The More Things Change

For those of you who long for the “good-ole-days” allow me to share a little dose of reality with you.  Awhile back, I went to the library and borrowed a copy of E.B. White’s collection of essays called One Man’s Meat.  For those of you who are saying to yourself “the name sounds familiar,” E.B. White is best known as the author of Charlotte’s Web.  He also wrote for the New Yorker magazine for many years.  The essays were written just prior to the start of World War II and they were published in book form in 1942.  Mr. White chronicles the journey of his move to a farmstead in Maine and what life was like, with some observations about the world at large, thrown in for good measure.  Reading through the book, I am reminded, once again, of the old saying “the more things change, the more they stay the same.”

In an essay titled “Sabbath Morn,” written in February, 1939, Mr. White made the following observations:

“In this house we cling to a few relics of religious observance, but there is no heart in it.  If we possess faith (and I guess we do) it is of a secret and unconsecrated sort ill at ease in church….The church sometimes seems painfully unimaginative in its attempt to perpetuate a faith which has been gutted by so many fires.  Whether or not people are essentially less religious than they used to be, I don’t know, but it is obvious that something has happened….I go to church once in a while and sing the hymns very loud; it clears the blood, and I love the gush of holiness when the old bone-shaking anthems ripple up and down my spine and crackle in my larynx.  But for the most part, religion is tucked away in a bottom drawer among things we love but never use.  In two generations there has been a great falling off.  When I was a child, I could feel heaven slipping…By the standards of a hundred years ago, my family to-day is a group of misguided agnostics, seeking after an illusive beauty and fumbling for grace…”

What a familiar tale, I think to myself!  How similar and relevant are Mr. White’s words today?!  The great angst that we possess as the United Methodist Church over decline in attendance is the same thing that was going on back in “the good old days” that we fondly talk about.  The rosy days of “back yonder” were not quite as rosy as we would like to believe.  The reality, the truth of the matter is this-we struggle with the same issues that previous generations struggled with.  That doesn’t mean that we choose to just accept this as a fact of life, we can choose to try to change the outcome.  But if we intend to change, we had better make sure that we have thought things through carefully.  “Change for change sake” is not true change at all.  Learning from the past, taking off the rose colored glasses and seeing things as they really were, rather than how we imagine-that is the lens that we need to use when we decide what to change and how we go about changing things!  Until we can do that, until we can accept the fact that there is nothing new under the sun, all of our best laid plans will be nothing more than just another plan.

Let’s be honest with ourselves and recognize the fact that the more things change-the more they stay the same, if we choose to ignore the truth of the past.  We will not change the course if we do not learn the lessons of yesterday.  In my humble opinion, this is indeed a valuable and timely lesson in light of General Conference.  A voice from the past holds an important reminder, to us all, for today!

Through the Gate to the Broad Place

The notes for Psalm 20 in the Wesley Study Bible say that this is an intercession for the king.  It says that  the people are asking for God’s protection for their king, because their safety is contingent upon his safety.  I’m glad that I read the Psalm before I read the notes because, I had a very different take on this, particularly on verses 4 and 5:

“May he grant you your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your plans.  May we shout for joy over your victory, and in the name of our God set up our banners.  May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.”

What I heard in my head and heart was a blessing.  This is the type of prayer that I would pray for a loved one or a friend, particularly if they were struggling with some issue.  Not only do I want my friend to overcome obstacles but, I want to celebrate with them, when they achieve their goal!  This is the kind of prayer that I hope someone would pray over me!

There was another verse that caught my attention, as well, that I think goes nicely with this blessing.  Psalm 18, verse 19:

“He brought me out into a broad place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me.”

The notes on this verse say that a broad place is far from enemies that would otherwise be pressing in on an individual.  Again, I understand what they are saying,  but I saw something very different!  In my minds eye, I saw a wide, open, space, full of opportunity.  I saw potential!

Here’s my convoluted thought process.  It’s a winding path but stay with me! It will make sense, once we wind through the maze!   Jesus said the gate is narrow.  We have to choose to walk through the gate.  But what happens when you walk through that gate?  Things usually open up into a much wider, broader space!  Why does God give you gifts and graces?  Why does God give you ideas and plans?  Why do the right people show up, at the right time, in the right place?  Here’s the part that we tend to skim over; the reason is, because God delights in you!

If you have prayed to God to use your gifts and graces, for His honor and glory, if you have asked Him what His plan is for your life, then you have started towards that narrow gate.  What a delight!  Someone who actually stopped talking, and stopped long enough to ask what His plan is, rather than, putting forth what you think the plan should be!  Once you walk through that gate, the Holy Spirit puts His arm around your shoulder and says “look around you.”  You look and think “wow, this is way more than I imagined!”  His plan, is your plan, and he will fulfill your heart’s desire!  Your friends and family will celebrate with you because, God has delighted in you!  It is a powerful, profound image!  An incredible vision, if we could just believe in it!  Ah, there’s the catch, the thing that keeps you from walking through that gate!  It’s hard to believe, especially if we feel that we are not “delightful!”

Leslie Weatherhead, in his book, “A Private House of Prayer” said something that was stunning in it’s simplicity, and really gets to the heart of the matter.  In the meditation for day 4, he talks about the story from Mark, chapter 2, where the four men, literally, haul their sick friend up to the roof, and remove the tiles, so they can lower him down to Jesus, because they truly believe Jesus can heal him.  Jesus does not say to the man, “you are healed.”  What does he say?  “Son, your sins are forgiven.”  Rev. Weatherhead says this:

“How many disabilities of ours would disappear if we could really feel completely forgiven, utterly free from guilt?” 

 He comes back to this point, during the confession for day 15, when he says this:

“God does not ask us to live in a state of continual remorse about our past sins, but to outgrow them and become spiritually adult.”  

God forgives, but do you forgive yourself?  Why are you unable to believe that God delights in you?  Because you can’t let go of the guilt.  It is tough to believe in the forgiveness of God when you can’t forgive yourself!  The train of thought in your head is “how can I ask for blessings when I’m not worthy?”

God’s forgiveness is not dependent on us, or how worthy we think we are!  God forgives because God is God!  He is merciful, and loving; and He doesn’t worry about the past, when someone has truly repented and asked for forgiveness.  If He wanted us to wallow in guilt over past sins, then, why would He send Jesus?  Jesus came because God so loved the world!  Jesus came so that we could experience forgiveness!  When we choose to believe Jesus is Savior, and ask for forgiveness, God forgets those sins!  He focuses on the present, and the future, and what wonderful things are waiting for you, if, you would just believe and ask!  This is why Paul, in Philippians 3, talks about “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead” and he talks about pressing towards the goal of the “heavenly call” of God.  If past guilt keeps holding you prisoner, how can you move forward?  Didn’t Jesus come to set each of us free?

God has a “heavenly call” for each of us; a delightful plan that He wants to share.  But, you’re not going to enter that narrow way, if, you keep hauling all the guilt baggage around with you!    Let it go!  God has forgiven you, learn to forgive yourself!  

As you let go of all that baggage, and walk through that narrow gate, I pray with the Psalmist that  God will grant your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans.  I believe that he will deliver you to that broad place because God is Good.  He loves you, He forgives you and He delights in you!  May you shout with joy when your victory comes, because God loves YOU, and delights, in YOU!

Yabut!

Yabut-my made up word of combining  yeah and but.  Most commonly used or whispered to sow discontent or uncertainty in the minds of the hearer.  Favorite tool used by “the accuser” “the deceiver” “the Satan”.

In the book of Job, “the Satan” makes an appearance again.  In chapter 1 there is a gathering of the heavenly beings who “present themselves before the Lord”  (Job1:6) and Satan shows up as well.  Then comes the interesting exchange between God and Satan starting at verse 7:

“The Lord said to Satan, ‘where have you come from?’ Satan answered the Lord, ‘from going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.”

Let’s be clear, God already knew what Satan had been up to.  He already knew he had been wandering around looking at what sorts of problems he could cause on earth.  Asking the question allows us to become aware of what Satan is up to because Satan has to answer, even if the answer is purposely vague.  He’s giving the impression that he has just been taking a hike, walking around but his nature is to sow discontent.  Satan was truthful in his answer as far as he went with the answer.  But as my Gramma used to say, “a half truth is not truth!”

Then God takes a different tact.  He brings up Job, a man that God describes as blameless and upright who fears the Lord and turns away from evil.  Satan responds with a yabut starting at verse 9:

“Does Job fear God for nothing?  Have you not put a fence around him and his house and all that he has, on every side?  You have blessed the work of his hand, and his possessions have increased in the land.  But stretch out your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.”

What is he saying here?  Like a whiney child, he is saying “yabut, that’s only because you have given him all this stuff and you protect him, but if you let me at him and let me take his stuff, I know your precious little human will turn on you and curse you to your face!”

How does God respond?  He agrees to the challenge but tells Satan that he can’t hurt Job.  So Satan orchestrates and manipulates the attacks on Job’s “stuff”,  livestock stolen, servants killed, children killed and he makes sure that he leaves one survivor from each event that can run and tell Job about what happened.  Satan fails though, because Job does not curse God.  He’s upset, he’s distraught but he doesn’t curse God.

So, in chapter 2, we get to listen in on the conversation between God and Satan, again.  God basically says “told ya!  You took all of his stuff but he still did not curse me.”  And Satan responds with his second yabut in Job 2, verse 4:

“Skin for skin!  All that people have they will give to save their lives.  But stretch out your hand now and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.”

Once again, God agrees to the challenge with one condition.  Satan is not allowed to kill Job.  We’re told that Satan inflicts “loathsome sores” on Job from his feet to his head.  Still, he doesn’t curse God.  When that doesn’t work, guess who shows up on the scene?  Jobs “friends”.  And we learn later on in the book that with friends like these, who needs enemies?  Satan couldn’t take him out directly so he goes the covert route by sending the “concerned friends” to come sit with Job.

The yabut pattern is nothing new for Satan.  We know that he used it in the Garden of Eden when talking with Eve.  If you go back to Genesis chapter 3, listen to how he starts the conversation:

“Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden?’ The woman said to the serpent ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’  But the serpent said to the woman ‘You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil..”

Yabut, did God really mean that?  Did he really tell you that you couldn’t have that?  Yabut you know if you eat of this tree, you won’t die, you’ll just have as much wisdom as God!  Look at the shiny object, Eve, you want it now don’cha?  The twist, the turn and the spurn!  The things that the yabut is made up of!

We also know that he tried this with Jesus in the desert.  Read the beginning of Luke, chapter 4 and you can see the yabut pattern yet again.  Yabut, if you really are the Son of God you can turn this stone into bread.  Yabut, if you will just join my side, I’ll give you the whole world.  Yabut, if you really are the Son of God you can jump off this building and the angels will save you.   And Satan took it up a notch by quoting what was written in scriptures.  When Satan failed with the direct assault it says that he left, waiting for a “more opportune time” to try attacking him once again.

Here is the most important thing to remember.  Satan still wanders the earth, he still attempts full frontal attacks, and if they fail, he will resort to the Yabuts.  A yabut could be self-doubt, it could be a word from a friend or family member, and usually they hit during times of severe stress.   A half truth is spoken, words and meaning are twisted and the outcome is meant for you to either reject or get angry, in other words to spurn!

Let’s say for example, you want to start a new career or business.  You have done your research, prayed about it, weighed the pros and cons of pursuing this particular path and you have decided to go ahead with it.  Maybe you lost your job due to downsizing or the poor economy and you think now is a good time to try something different.  You feel at peace with the decision.  One day, you are in a conversation with someone and you mention what you plan to do.  This person says “oh, I had another friend that tried that and they failed miserably.  Lost their home, their family and the dog.  Bad idea if you ask me!”  The yabut statement they are making is yabut, someone else already tried it and failed.  What makes you think that you can pull it off?

So, what was the full frontal attack?  Losing your job.  So what is the next line of attack?  The oh so subtle Yabuts.  New year, new century, different set of people, same pattern!  Yabuts can stop you in your tracks if you let them!

How deep is your faith?  How much do you trust God?  This is what Satan chooses to test.  He did it with Eve, he did it with Job and he did it with Jesus.  The pattern continues to this day.  That’s why it is so important to focus on your spiritual life, your faith walk, because there will be times of testing.

In Psalm 1, we are reminded to meditate on the law day and night.  The Wesley Study Bible notes say that the word meditate, as it is used in this Psalm, literally means “to mumble or utter its words under one’s breath.”

Deepen your faith by studying God’s word.  Meditate-have some verses of scripture deep inside of you.   At some point in time you will face a yabut moment.  Discern and respond.  Trust God.  Deepen your faith because that faith will carry you through when you need it the most!

May Your Soul Prosper!

Let’s look at one verse from 3 John from four separate translations and see how they compare.
3 John, verse 2:

NIV Translation:

“Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.”

NRSV Translation:

“Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul.”

Amplified Bible:

“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and (that your body) may keep well, even as (I know) your soul keeps well and prospers.”

The Message paraphrase:

“I pray for good fortune in everything you do, and for your good health-that your everyday affairs prosper, as well as your soul!”

In this letter, John is writing to Gaius, a church leader, to commend him for his hospitality and to warn him about not following the lead of Diotrephes who is only concerned with himself.  This verse is used a lot when talking about the Prosperity Gospel that is preached in some circles.  God wants you rich, God wants you to have that Cadillac, they tell you.  Well, hold on a minute!  What is supposed to prosper the most?  If you read the entire verse, what truly matters is that your SOUL prospers!  Things and good health are not guaranteed.  They are hoped for, but what matters most is how well does your soul prosper?

I thought about this as I thought about all of the individuals making resolutions for the New Year.  Many are health related, such as lose 20 pounds or quit smoking or exercise more.  Good ideas that are usually out the window and forgotten by March.  Not because they were not well intentioned but because they were not so convinced that it could be done in the first place.  Things that had happened in the past proved that they just couldn’t do it.  As far as resolutions go, I don’t think I have ever heard someone say “I am going to work on making my soul prosper.”  Maybe we should consider making that kind of resolution.

In the Wesley Study Bible the notes say that 3 John shows that both evil and good can be found within a congregation.  “Gaius…. supports the elders understanding of the Christian Mission by making his resources of home and money available to itinerant Christian ministers.  Diotrephes, on the other hand, serves himself by seeking to undermine the elder’s influence in refusing hospitality to these missionaries and preventing those who want to help from doing so.”  The Message paraphrase says this: “The two most difficult things to get straight in life are love and God.  More often than not, the mess people make of their lives can be traced to failure or stupidity or meanness in one or both of these areas…there are always people around who don’t want to be pinned down to the God Jesus reveals, to the love Jesus reveals.  They want to make up their own idea of God, make up their own style of love.”

If you stop and think about it, it makes a lot of sense that how well you are on the inside “the soul” correlates to how well you are on the outside.  What you carry inside of you will manifest outwardly.  Your idea of God or love will show up in some manner.  So, perhaps we should consider what we are carrying around inwardly first before we make those resolutions for outward change.  Maybe the first place to start is getting rid of some of the inward baggage.  Still angry at someone?  Still nursing an old wound?  Still feeling like the victim?  Still making the excuse that you do certain things because you were damaged or hurt by what (insert name here) did to you twenty years ago?  Whether we like to admit it or not, old baggage from things that happened that we can not change, can and will weigh us down.  Bad things happen, even to good people.  It’s what you do with it that matters!  If it simply is a weight around your neck than it is not doing you or anyone else any good!  It’s time to let it go.  It is time to choose to love yourself like Jesus loves you and it is time to love others in the same way.  No more my style, it’s time to choose Jesus style!

So here’s a suggestion.  Take all of those things, those issues and write them down.  Make a list.  Then take the list and burn it or shred it beyond recognition.  Make sure you can not tape it back together no matter how hard you might try.  Commit to turning it over to God and then commit to letting it go.  Don’t take it back again.  If something comes up in your mind again say to yourself “I already let that go and turned it over to God” and then move on to something else.  I know, it is easier said than done but I also know that it can be done.  

It is much easier to move forward and create new good positive feelings and memories when you let go of  the old negative ones.  It is easier to accept love when you let go of those things that you think make you unlovable.  It is easier to love others when you can learn to love like Jesus loved.  How does your soul prosper?  May it prosper well!

May your everyday affairs prosper as well as your soul prospers in 2012!

What Language is That????

So, my family finally talked me in to going to the doctor.  I had been miserable and in pain for so long, that even I started to wonder if this extended beyond being a simple fibro flare.  I came through with a clean bill of health:  no sickness, no high blood pressure, nothing out of whack.  All of my symptoms could be directly linked to a severe fibromyalgia flare.  The doctor on duty, spoke clearly and plainly about what I was experiencing and the fact that lack of good sleep was probably contributing to the extended flare up, which is why she wrote a prescription for muscle relaxants.  She felt that if I could get the muscles to relax, I could get deeper, uninterrupted sleep, which would then break the cycle and allow the flare to subside.  She understood my family's concern but she also understood my need to keep going, in order to care for my family.  I admit, when it comes to seeing a doctor I am a reluctant patient because sometimes their conversations with me end up being more like listening to a person speak a foreign language!  Her clear explanation and candor was utterly refreshing!

Contrast this to the letter that came in the mail over the weekend from our school district.  I have read the letter four or five times and I still do not fully get what they are trying to tell me, as a parent.  From what I can glean, it seems that the district failed to meet certain testing standards in regards to "No Child Left Behind".  This is the fourth year it has happened and that puts the district at level 3.  There is no explanation of what this means or how it impacts my child.  And as far as how they intend to address the problem it mentions evaluating and updating the district plan, and that they "collaboratively establish action plans and implement strategies that improve teaching and learning."  Huh?  I even went to the state website to see if I could find an explanation of what exactly this means.  It was no better than the gibberish letter that the district sent out!  It's like they are speaking their own language, which they fully understand, but leaves the rest of us scratching our heads!

This got me thinking about the church and how we communicate with others.  Do we speak clearly and simply enough so that someone who doesn't attend church understands what we are saying?  Or do we use our church-speak and assume that everybody must know what these terms mean?  How different is Call to Action from No Child Left Behind?  Lots of warm and fuzzy gibberish that makes it sound important bu,t in the scheme of things, means absolutely nothing to someone who is not familiar with the terminology!  Even some individuals who do understand the wording, feel that it is an exercise in futility.

Are we afraid to speak plainly?  Do we prefer not to speak plainly because it gives us an edge of superiority, or, are we unaware that we are speaking in a way that has no meaning to someone else?  My guess is that it is a little bit of all of the above.  That mix is something that we should examine carefully if we want to get our message across clearly.

I was reading this morning about King Josiah in Second Chronicles 34.  In the chapter it tells how Hilkiah the high priest found a copy of the Revelation  of Moses.  He gave the book to the King's assistant, Shaphan, who then read it to King Josiah.  King Josiah was so shocked by what he heard, that he ripped his robes in dismay.  He understood what was contained in the book and he understood that God clearly must be angry with Israel because they had not followed what had been laid out in the book.  The book had been "lost" for generations yet it was laid out clearly enough that even someone who was unfamiliar with it, could understand what it contained and what it meant!

Can we say that our message is so clear that it can be understood by someone who is not familiar with it?  Can we say that we are clearly and effectively communicating with the world at large?  Could our lack of clear communication be our problem?  Do people who hear our message think to themselves "what language is that???"  Are we, in essence, setting up stumbling blocks for people who are "outside" of our circle?

What is that language that we speak?  Can we find ways to communicate our message more clearly?

May God in his wisdom help us all to speak more plainly!

An Interesting Footnote on Hebrews 2:14-15

Here's the note from the Wesleyan Study Bible-see what you think.  Agree or disagree?

"When people think that death is the final word, fear of death will keep them from fully obeying God and seeking God's justice.  Fear of death diverts their energies toward worldly achievement, amassing wealth, and seeking pleasurable distractions to 'make the most out of life' while they can.  Because Jesus faced death and emerged victorious from the grave, we can be freed from this fear for joyful, unrestrained, undistracted obedience."

Do people accumulate wealth and strive for recognition and acclaim because deep down they fear death?

Interesting question to ponder.

Lord, Give me Strength to be Gracious!

Has anyone else had to deal with this issue?  I say "the sky is blue."  The next person points out to me that actually, there are shades of gray.  In other words, no matter what I say, it is never right and the other person must go out of their way to correct my "error".  I can say something positive, and they will do their very best to tear it apart.  And it takes every fiber in my being to bite my tongue!  Is it really that hard to just say it's going to be a nice day?  Would it be the end of the world if, just for once, instead of saying something negative, something positive comes out of your mouth?

Logically, I know that the second greatest command is "love your neighbor as yourself", which means being gracious.  I'm having a hard time with that one as of late!  Wanting to reply back in a snarky manner is overwhelming!  I want to ask "do you engage your brain before you open your mouth or do you just like hearing yourself talk?"  I think it, I oh so desperately want to say it, but I don't, because in the whole scheme of things I know that it's not nice and it won't help further the conversation!

Needless to say, my prayer as of late is "Lord, give me the strength to be gracious" because right now I am feeling anything but gracious!  I'm feeling cranky!  Forgive me Lord, but it's true!  The favored definition of insanity these days is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.  That's what is going on, and I see it!  Do you confront that reality head on or do you try to be gracious and gently turn the direction?  Personally, I favor the gentle approach.  It doesn't seem to be working!

Forgive me my crankiness Lord and give me strength, patience and wisdom to be gracious even on days like this!  It's a beautiful day!  The sky is blue, the leaves are turning, the breeze is gentle!  I will rejoice and be glad!  I'll acknowledge the gray and say "yup, it's a bit hazy!"   Mama said some days would be like this, I just didn't realize that there would be so many in a row!  Lord oh Lord, give me strength!

If You Look for Him, He Will Let Himself Be Found

In chapter 15 of Second Chronicles Azariah goes out to meet King Asa to deliver a message.  Here's how The Message paraphrase words the Prophet's message:

"Listen carefully Asa, and listen Judah and Benjamin:  God will stick with you as long as you stick with him.  If you look for Him, He will let Himself be found; but if you leave Him, He'll leave you."

The story of Asa is such a great story!  (Seriously, if you have never read it, take the time today and read it for yourself!)  Asa made the decision early on that he was going to follow God, really follow to the best of his ability.  He tore down the pagan altars and shrines.  He even removed his mother from the throne because she had built an image of Asherah, which he tore down and burned.   Asa is a reminder to all of us that one good follower can make a difference!

Further on in the chapter we read about the people gathering together to offer sacrifices and to worship and it says that after the sacrifice was offered:

"They bound themselves in a covenant to seek God, the God of their fathers, wholeheartedly, holding nothing back."

 Asa and the people seeking God together.  Can you imagine that?  It must have been an awesome sight!  The power of the praise and the prayers going forth.  The expectant waiting to hear the word of the Lord.  The Message paraphrase goes on:

"Anticipating the best, they had sought God-and He showed up ready to be found."

Wow!  How cool is that?!

Reading this made me start to think about how often I truly seek the Lord.  Do I do it wholeheartedly?  Do I seek without holding anything back?  I'm not talking about those times when things are crazy busy and hectic and I have enough time to utter a 50 second prayer.  I'm talking about intentional times when I am determined to hear a message.  I have to be honest.  I think there are times that I hold back.  Why?  Because I'm not so sure that I want to hear the plain unvarnished truth.  I know that probably doesn't make a lot of sense but for those who know me well, they know that I am my own worst critic.  I am far harder on myself than I am on anybody else!  I know this because I have family and dear friends who have told me "cut yourself some slack!"  They are the ones who tell me that I am too hard on myself!  So when I talk about "the plain unvarnished truth" I mean being afraid of hearing love spoken, I mean being afraid of hearing that I am forgiven.  Criticism I can take, cause I know my laundry list of faults.  Knowing that God loves me, warts and all is hard!  Because I fail.  I fail so many many times, I don't deserve that kind of unconditional love!  Seriously, how can someone who knows all, and sees all; someone who has been, who is now and ever will be, perfect in all things, love someone as utterly flawed and imperfect as me?  It boggles my mind!

That's what grace is all about though, isn't it?  It's about accepting what I don't deserve and have in no way earned, simply because God loves me.  Sometimes it is harder to accept love and forgiveness then it is to accept criticism.  I expect criticism, but I most definitely do not, always, expect love!  For me, I have to say that I don't go into a situation expecting the best.  This is perhaps, what holds me back-my own flawed expectations.

As individuals, are we afraid of hearing the truth as far as our shortcomings or are we afraid of hearing the truth that we are loved, despite our shortcomings?  Do we seek God but only go so far?  Do we seek God anticipating the best, or expecting the worst?  How different would our spiritual lives be if we could just trust enough to seek God, without holding back and anticipate the best?

Asa's story reminds me that God is waiting to be found by those who earnestly seek him.  Am I willing to step out a little further?  How about you?

Look for Him because He wants to be found!  Because He loves you and He Loves me!

Disciple and then Delegate

In chapter 6 of the Book of Acts we are introduced to a problem that arose in the early days of the church.  A conflict arose about food distribution between the Hebrews and the Hellenists.  It seems the Hellenists felt that their widows were being neglected and not getting as much as the Hebrew widows.  So the Apostles called the entire community together for a meeting to settle the issue.  In verses 2-4 (NRSV translation), the Apostles say this:

"...It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.  Therefore friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word."  

Now a modern reader might read this and think "what, they were too good to do this?"  Somehow they thought they were above needing to do this task?  Not so fast!  I think if the Apostles thought that there was no one well qualified to handle the task they would have taken it on.  But, the community was growing-the Apostles had trained people within the community who could take on this leadership role.  They were fully confident that they could safely delegate this task.  The Apostles had discipled their followers so they could then start delegating so they could continue to disciple others.  That's how you grow-you teach and train others how to lead, so they can take over and then you move on and teach and train others how to do the exact same thing!

And Luke is kind enough to introduce us to two of the seven chosen-Stephen and Phillip.  We are able to learn about their separate ministries.  Stephen's ministry went beyond just feeding to performing "signs and wonders" and also speaking in the synagogue of the Freedmen.  He is so powerful in his speech that individuals set out to discredit him and he is brought before the council, where he delivers a message.  It was a message that they did not like, so they stoned him. Phillip, meanwhile, goes to Samaria and "proclaimed the Messiah to them."  He also performed signs and wonders.  He was so successful that the Apostles on hearing that Samaria had accepted the word of God, sent Peter and John to pray for them.

If these examples don't make a strong case for the importance of good discipleship in the church today, then I don't know what does?!  Not only did the Apostles teach and preach, they also trained their followers, leading by example.  And when they felt that certain followers were ready, they gave them a chance to lead by delegating tasks to them.  By doing this, it freed them up to help others work through the same process in order to get to the point where they could lead as well.

This makes a lot of sense.  Our members are "out in the trenches" working and dealing with people who might never darken the doorstep of a church, but are receptive to talking with and listening to someone "just like them."  Discipleship really is an apprenticeship because not only should it give "book knowledge" but it should also provide practical knowledge.  An apprentice needs to learn first by listening and watching and then you let them do the work.  You have them try their hand at something small so they can become comfortable doing the work and then they move on to more difficult tasks.  When a leader can delegate with confidence, then they can continue to do the work of leading and training others.  When the "trainee" can become a "trainer" then suddenly you can train even more people which means more work can get done.  It also frees a leader up to focus more on vision and leading because others have been trained to teach.

I can only speak from my personal experience in the UMC but I have a feeling that what I am about to say plagues a lot of denominations out there.  We assume too much and we tend to skip the discipleship step.  Not every church does this, and I don't think that it is done consciously, but the undercurrent is there.  We assume when someone walks through the door that they know how to pray.  We assume that they are reading their Bible and that they know how to read their Bible.  We assume that they are ready to do mission and evangelism work right from the get-go.  We assume that they understand what it means to be a Methodist and what comes with that territory.    We assume that they know how to practically apply Bible teaching in their daily lives.  So rather than taking some time to teach and train we put them in to some sort of ministry and they burn out and leave through the side door.  We scratch our collective heads and wonder what happened? We asked them to do something that they were not ready or prepared to do.  We skipped a step.



If we want to grow and share the gospel then we have got to get serious about discipleship.  It doesn't happen overnight.  It is not a "silver bullet", it is a process that takes time.  Are we willing to take the time to do some serious training?  That my darling readers is a question well worth asking and answering.  Our response will dictate our outcome.  And outcome is the new buzz word in the "measuring metrics" world.  If we get this right, then the numbers game will become a thing of the past!  That is what makes the question worth asking!  The day we declare "numbers no more" will be the day that I declare Hallelujah AMEN!

Those Pesky Stumbling Blocks

Matthew 18:6-7 (NRSV) says this:

"If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea.  Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks!  Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to the one by whom the stumbling block comes!"

Prior to this Jesus had used children as the example of how one approaches the Kingdom of Heaven.  By parable and example before and after this section Jesus talks about religious leaders being more concerned with outward appearances than inward well being.  Or, about the slave who was forgiven his debt who in turn did not forgive the debt that was owed to him by another slave.  Stumbling blocks, child like faith, leadership, what is the common thread here?

Children today are treated very differently than they were even 200 years ago, let alone 2,000 years ago!  As soon as they could help out with chores that was exactly what they were expected to do!  Or as the notes in the Wesley Study Bible point out, they were treated like servants.  They were not in positions of authority, they were workers.  But I do think that there were some similarities to the children of today.  For small children everything is cool!  Bugs are cool.  Mud puddles are cool.  The weirder it is, the cooler it must be!  They approach everything with a sense of wonder and excitement.  They also have not figured out a sense of right and wrong, which means that they are teachable.  They don't approach others with any preconceived notions of who they are or where they are in the pecking order.  A child doesn't ask why someone is in a wheelchair because they are being cruel.  They ask because they really want to know why is that person in a wheelchair?  Judgements develop with age and life experience cruelty doesn't come in to play until they get a little bit older and base their reactions on the examples that they have seen from others around them. 

There are certain boundaries that we have to set for our children in order to keep them safe, like sticking your hand on a hot stove is bad because you might get burned or look both ways before you cross the street because getting hit by a car would be bad!  These are not stumbling blocks but rather appropriate boundaries that parents traditionally teach.  Jesus went head to head with the Pharisees not because he thought that boundaries or traditions were inappropriate.  He went head to head with the Pharisees because they were putting so many unnecessary rules on people that had nothing to do with God's Word.  They were going out of their way to set up stumbling blocks! 

Pharisees and Scribes were the leaders of the Jewish community.  Their job, their task was to teach and to lead by example.  Their job was to serve the people of the Jewish community.  As time went on they became less concerned with the servant role and more concerned with the status role and that is what they taught to others.  You're wealthy?  Here's where you fall in the pecking order.  You're blind?  You're low down on the list!  It's tradition, that's just the way it is and that's how it has always been done!  It's no wonder that Jesus could not perform many miracles in his hometown because they could not accept who he had become since they knew where he came from!  They were offended because he was stepping out beyond the established hierarchy pecking order.  He was not being what they thought he should be, he was not acting the way they thought he should act.  Nazareth?  Nothing good comes out of that place!  It's the wrong side of the tracks!  Tradition in this sense, became a stumbling block.

It makes me wonder what we have set up as stumbling blocks today in our modern society.  How do we hold others back because of the views we have been taught to hold?  Do we judge older adults as being less worthy to hire because we think they do not have the ability to contribute with the skills they have or have the ability to learn new skills?  Do we judge younger people as being less than trustworthy because they have tattoos and piercings so they must be "from the wrong side of the tracks?"  Do we choose not to hire someone with a past criminal record because we are convinced that they there is no way they could possibly change?  Do we close churches because their numbers don't fit our dashboard?  Do we end up accomplishing nothing because we are so entrenched in my way or the highway?  How many potential leaders and innovators have fallen through the cracks because they don't behave the way we believe they should?  How many have fallen by the wayside because of the stumbling blocks we have placed in front of them?

I don't think tradition is the problem.  I think it is how we use those traditions that lead to problems.  I'll give you a modern day example.  We tell our children that they can do anything they want to do.  That in itself is not a bad statement!  What we changed became the problem.  We started grading on "curves", we told them "everybody wins" and we made sure that competitions reflected that philosophy.  We taught them that success could be easy and failure was impossible.  Everyone and everything would work in their favor.  So when our children went out in to the real world and fell flat on their face they were completely unprepared for dealing with failure!  They couldn't understand that work was hard and sometimes tedious and that persistence was important!  We didn't do our children any favors by sugar coating the truth.  If anything, we prolonged the learning curve of life in the real world because they had to totally change their thinking!  In our quest to better "nurture" we created a whole new set of stumbling blocks!

We've done a similar thing in our churches.  Come as you are is good, but we've chosen to leave off the part about Discipleship and confronting things that we need to change in our lives in order to follow this path.  There are key components of a faith journey that we have chosen to either gloss over or just not mention because it might make someone uncomfortable.  Do we offer a method for daily Bible study?  Do we teach about prayer?  Do we teach about church tradition and why the church believes certain things?  Do we teach about humility and serving others being critical elements to an individual's faith walk?  And accountability?  It's not personal, it's numerical.  And we wonder why we flounder about without any clear purpose or sense  of direction!  We've created our own stumbling blocks.

No wonder Jesus warned us strongly about stumbling blocks!  He understood that we could take something meant for our good and twist it so badly that it becomes a stumbling block!  Jesus never said that following in his footsteps would be easy!  He didn't say that there would not be challenges or that the work would be easy.  He did provide us with a starting point-a child.  Approach the Kingdom with a child like heart of wonder and excitement.  Approach the Kingdom as a servant willing to do the work.  Approach the Kingdom without the customary baggage of judgement, pessimism or superiority.  Approach the kingdom as a child like servant and become the leader that God intended you to be! 

That's a fantastic message of hope!  That message is still alive and well today!  We simply have to choose to grab hold of it! Those pesky stumbling blocks will still be there but that doesn't mean that you have to let them stop you!  Hope remains!  Thank you Jesus for reminding us once again that hope remains!