Smile More

He was smiling from ear to ear.  The journey home from Akron and the UMC Jurisdictional Conference was a two hour layover in Chicago on Saturday night.  The airport was busy, even packed in places.  It was jammed right in front of F4B, the departing gate for the last leg home to Des Moines arriving at 11:30 PM.  Alone in the crowd, I looked around for a friendly face among the people.  Most were anxious, some were quite angry about a Kansas City flight which had boarded and backed away only to find a mechanical problem.  The crew had brought the plane back to the gate and the people were de-boarded. 

Flight crews seem particularly unwilling to visit or be cordial while waiting for new instructions in the midst of a crowded airport.  That must be why he stood out.  He had unusual round glasses, ears that generously held up the spectacles, and a goofy smile that seemed to brighten the crowded hallway.  He was wearing a flight suit of some kind.  Without hesitation, I immediately walked over to the group and said, “Where are you guys flying tonight?”

The fellow with stripes on his sleeve downed the last half of a McDonald’s hamburger and impatiently motioned to the video board of departures.  Not surprised by the expected brush off I remember thinking, “Pilots eat at McDonald’s before they fly across the country?”  Not sure why that seemed funny to me, then a little scary, but it did. 

Undeterred, I turned to the young man with the smile and he began to talk.  First one topic and then another.  He asked me questions and seemed to be really interested in my response.  I quickly found he was the ring leader and everyone was in his conversation pit.  After a few minutes I realized I was in the midst of the flight crew with a discussion about where the new gate for their flight was going to be with all kinds of jokes and wise cracks one might expect.  I thought things like, “How did I get into this circle?  Why was I invited in? Why do these folks feel comfortable with me?”

In that conversation I found the young man with the big smile, which never left his face, was from Council Bluffs where I had served the church for ten years.  We had places and people in common.  I did not know his family directly, but I knew where he grew up and those kinds of things which engage people to one another.  We remarked that it was a small world after all.  He was not a pilot, but a highly regarded flight attendant.  It was easy to see everyone enjoyed flying with him.  And it was his smile that engaged and would not let go. 

As the crew got their new orders we said good bye and they left the area laughing and singing.  I shook my head pondering, “Could it be that easy?  Is a smile all it takes to engage even an unwilling anxious crowd?”  Freedman calls this a non-anxious presence.  I call it grace, and peace, and light all rolled into one.  I think the church needs to smile more.  Where and when do you imagine Jesus smiled? 

Matthew 28:16-20 The Message

^16-17Meanwhile, the eleven disciples were on their way to Galilee, headed for the mountain Jesus had set for their reunion. The moment they saw him they worshiped him. Some, though, held back, not sure about worship, about risking themselves totally.

^18-20Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: "God authorized and commanded me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I'll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age."

Things Change in March

Things change in March.  Just as the seasons find new direction and purpose in March, so our lives have the capacity and possibility of change every year through the season of Lent.

We find as we mature that change is a constant partner in life.   Attempts to mitigate and minimize change is perhaps or first reaction. However, a time of reflection can be helpful to calm our hearts and help us realize that this new development in our lives, once we are acclimated, may lead us to an even better path.  Lent can be just such a time or season.  Lent, this time of waiting before Easter arrives, mirrors our lives in waiting for Christ to return. Lent offers a perspective, a time to heal, a time consider the past and the future.  Lent is valuable for those who are serious about reflecting the kingdom of God in their daily lives. 

My grandmother Ruth always said March is the month of mud. And so it is, and with Lent as well.  Clear as mud at times, our path forward through the 40 days of Lent can be difficult and tiring.  And yet to stay put, hunkered down in fear of what might happen, is to live devoid of faith and hope.  The greatest of gifts; faith and hope.  They are the wonder-workers of Lent.  Let us gather in faith and look forward with hope, letting go of all fear, knowing Christ Jesus, our goal and partner, will not disappoint, will not leave us orphaned in the cold mud of March.  Things change in March.  John 14.

Ode to My Teacher

My best teacher had it right; Love first, then take attendance.

I saw the girl with holes in the soles of her shoes. So did my teacher.

I saw the boy with a bruised cheek.  So did my teacher.

I saw the bus-driver with the jar of Rolaids. So did my teacher.

I saw the coach with the bloodshot eyes. So did my teacher.

I saw the janitor cleaning toilets, not looking me in the eye.  So did my teacher.

I saw the lunch lady’s rosary clutched in her hand. So did my teacher.

I saw the administrator’s cuffs worn thin on their best suit.  So did my teacher.

I saw my teacher’s best gift for each student; and I am reminded...

Love first, then take attendance.

Holds February

Just halfway through the season of winter, holds February.

Solid as ice, frozen as the frost line 36 inches deep, without compromise or apology February brings its winter mix to bear in four fleeting weeks.  Even as the days linger briefly longer each evening, the sun has also cut a new course inches higher in the daytime sky.  We feel the fullness of the winter landscape, the load of snow under foot, and listen to the cry of the wind following old slicked up routes into depths of our souls.  But surely we do not despair.  God is present, even in the deep winter.

We take a break from moving and lean against the South facing concrete block wall of the garage as we find the sun a warming friend.  The dog would like his ears scratched and we notice the ice is melting and evaporating from the dark wet pavement on the hiway leading back into town. The smell in the air is one of winter snow but is also tinged with a spring like scent.  Yes, we can smell it, as well as see the changes taking place in our world.  We feel the warming, the melting, the frost as it begins to move.  

“Not long now,” the old timer who drops off pig starter from the Coop says about the coming of spring.  “Not long now,” you think as you notice the mud which has found its way onto your chore boots.  “Not long now,” you begin to sing as the sun drops in the Western sky with hues of colors saved only for the sight of Gods and angels.  “Not long now,” you hum as you hang your coveralls in the basement closet.  The smell of soup, fresh bread, and strong coffee overpower your thoughts and you are thankful.

And as quickly as it came, February is gone once again.  It is a month to be experienced, a month of changes, some subtle, others quite profound.  The baby arrives, one season is finding completion as another is beginning, and grandmother says a final farewell. Live well each day of February and find the glory of God in every footstep of the grand parade taking place, right in our own backyard.  Discover again who truly holds February.

Do Not Worry

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear.  Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?” Matthew 6:25 NRSV

Do not worry.  Easy said, hard to accomplish.  I have shared this advice with persons many times over the years.  From folks caught in a bad relationship situation, or an awful illness, to a tragic accident, to not worry and remain calm is a real gift.  It seems we all worry at times.  It is how we are wired for life. 

This passage from Matthew comes to us toward the end of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.  Now please take a second closer look at the text.  Christ tells the people to not worry about what they will eat and what they will wear for clothes.  Jesus says nothing about missed house payments or flat tires.  Jesus say nothing about running late into work or failing to get our assignments completed.  It seems the dog needing shots and the Internet fading while the stove is boiling over in the midst of a leaking roof is just not that big of a deal.  First things first.

Jesus tells us not to worry about food and clothing. Those two are pretty high up on the list of essential human needs.  And he picks these two, which we all take for granted in this society, as a way of saying, “If you do not have even these basic needs covered, relax I have got this for you.  And if you do have these two covered then you should have no real worries at all.”  Relax people and do not worry.  This is God who created the world and calms the storms.  Calm down. 

This passage is also a go ticket for the church who serves as the hands and feet of Jesus Christ for the world.  We must be out and about providing clothing and food, taking care of the basic stuff for people.  But not just some people but any person at all who shows up without food and clothing.  Boom, the church should spring into action and heal the situation. 

Should the church also fix the internet, the dog, the flat tire, or the leaking roof? Perhaps, but first things first.  Food and clothing should be free if needed, or almost free. Let’s keep the children fed and warm with clothes on the backs of our neighbors and friends, even especially the strangers in our midst.  But do not worry.  Never let worry become your partner.

There is Hope

There is hope.  For whatever your day brings, there is hope. 

In the midst of days of sunshine, hope is easy to grasp.  When days are dark and we walk through a valley of shadows, hope can be scarce.  But make no mistake, there is hope. 

Hope endures.  Hope fulfills.  Hope outlasts, outworks, and outshines everything our human hands can produce.  Hope is to the brokenhearted as a cool drink of water is to parched soil.  Hope brings energy, focus, new life.  Hope offers a sight unseen; it is the stuff of dreams. 

We only dare hope in something outside ourselves, for only something outside of our own striving can offer that greater vision of better days; a better way.  We carry foolishness and immaturity with us as a child.  We carry our inflated self-ego and competitive fire as a young adult.  We carry our fears and our mortality as golden adults.  And yet we find hope for our weariness and hope for our challenges in every stage of our life.  Every journey is accompanied by hope.  For hope is from God.

Hope is a gift.  We receive hope like a bowl of food at the supper table.  We take our share and pass along the fullness of God for another to receive.  We receive our hope from God and we feast in joy.

We seem to struggle along with a lack of genuine God given hope.  We stress over the silliest things, we fail to be obedient, and easily become hurt and belligerent because we do not see hope as our partner in the journey.  If we did have hope, we would not treat our neighbors in poor and uncaring ways.  With hope we would see the path open before us to move our brothers and sisters, even the ones we struggle to love, to a new position of importance in our lives.  We are not called to like everyone, but we are called to love just about everyone.  And in that loving, we will treat others with at least as much respect as we would want our own selves to be offered.   And it all begins with a gift of hope from God.  It begins with an Easter Story.  It begins with a death, and a resurrection.  There is hope.

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”  Hebrews 11:1 NRSV

In my experience, the Kingdom of God is a condition of our hearts.  It is not a political reality where we enact rules and laws to promote certain behavior and limit others.  It is my belief the kingdom of God is found by the opening of one’s life to a God who loves unconditionally and completely.  The Kingdom is not found through toeing the line and being found right, or perfect in our doctrine or practice, because this kingdom is not like others which are man-made.  This new kingdom is without blemish.  It yields non-stop with patience, love, hope and joy. This kingdom of God, which is found in the heart of the one who is willing to follow Christ into the difficult places to love, requires Jesus Christ at the center, at the very core, to teach and instruct the student into the ways of compassion and wisdom.

Hate speech, which has become pervasive and accepted as normal in our culture, is not allowed in the Kingdom of God.  To speak with vengeance toward another, to blame and cause another to stumble through the uttering of words is hate speech, regardless of our righteous positon or level of competence on the topic.

Actions which are used to cause others pain are not allowed in the Kingdom of God.  Hands to oneself please, children of God.  We should have learned this lesson as a child, yet it appears we did not.  Parents are pleased when children make good choices.  God is no less a good parent in this.  Again, the disposition of the heart is the key.

The Kingdom of God feasts upon true religion, a warming of the heart toward God and one another, instead of a reliance upon creeds or conventions to provide security or positon.  The Kingdom of God is so pure, so holy, that we cannot defile or cause the kingdom to fail.  It is without equal, nothing can come alongside the kingdom to overshadow or rival the Spirit.  It needs no protection from our kind.  Rather all we can do is to offer ourselves, just as we are, to be transformed and redefined into a new and whole person. 

A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.”  Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose.  Be made clean.”  Mark 1:40-41 NRSV

A Christmas Story

I was at the Almost Free Shop a couple weeks ago when a young woman came to the ladies and quietly shared her husband was home from the military and she was hoping to find a Christmas tree for him.  I had noticed that Christmas trees do not hang around very long at the shop and as much as everyone wanted to help, I had my doubts that there would be one available.

However, the word spread through the shop and our women went to work and in just a few minutes they had found a suitable tree from the back room, a tree stand that fit the tree, and a big bag of decorations and lights.  Another of our workers came bringing a nice wreath to add to the small mountain of decorations.  The young woman was almost in tears out of a humble appreciation.   Our women declared the tree and decorations to be, “almost free,” meaning there was no payment accepted for this transaction.   Now I was almost in tears.

Having just seen God work in an amazing way I started back across the street to my office.  As left the shop and began to cross the alley, a car pulled up and another family from the church began to pull bags from the car and carry them into the shop.  I stopped to help. 

As I carried the last bag I asked, “What you are donating today.”  The reply was, “we are bringing in some decorations we are not going to use this year.”  It was a Christmas tree, some decorations for the tree, and a nice wreath.  I was stunned, as the tears began to fill my eyes again.  Under my breath I said a quick prayer which ended with, “But God, now I think you are just showing off.”  

Freedom and Responibility

One of Our Neighbors at South Fork

I am a gun owner.  I own three guns: a pistol given to me from my father-in-law, an old Winchester 22 rifle I got from my grandmother when I was a kid, and a shotgun I bought to get rid of skunks and possum.  I keep no guns in the parsonage.  I keep the guns apart from the ammunition.  Separate places, hidden places. 

When I was younger I used to hunt some; rabbits, birds, deer. Not so much anymore.   Now I only shoot the occasional offending animal who might be carrying rabies at the farm and engage in some friendly target shooting; what a friend calls a little “plinking.”  I am safe.  I am careful.  I am discrete.  I care about nature and hold a deep regard for the fragility of life.  I consider the right to bear arms a fundamental freedom.

 

What I do not consider a fundamental part of our freedom is the right to bear military weapons without a special permit or need to carry such destructive force.  Automatic and semi-automatic weapons have no place in our homes.  We should not be able to purchase and stockpile such weapons at will.  Our laws have gone too far in offering carry permits to almost anyone. I believe no real good will come from allowing to own and carry heavy weapons. 

The events of the past few weeks underscore my thoughts on this topic.  From unfortunate accidental and self-inflicted shootings to the event of horror in Las Vegas, as a nation we seem to have lost our minds.  Folks who harm themselves or engage in mass shootings are mentally ill. There is no reason to work to find the reason why the man in Las Vegas shot all those folks, because there is not a reason which is reasonable.  There is simply no answer good enough for us to say, “Yes, I can see why someone would do such a thing.”  Our mentally ill are invisible in our midst.  We must change our focus because our neighbors are clearly in pain.

In addition, I believe we must move toward some kind of gun control, because right now we are out of control and my heart grieves the needless loss of life.  I am not suggesting to round up all the guns in the world and throw them in a pile, like some book burning from the last century.  Instead I am suggesting the process of gun purchase be slow and careful, and making military weapons hard to purchase, very hard.  And persons who ask to carry in public must be able pass very detailed checks. 

Freedom holds responsibilities.  Mental Illness is a clear and present danger.  We are called to join together and follow the example of Jesus Christ in how we live with our neighbors in peace and love.

Dead People Don't Speak

People encouraged me to speak.  I held powerful positions in the church, I should speak up.  Some suggested my silence was violence. They said, I was hurting others by holding back my voice. 

I have realized in the last few months that dead people do not speak. Now I was not literally dead, but my heart had been deeply wounded and I understand my silence on some topics has not been for lack of care or concern.  Rather, I had lost my voice and could only shake my head in sorrow. 

I am healing and regaining my voice.  What I say may not be pleasant to some.  Others may weep with me, or still others may find refreshment in my sharing. I only have what is in front of me; my own experience.

The lie of our culture is certainty. As a scientist and as a clergy I learned to be certain.  And God is on the side of certainty.  This is wrong.  Science requires certainty.  And yet historically certainty holds back new scientific discovery.  In my experience, certainty is a hallmark of individuals with personal agendas.  They are certain of many things; never mind the details and possibilities.  Jesus did not teach certainty. Instead Jesus offered friendship and peace with our neighbor, especially our enemies.

I find I am uncertain about just about everything, except God.  I find strength in the ability to question assumptions without discarding.  Strength comes from honoring our enemies into hearing their story.  Strength is in carefully holding persons, even the prickly ones, to a higher place of grace which neither divides nor passes judgement.  And to attempt all this without becoming anxious or infected.

If this is where the church is headed, a place where we dialogue and care for one another as we learn from each other, then I am in.  If however, the church is headed down the path of supporting competing individuals who are certain of their certainty, then I am out.  Not out of the church, just out of that dialogue where power is the real meat on the table and grace is just something said before fighting begins over the scraps in an attempt to fill personal goals. 

My spirit has been wounded, even unto death.  And the valley of dry bones has been my dwelling place. I had lost my voice.  But I have a taken time to rest by still waters.  Today I have less need to build a proper fence around my ideas.  As I let go of certainty, and cling to faith, I find my voice re-emerges.

So the next time you begin to chew on someone for being silent, pause to consider your position of certainty.  Consider your willingness to listen and your need to control.  And then reach out to one who may not be breathing because, dead people do not speak.

My Response to Psalm 112:10

For there was kindness and you responded with anger.
There was grace and generosity and your eyes were filled with revenge and pain.
Silence stood with a firm heart of peace and you gathered rocks and called together a mob.
Praise to God was offered, and yet you mocked.
Once again, I hold out a humble hand.

Speak of Holy Week

We speak of Holy Week, and a coal train flies by with empty cars returning to be refilled and sent off once again.

We speak of Holy Week, and we pause with a nod or a wince, with an attempt to say more than just words printed on a page.

We speak of Holy Week, and we slowly sigh, taking pause to refocus on days beyond weariness.

We speak of Holy Week, and our arms are filled with commentaries and word studies, which carry the potential to separate us from the very thing of it.

We speak of Holy Week, and trust a sleeping world hears and acknowledges the sacrifice.

We speak of Holy Week, and find a voice, our voice, alone in the wilderness.

We speak of Holy Week, and the newness of life enters, uninvited, unfocused, unsought; the noise finds a target.

We speak of Holy Week, God bless all those who speak; of Holy Week.

If I Were Preaching this Week.

I would go after this lectionary passage from the gospel of Matthew 5:38-48 again.  Matthew has a way of holding up a mirror, and when we think we need to zag, we find a zig.  The passage for this week is no different. 

One pastor has described verse 38, “An eye for an eye,” as business as usual.  Then Matthew reports Christ offering a zig to that zag.  In my words, Christ says something like this, “knock off the negative backbiting and infighting, and start to love on each other, especially the folks who you hate.”  So maybe I would title my sermon, “Business as Unusual.”

In my work as a Conference Superintendent over the last four years, I can tell you the one thing we need more of in the church today is love for each other.  Perhaps my path takes me into places where there is more conflict and division in the church than is normal, but I doubt it.  Pastors are being controlled and abused while congregations are being micromanaged and marginalized.  I have begun calling the church a violent place to hang out these days, however, we must find a way to become non-violent.  The church of the future will not sustain this level of attack and pain.  Unfortunately, this all feels like business as usual for a large part of the church.  The world should know us by our love, but that is just not the case these days regardless of how many times we sing the song.  Our actions define us, always have.

If I were preaching in the local church here are a couple things I would need to be sure I visited in preparing the sermon this week.  The first is our Bishops Trimble being arrested at the White House on Monday for his non-violent stand against immigration deportation of almost 2 million souls.  I would throw this out as a way of doing business unusually.  No matter how you come down on the immigration issue, we can all agree we must stop pulling families apart.  The Second is the Olympics.  Everyone has been watching them, so they provide a ready and steady sermon illustration stream for which just about everyone has knowledge. Point out the amazing stuff that is not business as usual, and then point out what makes you cringe and for which we wish we had a redo button.  Where do you see the golden rule and where do you just see rules?  How can we push through business as usual and get to the unusual business of grace and love for one another? 

And finally from the book, Native American Wisdom, these words to consider on leadership from the Constitution of the Five Nations.  “With endless patience you shall carry out your duty, and your firmness shall be tempered with tenderness for your people.  Neither anger nor fury shall lodge in your mind, and all your words and actions shall be marked with calm deliberation.”

If I Were Preaching this Week

If I were preaching this week I would be looking at the Gospel lectionary from Matthew.  The Beatitudes, Chapter 5 all the way to Chapter 7, provide some deep and profound words for us to chew on.  Last week I was struck how the initial, “Blessed are,” sayings are fully inclusive.  They gather us all into one body.  We all experience grief.  We all experience loss, abundance, and hunger.  We find ourselves in relationship without regard to any human agenda potentially sorting us into competitive camps. 

As I pondered the reading for this Sunday, I was wondering where that kind of radical relationship outlined last week might lead.  As I looked closer I found the same guiding thought leading me to the same conclusion.  We all are together in the same boat.  We all lose our saltiness at times.  We all walk in darkness at times.  We all deal with anger.  We all deal with lust and saying things which we regret.  We are in this together, like it or not.  God may not care to view a bunch of selfies.  Rather God might prefer to see a family portrait.

When we deal with our sin and our loss together, then we can also deal with our love and our new life in Christ together.  We were never built to go it alone.  The preceding passage to the Beatitudes finds Jesus calling the disciples together, and then ministering to the crowds.  No mention of individual preference or personal salvation in this reading.  We are invited to be in the boat, in the crowd, along with every other human being. 

Oh my goodness, in this society where even the church is crowned triumphant as it offers individual care, individual praise, and individual spiritual self-differentiation, here is different path.  Matthew is shouting that it is not about me.  Life is not about getting my needs met, or my agenda massaged.  Life is about walking with the crowd, dealing with the reality of finding ourselves in the midst of the fullness of human expression. Life abundant happens with us, all of us, together.  There is no other way.  Feel free to use these thoughts if they are helpful if you are preaching this week.

Is it Possible to be Religious at Thanksgiving?

“ Theologian and Pastor Paul Tillich attempts to define religion in terms of its larger meaning on the basis of the experience of the Holy,” writes Dr. Young Ho Chun in his book Tillich and Religion.  And so Tillich asks the lovely question, “How is it possible to be religious?”

 

  “In the encounter with the Holy we encounter our relatedness to something ultimate in being and meaning.”  He goes on to define our experience of the Holy as one of experiencing our Ultimate Concern, the nature of which is always immediate.  The sacred is never avoided; everyone has something which is sacred, because no one can live without Ultimate Concern. Thus our humanity is to seek and live in relationship with our ultimate in being and meaning.  Tillich shared that the immediacy of our relationship means we are in direct touch and we participate with the Ultimate.

 

My understanding then leads me to believe that a couple actions are necessary for me to be religious.  The first is to acknowledge my humanity and need for relationship.  Thanksgiving gatherings tend to cover this waterfront nicely.  Some relationships are enhanced and made even more robust by encountering the stranger and offering unusual hospitality.  For others to re-engage continuing relationships with new hope and vigor may be enough to find the movement of the Holy.  However, we must be open to the experience of the sacred in relationships.  The second is to understand our participation in those relationships as prompted and in direct touch with the Holy.  How often we turn away from another without any thought of the action of the Holy in our midst.  Anything less than these two foundational understandings leave me wandering in the abyss of a pseudo-holy holiday. 

 

In preparing my holiday encounters, my worship services, and my sermon messages I think I must engage this idea of relationship with one another and how this sacred act leads to an immediate experience of the Holy, and thus my Ultimate Concern.  I believe we can expand this idea to include congregations of people gathering to worship and family groups sitting down for meals together.  Perhaps we may want to be as simple and straightforward enough to name the blessing, as we also ask the blessing in the midst of the people.  Perhaps we can both experience and name the sacred.  That would seem to me to be a good start to answering Tillich’s question.    

 

I am Iowa

I am Iowa; fertile and productive.

I am strings of corn rows bending over contoured hills etched by water flowing from known to unknown.

I am soil, deep and active; sticky in March and dusty in August.  I am a rock in Winter.

I am rivers with sand bars and muddy bottoms, with all sorts of growing things.

I am the stars and moon to light the path.  I am the ruddy morning, bright noon-day, and the purple violet evening sky.  

I am Iowa; a birth place, a resting place, a living place.

Is It Safe To Come Out Yet?

After the busy Christmas week we may feel a bit like this pup.  If you are feeling like me there were too many miles on slick roads and too many, "I'll have just a bite of that."  My mind, like my body, is a bit weary and yet still strangely hungry for something more.  I am reminded of Bono's  lyrics, "And I still haven't found what I'm looking for."

Maybe Christmas always keeps us guessing and the mystery is like our life in Christ.  We never seem to get the total fullness even as we embrace the mystery, we are found still yearning for just a bit more.  And so as I peek out from under my tree, I can proclaim it was a good Christmas, even with the remaining mystery.

I started off Sunday morning at the Des Moines Korean congregation for a meeting.  They were eating and it smelled wonderful.  Rev, Gunsoo Jung and the others invited me to have something to eat (hospitality is their thing and it comes naturally, perhaps it always does.)  We drank tea and visited about the needs of the church while the families were finishing.  The kids were outside sliding in the snow,  just like a Norman Rockwell painting.

Cheryl and I finished  Sunday at the Ankeny First "Eve Eve" Service held at the downtown campus.  We had a great time as Rev. Martha Ward always does a nice job leading a service and music was excellent with Jan Boehm, Lindsay Drake, and Melody Web and family. Rev Bob's preaching was thoughtful as we considered the reality of Jesus' birth.  The highlight personally for us was Tim, Molly, and little Maggs as the holy family.  At one point, Molly had been kneeling for over 7 minutes and just got up when the time came.  I am pretty sure I would have had to crawl to the alter and get a good grip without knocking over all the lit candles, or drop and roll to the stairs to get up after being down for that long.  We got to watch Ellie and CC and my mom, who came with us.  They all did very good and grandpa didn't have to yell at any of them during the service.

On Christmas eve day, our two sons and families and my mom with nine grandchildren gathered at the house.  It was glorious most of the time.  The twins and Maggs were doing their collective baby thing.  The older kids had lots of fun.  It was a good day.  After a huddle, we all decided to have home church and not take all the babies out in the weather.  So we sang hymns with the guitar, we lifted up concerns and thanksgivings around the circle.  Grandma read the birth story from Luke and I interpreted.  We prayed and sang Silent Night using the flashlights which came in the stockings earlier in the day.  The boys both commented  no offering was a nice touch.  The service lasted over 45 minutes.  After church we all read the A Christmas Carol together from a great popup book Wendy gave us last year.

After the kids headed for home, Cheryl and I went out to Granger, Emmanuel for their Ten PM Candlelight service.  The church is in the midst of a pastoral change and they needed an Elder to preside over the Communion.  Lay Pastor Donna Fultman presided and the traditional service of Carols and Lessons was fun and easy.  Donna's husband played his Little Martin guitar along with Barb Chambers on the piano to lead us.

We headed home into the cold winter night just before midnight, noting the lack of traffic on I-80.  After a week of no power for a full day and the remaining pieces of the storm in tow, It was good to know and sing the words, "All is calm and all is bright."

My Christmas Wish

The news report staggers us to defend our days.  We find violence overtaking our ability to understand.  We shake our heads and scuff the soles of our shoes on the gravel path.  Good days, summer days of joy and celebration can feel distant, even corrupt. 

Perhaps I should just go shopping and try to fill the cart, fill my heart.  Perhaps I should just eat or drink something, something rich and filling, after all it is Christmas.   Perhaps I should get some sleep, preferable during the day, and slowly withdraw from obligations and relationships.

Look at the picture, look into their eyes and become aware of what they know.  What is real?  What is truth?

 My wish is for good news.

My wish is to give like never before.  Help someone yet unknown.  Seek the mystery of the season as if life depends upon it.  Look into people’s eyes, really look and see their hearts.  Hug the children in ways that bless and sanctify their lives.  Feel the pain, lean into the joy, remember what is lost, and conceive a new grace offered by the season without notice or price.  

Now go.

Easter Soul

What if a soul, your soul, was somehow separated from you.  Sort of like it was lost from you.  Oh you still had a soul but it was difficult for you to put a handle on the thing.  Every once in a while you and your soul would connect and it would be wonderful, or not so wonderful, but in any case for just a bit you would know you were more.   You would feel something stirring in you and know things unknowable; unexplainable.  Think previenent here; something happening on our behalf before we are even aware.


What if Easter, the Christian celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, was is fact a celebration of the restoration of your soul back to you.  What if along with the Christ, you also came alive in a way unexplainable unthinkable.  I think this may be exactly what Easter is for us.  Think justification here; a being put right even though we are not even close to perfect.

I also believe that as we regain our souls we eventually find they are too much for us to bear, too difficult to carry, too complex to maintain for any human.  We can only offer them back to God, but not in defeat, rather in celebration, because God will hold them for us and allow us contact with our souls at any time we chose.  Kind of like working on the cloud; literally.  Prayer and mediation do this work for us of reconnecting ourselves to ourselves.  I believe in prayer which molds us further into who we are, not the kind which gives us something we think we may want.  Think sanctification here; a going on to perfection by the grace of God, we are reconnected and molded to be our created selves.

I like thinking of my soul as being in God's presence even while I know I am not yet fully.  Someday will be soon enough, however in the days until then, we get a soul which can lead, confound, and direct our steps.  Sounds like grace; sounds like Easter.

Picture in this Blog post is titled: A Soul to Heaven by William - Adolphe Bouguereau

Communication

She is a student at Simpson College.  We shared lunch last week while the Simpson College Trustees met. 
The young woman lowered her voice as if asking a very difficult question, "So what are your personal goals with your job?"  "Well, umm," I said as I searched my thoughts for a goal worthy of the earnetness of the inquirey.  Sometimes I like to joke around and play off the moment, but not this time.  So I motioned her to come closer and I spoke in a low and solomn tone.  "I am a subversive; my goal is to make disciples for Jesus Christ.  Most of the time I just do stuff that looks like I am doing church work, pays the bills, you know." 
She physically backed away as if I had some smelling salts in my pocket.  Then she smiled and offered a glimmer of understanding.  Then came her next question, "How do you communicate that with the people you work with?"  My answer was honest and lacking, "Not very well."  She encouraged me to continue to blog, tweet, and facebook.  "It is the way we communicate these days."  It was good to focus on one thing and know it is of ultimate importance for me and this young woman.
 Everyone is so busy and on thier way someplace.Where are you headed?  What are your personal goals?  Are you following the crowd or going the wrong way?