you so far when factors unacknowledged by the majority culture are standing on your feet and holding you down by the shoulders.

This is not the issue that the apostle Paul is addressing in Second Corinthians.  However, his approach is instructive.  In Second Corinthians 5, leading up to today’s reading, Paul says, “From now on - meaning since the death and resurrection of Christ - we regard no one from a human point of view.”  In The Message, this is translated as, “Because of this, we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look” - the human point of view.  Paul goes on to say that, “in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself.”  These are not limited statements.  Paul does not say “from now on we regard no fellow believers from a human point of view” or, in the Message version, “We don’t evaluate fellow believers by what they have or how they look.”  What Paul says is that from now on we regard NO ONE from a human point of view; we don’t evaluate ANYONE by what they have or how they look,”  because, Paul says, in Christ God has reconciled the world to himself, has put the world square with himself.  We are all square with - equal before - God.

In essence, Paul says, all people are of equal value before God because of Christ.  Christ died so that all people and all of creation are reconciled to God.  Because of God’s action, because of God’s love, all people have equal value.  There is no rational, humanistic worldview that can consistently support a claim that all people are of equal value.  Only a worldview that is based in the love of God for all people and all of creation, as evidenced in the life and death of Christ includes that recognition for all.  [There is a good, if difficult, book study topic there if anyone is interested.]  So, Paul says, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old has been made new.  And having been made new, we are called to live, not in the old worldly reality, but in God’s new reality that all people are of equal value and are to be reconciled - made square - with one another.  We are called to act toward each other in light of the value that each one of us is given by being equal recipients of God’s love; of each one of us being one for whom Christ died.  

Further, in Paul’s view, this is not merely a moral imperative:  that we are being told to treat others fairly.  If we choose not to live in this reality, then, Paul says, we accept the grace of God in vain, we squander this marvelous new life God has given us.  If we are in Christ, we can live in this world, this new creation that God has given us, in which all people are of equal value to God - and all of creation is of value to God -  or turn our back on it.  Either way is a way of being in the world -  a practice of living in the world.  If we choose to live in this new reality that God has created, we are square with one another - we treat one another as being of equal value - because that is the way the world in Christ is.  For those in Christ, sin and evil are the pretense that we can live outside of God’s reality.  

Last week, we looked at Mark 6.  We talked about the parable of the mustard seed.  Jesus asked, “To what can we compare the kingdom of God.  It is as a mustard seed that grows into a great shrub and provides shelter for the birds of the air to make their nests in.”  We remembered that Pastor Ray began this series by observing that you don’t have to tell a lion how to be a lion.  Similarly, you don’t have to tell a mustard seed how to be a mustard seed.  When it is planted, it grows.  It simply does what it was created to do.  And it does it in the context of gift:  all that it needs; soil, water, air, light - is a gift of God.  And though it uses these gifts for its own growth into a mustard plant - a shrub - it also returns gifts to the world, as Jesus so neatly demonstrates with reference to the birds of the air being given shade to nest in, and we would now add, returning oxygen to the air and providing an abundance of seed for the feeding and enjoyment of other of God’s creatures.  It receives by gift and it returns by gift.  The kingdom of God is gift: all the way down and all the way through.  

And then we observed that human beings, as creatures of God, share in that same potential - to live “like” the kingdom of God.  I characterized our failure to do so fully as one of “distraction.”  Because we are self-aware, we see our need to grow and flourish; but we have difficulty seeing beyond that; we become distracted with receiving God’s gifts (though we may not acknowledge them as such) and fail to live into returning gifts.  Our concern for self distracts us from our natural and intended role not only as the receiver of gift but as creatures that return gift for gift; using that which we have been given, our reason, our talents, our faculties, to tend the new creation, including our brothers and sisters.  

And I suggested that we needed a practice of living that pulled us out of our distraction with self.  In Paul’s terms, if we are in Christ, we need to open up our lives to the new creation.  

At the center of the parable of the mustard seed was Jesus’ invitation to see differently.  What Paul sees is that, through the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus, God was making the world different.  Paul sees this as new creation and he calls the Corinthians, as brothers and sisters in Christ, to live into this new reality by squaring themselves with one another.  Paul was dealing with specific problems in a specific group of people; and he tailored his message to them.  But if scripture is to have meaning for us, it must be interpreted in light of our problems in our context.   In our context, we might say that we have been reconciled to God and in that reconciliation, we are released from our bondage to self, the paradigm of the old worldview - and called to be reconciled with - squared with - one another.  We are released from being oppressors of the poor and oppressors of the planet.  We are released - redeemed - to live into the life that God has always intended for us.  And in the life and ministry of Jesus, we see what we are meant to be; who we truly are if we will live into it.  I started this morning with a specific concern because it it has been lifted up for us by current events. 

Black men and women are dying on our streets and in our jails because they do not receive the same treatment that most of us receive.  Black men are incarcerated at a rate disproportionate to the crimes that are committed in comparison to the rest of us. Black men and women who hold college degrees - who have earned the credentials that we, as a society, have established as our bar to economic success - are denied that success disproportionately.  Is it any wonder that many black children grow up without hope?  They cannot see that they are part of the kingdom of God where gifts are shared profligately.  They cannot see that there is a new creation where all people have equal value and black lives matter.  And they cannot see it because not enough of us have lived it and made it visible.

Too often our lives are small and circumscribed, structured to protect us form anything uncomfortable or unfamiliar.  We are self-protective.  And I acknowledge that I am as guilty as any.  Paul says, “The smallness that you feel comes from within you.  Your lives aren’t small but you are living them in a small way.  Open up your lives to the new creation; to God’s reality.  Live openly and expansively.” 

Paul declares that all things are made new in Christ.  You, me, and all of creation.  The kingdom of God is real and it is present.  We are called to live lives that make it visible.  

We don’t know how the Corinthians responded to Paul.  Quite honestly, if you cannot see the new creation, if you do not have faith in the kingdom of God, his litany of hard times, tough times, bad times; of being beaten, jailed and mobbed; of working hard, working late, working without eating (sounds like a corporate job); of being blamed, slandered, distrusted, and ignored, is not very appealing.  It certainly is not designed to appeal to our sense of self-interest and self-protection.  

It is not easy to live in the kingdom.  It was not easy for Jesus.  It was not easy for Paul.  We have to let go of ego (no mean feat for Paul!), of exclusive self-interest, of self-preoccupation.  We have to allow the Spirit, the incarnational Christ within each of us, to govern our lives and our behavior.  It is a way of living that we have to grow into as we grow in faith and immerse ourselves in God’s presence.  This is a radical idea.  It was a radical idea then and it is a radical idea now.  We may squirm because letting go of our preoccupation with the self is frightening.  We may also squirm because we have, perhaps, lost the ability to distinguish between “passion” and “fanaticism.”  What sort of Christians will willingly endure the scorn of others for the sake of faith; for the sake of living a life that exhibits the reality of the kingdom?  Extremists.  Fanatics.  We have become frightened of passionate faith, faith that engenders our total trust.  Sometimes we seem to have, at best, a gospel of moderation. 

But the good news that Paul relates is that we don’t have to change the world.  God, through Christ, has already done that; is already doing that.  We, who are in Christ, simply have to live in that reality in a way that makes it visible to others. We need to live out loud.  That does not require fanaticism.  It requires passion; a passionate love of God and of God’s creation, including all people who are created by God and who Jesus died to redeem - and that is all of us.

And we don’t have to do it alone.  It is why God calls us together as church.  To learn from one another, to support one another, to rely on Jesus’ promise that wherever two or more are gathered in his name, he is there.

Now, Paul says, is the right time to listen.  Now is always the right time to listen; the day to be helped to live “out loud” lives that recognize that we are a new creation, released, redeemed, to live lives that are reconciled - made square - with all God’s children; lives that make the kingdom of God visible to all God’s children.

May it be so.  

"Planting with Care" ~Pastor Steve's Meditation for August 23

Today’s reading is Mark 4:26-34

Seeds and growth.  Birds and shelter.  These are the elements of the parables.  In the first sermon in this series on Tending the Creation, Pastor Ray reminded us that you don’t have to tell a lion how to be a lion.  You don’t have to tell a giraffe how to be a giraffe.  And today, you don’t have to tell a mustard seed how to be a mustard seed.  Plant a seed and it grows.  You don’t have to tell it to send down roots, to send up a stalk, to branch out, to leaf out.  You don’t have to tell it to gather nutrients from the soil, to transport the nutrients to the leaves, to gather CO2 from the air, to gather in the sunlight and transform all of these into new growth.  You don’t have to tell it to provide shade for the birds to make their nests in.  You don’t have to tell it to return oxygen to the air; to produce seeds in great abundance so that there are enough for other creatures to eat, use and enjoy.  The mustard seed simply does what it was created to do.  And it is all gift.  Seed, soil, air, water, sunshine.  Shade, oxygen and back to seed.  Gift all the way down and all the way through.  It receives by gift and it returns by gift.

For the seed, that potential is there from the beginning.  It is a natural part of how it was created.  And that, says Jesus, is like the kingdom of God.  Although we may not be intended to take these stories literally, Jesus’ stories are always literally down to earth.  Seeds, mustard plants, fig trees, planting, harvesting, birds of the air.  Common stories; ordinary people doing everyday things.  Hardly an exalted vision of the kingdom of God.  And, of course, that is the point!  Jesus puts the incarnational focus not on himself, but on those around him; on the world around him.  To what do we compare the kingdom of God?  It is like a mustard seed.  The kingdom of God is like the most common things around us - that is how they were created, that is why they were created; if we have eyes to see and ears to hear.

So what does that say about human beings and the kingdom of God?  There is a strand of Christian thought, from Augustine through Calvin, and down to modern interpreters, that says that human beings do not have the potential of a mustard seed; or at least they argue that, if humans had it originally, it has been corrupted.  This strand of thought holds that there is a concept called “original sin” that is irreversible.  The best that can be happen is that God will look past our permanently corrupted nature and will accept us anyway, which he graciously does for some because of Christ.

There has always been another strand of Christian thought, often less prominent, that says that human beings are created in the image of God and that nothing that we have done or could do, can change the potential that God creates inside of us.  

We may, and I, at least, usually do, fail to realize that potential, but it always exists.  But if God created us with such potential, why can we not be like the mustard seed?  Unlike a mustard seed, God also creates us with consciousness, with awareness.  We are consciously aware of our surroundings and of our ability to manipulate our surroundings.  But we are not solely aware of our surroundings, we are also self-aware.  In our self-awareness, we look for meaning - for a full life - in what those around us are doing.  What we see is a constant striving after material things.  This is natural.  It is even, to an extent, necessary.  We do have to make our way in the world.  And we have been given the ability to make choices about how we do that.  But because we are self-aware - focused on the self - what we perceive is that self-interest governs.  We know, somewhere within our heart and our soul, that we are created for more than satisfying the needs of the self; but we are distracted and that is not what we see and hear.  We know that we are not self-sufficient, but  we are distracted and that is not what we see and hear. 

We have even developed explanations for why the interests of the self are our highest calling.  Modern economic theory says that the cumulative effect of each of us, pursuing our own self-interest, will lead to the achievement of the greatest possible common good.  In a world without God - and that is the world that many now believe we live in - that may be true.  If there is no God, then self-interest may be the only reliable principle around which we can organize our common life.  And in a world without God, it may be the best we can do to maximize the common good - even though it will leave out many.

I think about the story, told in the three gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, of the rich young man who came to Jesus asking what he needed to do to inherit eternal life.  Sell everything and give to the poor, Jesus told him, and follow me.  Based on this scripture, many sermons have been preached about the problem of wealth.  But maybe that is not the primary point of the story.  Maybe the point of the story is that “eternal life” - a meaningful life, a fulfilled life, a true life - is a gift.  You cannot do anything to earn or inherit a meaningful life.  That life is a life lived like a mustard seed - as gift.  All of our striving to achieve what the self wants to achieve is a distraction.  If eternal life, a meaningful life, is what you are looking for, you need to give up the preoccupation with self.  You need to let go of it.    That doesn’t mean that you do not take care of yourself; the mustard plant does what it needs to do but it is all within the context of gift.

The rich young man already had what he could gather on his own.  But he knew there was something he was missing.  He characterized that as “eternal life.”  I don’t know exactly what he meant by that, but I think Jesus is making it clear that whatever that is, it begins in this life.  And it begins by knowing that where we began and where we end is “gift.”  And if we let go of our striving to achieve on our own merits and look at what we have been given and what we have to give - we will understand that we are already part of the kingdom of God - operating under God’s economy.

There is a story about three researchers who work in the area of genetics and DNA research.  After many years, they believe that they have figured out all the secrets of life.  They are standing around talking amongst themselves and decide that they can create a human being from scratch.  So God sends an angel to them and the angel says, “So, we hear that you think you can create a human being.”  They are, of course, initially surprised, but explain their research and all the progress they have made in understanding genetic structure and they assure the angel that, yes, they can create a human being from scratch.  So the angel looks at them a minute and says, “Well, let’s see.”  So they gather all their equipment together and gather up a handful of dirt and the angel says, “No, no, no.  You have to start with your own dirt.”

It is gift all the way down and all the way through.  Before we can begin to find fulfillment in our lives, we must understand where we come from and what a gift that is.  This is not solely a Christian insight.  The Zen teacher Kobun Chino Roshi, when asked why Buddhist’s meditate, said it this way, “We sit . . . to make life meaningful.  The significance of our life is not experienced in striving to create some perfect thing.  We must simply start with accepting ourselves.  Sitting brings us back to actually who and where we are.  This can be very painful.  Self-acceptance is the hardest thing to do.  If we can’t accept ourselves, we are living in ignorance, this darkest night.  We may still be awake, but we don’t know where we are.  We cannot see.  The mind has no light.”

In this parable, Jesus is leading us to see who we are, where we come from, whose we are - and that it is all gift.  He is asking us to be self-aware in a sense different from that which we learn from watching the striving of others.  But awareness of the gift we receive is not the whole of the parable.  

Being part of the kingdom of God is not solely receiving gift.  After the mustard seed has grown and flourished, that flourishing results in gift, as well, for God’s other creatures, so neatly demonstrated by the birds.  The shrub “gifts” back; shade for the birds to make their nests in; and we would add giving life-giving oxygen back to the air and an abundance of seed that sustains and makes more pleasurable life for others.  God did not create human beings independently from the creation of the world; but as part and parcel of that creation; that we, like the mustard plant, might tend it and shelter it, including our brothers and sisters.  

But it isn’t easy.  Distraction comes easily.  We need a practice which pulls us out of our distractions.  We need a practice, not simply an intellectual understanding.  We need a practice in which we intentionally open our hearts to ourselves and God while simultaneously and intentionally opening our hearts to others and to life.

It isn’t easy - we live in physically and psychically noisy times - technologically connected, electrifying, distracting and complex.  But whether we are in a cubicle, a cafe, a kitchen, or a classroom, our lives are our principal paths and our spiritual work.  If we can turn away - you will recall that the term “repent” means turn away - if we can turn away from our distractions we are like the mystics and holy ones, walking on this altar of the earth.  

Is there such a practice of turning away?  Not just a one-time “decision” - but a continuing practice that can become part of our lives?  Buddhists call it mindfulness.  Paul calls it “praying without ceasing.”  It has always been part of the Christian life, but often felt to be reserved for contemplatives who could live away from the world.  It is not that limited.  This is practice that you won’t get solely listening to a sermon or attending a seminar. It is a practice - a way of living - that turns one toward God.  Contemplation that turns in so we can see the kingdom of God and then turns out so we can participate in the kingdom of God.  We can begin here.  We can learn and practice together.  [You will hear more about this.]

We have heard the parable, so let’s not waste time.  Let’s recognize and usher in the kingdom of God now. I know who I am.  I know who you are.  We are part of the kingdom of God.  We are like a mustard seed; planted in the soil of God’s love, nourished by the living water; inhaling the air of God’s mercy; bathed in the sunlight of God’s grace.  And all of those are taken up in our roots and through our leaves.  We grow and spread our branches and give shelter to God’s creatures.  We tend God’s creation.  This is who we are; it is who we are created to be.   And, praise God, it is glorious!  Let us together develop the eyes to see and the ears to hear.

"All in the Family"-Healing the Wounds of Our Nation

Last week we discussed healing old wounds. Today, we look at healing the wounds of our nation. What's the original sin/wound of our nation? Racism. See the link below and answer in your heart if you believe we can Tell the Truth, Abandon Ego and Fall Back into Love as a nation?

Healing Old Wounds

Mark 5:25-34

We have begun a sermon series entitled “Tending the New Creation,” during which we’ve said God makes all things new. In doing so God calls us to see things differently (including people, ourselves and our faith). However, before we can see things differently, we must first seek healing for our old wounds. Because most often we do not see things as THEY ARE, but as WE ARE. In other words, the wounds of our soul often cloud our vision and alter our interactions with others.

Let's be clear. God offers healing. Don't get me wrong, medicine is beneficial and counseling/therapy can be incredibly helpful (even lifesaving), yet in addition to those things, the power of Spirit can go beyond any other means. We can be healed, delivered and set free from the experiences that sear our soul (however shallow or traumatic). So, not that these suggestions are exhaustive, but here are my offerings for us as we seek the cool healing balm of God.

1. Tell the Truth: We must be able to recognize what “it is” without playing the continual tape of “would-have, should-have, could-have” been. We must fully come to grips with the reality of the situation, while also taking full responsibility for any way we have participated in our own suffering.
2. Let Go: Not simply let go, but let go of ego attachments. Our ego is the part of us that self-centers on our own pain, obsesses with our own needs, and takes all things personally. It's also the part of us that finds our worth in what we do, where we work, what we drive, to whom we are married, what part of town we live, where we went to school, what we wear, etc. Our healing will come when we no longer associate with external labels, but find worth in God’s love alone.
3. Fall Back: Speaking of God’s love, this is exactly from where true healing comes. We must fall back to our true self. Our true self, as Zen Masters call it, is the face we had before we were born. Some have called it the soul, others the spirit. In Hinduism, if God is the ocean, our true self is a cup of that living water. It is the indestructible “us”, the eternal part of us, the divine energy part of us, the source of our life, …simply stated, when we fall back to our true self, we are falling back to Love, for God is Love. When we live from this place, we live in connection (to God and others) and not fear (ego). This part of us is pure love…and thank God for love! Love liberates us; it is truly the healing balm that heals us, the cooling waters that set us free.

No matter what hurt or pain you have encountered. Be ye healed today! Be ye delivered! Be ye Set Free!

New Mexico Sabbatical Journal 1

Rev. Christine Ng is on sabbatical in Northern New Mexico. As the Spirit moves, she will send thoughts from her sabbatical experience.

 Here in the high desert of New Mexico, without air conditioning, I find I am more attuned to the rhythm of the day. It’s cool in the morning; a good time to walk or do other things out doors. The birds are more active, and I love to watch the hummingbirds buzzing around the feeders. It’s also when I’m more likely to see other wildlife. I tend to get up earlier here, with the sun, to take advantage of the lovely summer mornings.
 In the afternoons, the sun becomes intense, the air more still, and the heaviness of summer heat sets in. Time to rest, move more slowly. Siesta.
 Then as the sun gets lower in the horizon, the temperature begins to cool again. Back come the hummingbirds. And the bunnies. There is a second period of activity that leads into early evening. And lately, right before sunset, the coyotes have been howling, as though chanting down the son. Hauntingly beautiful.
 I find if I pay attention to this rhythm I am more at peace, more focused, and move productive. If I try to fight it, go against it’s wisdom, I am usually sorry.
 I know as the seasons change and we move from Summer into Fall, this rhythm will change. And that I must change with it, adapt. What a lesson there is in that.

 And it makes me wonder: What is (or should be) the natural rhythm of my life? How am I paying attention to that? How am I fighting it? As the seasons of my life have changed, have I adapted? Will I be willing and able to adapt as they change again?

Tending the New Creation

God is a God of “newness”.  God is a God of forward movement (which is why “progressive” Christianity always seems like an oxymoron. What other kind of Christianity can there be?). Like every other living thing, we have an inward impulse to grow! There are only two kinds of churches. Those that are growing and those that are in decline (if one is simply maintaining, they are actually dying). Therefore, when scriptures teach that we are new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), it is only an extension of the renewing, life-giving, creative power of God.

However, I do believe God requires our participation. Scriptures teach that God makes all things new (rather than God making new things). Meaning, God has the ability to take our inadequate ability and insufficient resources and breathe new life into them…but only with our faith and faithful participation. We are co-creators with God. In other words, for God to renew our lives, we must be willing to see anew or to see things differently. As Dr. Wayne Dyer says, “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

Three things, I believe our text (2 Corinthians 5:16-21) suggests we see differently, allowing us to participate in God’s new creation, both in the world and within ourselves:

1. God Calls Us to See Others Differently
• God has offered us redemption, and thereby requires us to offer that same grace and mercy to others. What if we saw all people as valuable? What if we saw others as simply doing the best they can with what they have? What if we believed hurting people simply hurt other people? What kind of world would we have if we committed to offering pardon, forgiveness, grace and redemption to all, even those with whom we rabidly disagree?
2. God Calls Us to See Ourselves Differently?
• God has invested much into us, and therefore God expects a Return on God’s Investment! What if we truly loved ourselves (love thy neighbor AS thyself) and learned to forgive ourselves? What if we saw our role in God’s kingdom as significant and vital? If Christ’s ministry was to reconcile the world to God, then our ministry is to be reconciled with each other. What if we actually saw ourselves as instruments of that reconciliation…agents of God’s love in the earth?
3. God Calls Us to See Our Spirituality Differently?
• We must push past religion into relationship. Religion offers a roadmap to a faithful life, but it can also offer rigid rules, barriers, ritual and tradition that impedes. While we enjoy and even celebrate tradition and ritual, we must not be shackled by it. Instead we must prioritize relationship over religion. What if our prayer life was more like a conversation with an old friend? God calls us into intimate relationship and thereby offers a new mercy every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23). Great is God’s Faithfulness!! 

Difficult Conversations- Learnings from our Recent Diversity Series

We have recently concluded our Diversity Series, entitled "New Approaches to Old Problems," and it was a huge success! We were challenged to think critically about our nation's engagement of difference, social identities and longstanding stereotypes. As part of this series, attorney and diversity trainer Jennifer Barnes offered some guidelines (as adapted from the 2014 Social Justice Training Institute) for having difficult conversations around race, class, gender and sexuality. They are listed below. 

Read. Meditate. Share.

1. Be open and honest.
2. Speak from personal experience; use “I” statements to share thoughts and feelings.
3. Listen respectfully to learn, not to reply.
4. Share air time; encourage others to participate.
5. Be open to new and different perspectives.
6. Take risks – lean into discomfort.
7. Respect and maintain confidentiality.
8. Recognize those who have not spoken and invite them to participate.
9. Notice and name group dynamics in the moment.
10. Notice and share when you feel triggered.
11. Trust that through dialogue, we will reach deeper levels of understanding and acceptance.

I am -- We are

"I am -- We are" -- a poem based on John 15:1-8
written by the congregation during worship on May 3, 2015

I am
I am the vine
I am the branches
I am blessed
I am connected
I am loved
I am thankful
I am healthy
I am possible

We are
We are love
We are church
We are blessed
We are community
We are intertwined
We are family
We are empowered

The "Good" Old Days??

Ecclesiastes 3:1

“There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth…”

During the beginning of the year I began sharing some thoughts around change. As we enter the season of Lent I'd like to pick up and continue challenging us around the idea of change, what it means, how to do it, how to welcome it and how to benefit from it.

I think we’ve established that the wind of change is all around us. As the scripture references above, there is a season for all things and those seasons (as seasons do) have a tendency to change. In fact, God is a moving God…the Spirit doesn’t sit stagnant but “moves.” Therefore, I’ve suggested we not only cope with change but learn to embrace it.

Since this world is a movement world and God is a God of motion and progress…always working, always moving, I believe we should be spiritually attuned to the where God is moving. We NOT should pray “God bless what I am doing,” but rather, “God let me be a part of what you are blessing!”

In order to be attuned and sensitive to the movement of Spirit in life and our world, I believe we must have an appropriate relationship with the Past, Present and Future. In fact the ancient Asian philosophy of the Tao speaks to this. Lao Tzu is documented as saying:

“If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the moment.

So, for this post allow me to offer some sentiments around our relationship with the past.

1.    We Shouldn’t Romanticize the Past. We often have the tendency to wax eloquent about the “good ole days,” but if we were honest it wasn’t all that good. It was what it was. Yes, youth has its advantages and it’s easy to look back at the physical body we once had and pine for days past (but if we were honest we might admit that we could do a better job of taking care of the one we currently have). However, the wisdom we’ve gained in the meantime is much too valuable to lose. In the words of an African American Spiritual, I wouldn’t take nothing for my journey now. 

2.    We Shouldn’t Demonize the Past. We don’t romanticize the past but let’s be careful not to demonize it either. We are who we are today because of what we experienced yesterday. We should avoid the ‘woulda-coulda-shouldas’ while reliving past mistakes and regretting decisions not made. It was it was and it is what it is! Though the past may have offered some rough times, we mustn’t waste our pain, rather we must cherish the rich lessons the past helped to teach.

3.    We Must Use the Past to Ask, Now What? Finally, it’s my experience that we have to search for ways in which the lessons of the past can be used today and into our next chapter. They may not be easily visible, but the lessons of the past can serve us as we live the present and look to the future. Life is our greatest teacher; we simply have to be willing to receive the message.

So, as we look toward Lent and how we might allow the gospel story to transform us in new and exciting ways, I encourage you to keep these ideas in mind as we embrace the wind of the Spirit and the change it brings!

Love ya!

Pastor Ray

"Bonds of Freedom"

I will pick up our conversation about change next time, but for those who asked, my notes from Sunday's sermon (1/25).  NOTE: I don't preach from manuscript, so these are just my "notes".

Blessings!
Pastor Ray

Today we continue our series, based upon the book, The Holy Intimacy of Strangers by Sarah York. Within that theme I’d like to lift up the subtopic of

“Bonds of Freedom”

• Scripture is full of references to encounters with strangers.

JACOB in Genesis, wrestled with the stranger (possibly and Angel, some say God) and was left with a distinct limp.

SODOM and GOMMORRAH, because of their inhospitality and cruelty to the strangers among them, their cities were destroyed.

The writer of Hebrews tell us to be careful how we treat the stranger, because we ENTERTAIN ANGELS UNAWARINGLY.

• So, in our relationship with the stranger or the strange…that which is or those who are is different from us, JESUS CHALLENGES US TO EXTEND OUR LOVE AND FRIENSHIP AND COVENANT BEYOND OUR SMALL CIRCLE OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS, as he is recorded in Matthew as saying:

“For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”

• I believe scripture is clear, there is no doubt, we are called to the Ministry of the Stranger, AND today’s text is no different. For just as in previous encounters with the stranger:

1. The encounter with the stranger is unexpected.
2. God is speaking to us through the encounter.
3. The encounter will leave us transformed, if we welcome it with love and trust.

• I believe we are meant for community. We are better together.

• However, community takes a level of trust, that breaks our hearts wide open and beckons vulnerability. To be vulnerable is to relinquish the need to control and embrace the reality of interdependence.

• Four Kinds of People in Relationships:

Dependent (Needy)
Co-Dependent (Door Mat),
Independent (2 yr. old)
Interdependent (Team work…As Dr King used to say,  “We are caught in an escapable network of mutuality”…..)

•  The alternative is to live in fear and suspicion and miss the divine encounter by creating the Other….other than ourselves, other than normative and eventually other than human.

• So, if we called into community, then we are called into relationship with strangers and those who are in some way “strange” to us. Yet, we must acknowledge in full honesty and vulnerability that we need something from them.

• This is the paradox of what Sarah York calls “The Bond of Freedom”. The spirit often works within paradox…A paradox is a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.

• As People of God we are trapped in a Bonds of Freedom. Meaning, we are tied to each other and there’s nothing we can do about because it’s really the only way we can truly be free. We are not free if we are not living into the fullness of God’s grace…and let’s make this clear: God calls us to lavish love, extravagant grace and radical hospitality!

• Sarah York points out, that to be in relationship with God is to be in covenant with our neighbor and particularly the stranger. She continues by saying the extension of ourselves to the stranger (and the strange) is a spiritual calling because not only does it root us in our common humanity, but in doing so we become mediators of the Spirit. Or in other words, we are the body of Christ, and it is through our love, our effort, our mission that the world knows the very love and care of God.  We are here to offer holy presence to the world.

• I often think that the most prevailing question, the question of the ages is “Who Matter?”….

• What if we really rejoiced with those who rejoice and mourned with those who mourn? What our hearts broke for those who are hurting and we sobbed for those who are struggling.

• What if we truly saw our freedom and life and livelihood intricately connected to all people…whether they looked like us, talked like us, believed like us, acted like us, lived like us …or not?What if we cast our nets of community and love and inclusion and wellbeing to ALL of God’s people?

• What if we, once and for all, answered that age-old question…”Who Matters” with the resounding response…EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US??!! 

The Spirit "Moves"

In my last blog post I began a conversation about change. Change is all around us and in fact is inevitable. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus was the first to say, the only thing that is constant is change. So, whether we agree with it or not, understand it or not, or want it or not, everything must change. If this is so, then the ball is in our court. If change is inevitable, we must ask how we should not only cope with it, but be helpful participants in the flow or momentum of change rather than obstacles to progress.

Let's get one thing clear, God is a movement God. God moves. The Spirit doesn't sit stagnant, but even in our description of the work of the Holy Spirit, we are fond to say that the Spirit "moves" (which is why I find the term "progressive Christian" a bit redundant...what other kind of Christian can there be?) A church, a business, an organization, a family, a person, is either progressing or digressing. We’re either getting better or bitter, we're marching onward and forward or we’re falling behind. In life there’s no such thing as coasting.

Let's also be clear that it’s important to note that not all change is progress. So, I’m not simply advocating change for change sake. However I believe it’s incumbent upon us to recognize the difference, to be spiritually attuned enough to discern the zeitgeist or spiritual wind of God moving.

To do this, I'd like to suggest that we must have appropriate relationships with the past, present and future.  

Not to make this post too long, I'll pause here but in the next post I'll look at the past and how we might use it to understand what God is doing now.

Love ya!

Pastor Ray

New Year, New...."Me"??

Awww, change is in the air! The first of every new year is always filled with chatter of resolutions, new goals, and a fierce determination to do that thing that we've been putting off for too long (if you don't believe me, just go to any fitness center the first few weeks of January). However, what can actually happen (more often than maybe we'd like to admit), is our goals are derailed by the lack of attention, time, energy, resources, or will to get them done, thus leaving us disappointed and disillusioned. Sigh!

When considering this, a scripture comes to mind. In Philippians 3:13-14, Paul writes:

13 Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

One thing is for sure. Change is inevitable; it's all around us. Whether we agree with it or not, understand it or not, or want it or not, everything must change. Therefore we are faced with the challenge to either be a part of the change or fall victim to it. 

                                                                                        

I love Paul’s honesty and vulnerability in this text. He unashamedly admits that he doesn’t have it all together. But one thing he’s gotten down to a science, is the ability to let go of the past and press toward what lies ahead. For me, this means that Paul has decided not be thrown to and fro by the waves of a changing world, but instead he has chosen to be an active participant in life, engaging the change…even striving for it.  

New Year's Resolutions aren’t always good agents of positive change in our lives. While they can help us focus on areas of life we'd like to actively change, they can too often feel like a fad or trend rather than a real commitment to transformation. 

In my next few blog posts I'll use this text and offer some of my thoughts around being involved in real, lasting, positive change in our lives. I’ll also suggest ways we might embrace the change that we don’t necessarily welcome or find positive.

It’s a new year! It can also be a new you! Let’s embrace the grace and power of a loving God and let’s strive toward the mark of our high calling!

Love ya!

Pastor Ray