This Sunday, our congregation had our first virtual service. We’re working on improving things so they flow more smoothly, but here it is:
Musings From the Past Few Days
Last Wednesday, my life changed. That afternoon I experienced what someone my age hopes will never happen. My heart decided I needed to take a little trip to the emergency room. After arriving by ambulance and having a couple of EKGs done, the cardiologist on duty decided that it was time for me to go to the emergency heart cath room. While there, the doctor found that the artery in back of my heart was 95% blocked and a stent needed to be inserted. While this was happening, my heart tried to make things even more difficult. Fortunately it calmed down and the procedure was completed. After resting in the hospital for a couple days, I was able to go home on Saturday. I am feeling much better and getting anxious to start rehab and get back to some semblance of normal, although I know that the definition of normal will be different.
Between my adventure and all that is going on around the world with the COVID19 virus, I have had some time to think. One thing that something like a heart attack or pandemic will do is cause us to come to grips with what really is important.We chase around trying to find significance in so many different things and we many times forget what really counts. The current virus has pretty much brought the world to a standstill. Almost all sporting events have been cancelled, and the Olympics are in danger of not happening this summer. Restaurants, theaters, even churches are shuttered in an attempt to flatten out the curve and get ahead of this. It is likely that folks will begin to lose jobs, and there is the very real threat of a global recession. There is a great deal of fear as the unknown looms.
All of the dislocation and hardship that folks have gone through or will go through is hard and I don’t want to downplay or minimize their suffering. I grieve with those who are grieving the loss of opportunities, jobs, or especially the loss of loved ones. I am not suggesting that my thoughts are the answer for anyone else. The recent events in my own life and the “new normal” Jan and I are already dealing with, have led me to do a lot of taking stock, trying to determine what is really vital.
First, my relationship with God is the most important thing. Without that, there is nothing else. Loving God with every fiber of my being is the one thing. Next after that comes loving Jan as Jesus loved the church, giving myself for her. Then comes loving my children and their families and being a good grandad. Beyond that comes loving my brothers and sisters in Christ, especially those I am in community with, as Jesus loved me. Then there is loving my neighbor as myself. Regardless of what else may happen in the days and years ahead, if I can do those things I will consider myself to have done well.
Have you thought about these things? What do you consider to be most important?
Feasting and Fasting
In the liturgical traditions, this time of year is the season of Lent, a period of fasting, reflection, and repentance leading to the remembrance of Jesus’ crucifixion and the celebration of his resurrection. The Lenten season lasts 40 days, beginning with Ash Wednesday, a day of repentance and remembrance that we are dust and to dust we shall return, and ending on the Thursday before Easter Sunday. During this time, people fast from certain types of food, from alcohol or tobacco, from social media, or any number of things. Others add some sort of service to others or other spiritual activity to their schedule. No matter what is done, the focus is on the fact that we are broken people living in a broken world. It helps those who follow Jesus reflect on why he died on the cross
In many places where Lent is practiced, there is a period of time known as Mardi Gras, or Carnival. It is a time of feasting and partying, sometimes to excess. The day before Ash Wednesday is called either Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday. According to Wikipedia, Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday, referring to the feasting that takes place. Shrove Tuesday refers to the liturgical season of Shrovetide, which ends on that day. Many traditions consume pancakes on Shrove Tuesday. In many places, the Mardi Gras celebration begins the weekend before and Fat Tuesday is the culmination of the feasting.
The Bible speaks of both feasting and fasting. The Old Testament Hebrews were commanded to fast at certain times. There were also times of fasting for certain types of people or ministry. There were also time of feasting commanded. There were seven different feasts which the Israelites were commanded to attend. Deuteronomy 14 commands the people, once a year, to carry their tithe to what became the Temple in Jerusalem and eat it before the Lord in that place. If the way was too long for them, they were to sell their tithe, and when they arrived at the city, to buy whatever they wanted: oxen, sheep, wine or strong drink. The people of God were commanded to fast at certain times, and they were commanded to party at others.
Our little community of believers tries to carry on a bit of that tradition. We have a Mardi Gras celebration the Saturday before Ash Wednesday every year. We feast on pork, gumbo, and other foods. There is wine and strong drink, although it is rare when someone imbibes excessively. We believe that Christians should throw the best parties and bring the best wine. We also believe in reflecting on the fact that even though we are in Christ, we still sin and need to repent. This year we gathered on Ash Wednesday to serve dinner to a group of men at a homeless shelter, reminding us of our human condition. We will celebrate Good Friday and will feast on Easter Sunday.
We believe that the times of fasting or repentance remind us that the Kingdom has not come in its fullness, that we live in that in-between time. When we feast we look ahead to the wedding feast of the Lamb, when all things will be made new and we will live in the New Jerusalem, when there will be no need for fasting.
Even so, come Lord Jesus.
Blast from the Past: Reflections on Ash Wednesday
This was first posted on February 21, 2010 and has been edited to bring it up to date.
Wednesday, February 26 is the first day of Lent. Ash Wednesday is celebrated by Christians around the world with a service that includes the placing of ashes on the forehead of the worshipers. The ashes are to remind that we are made from dust, and to dust we will return. In the tradition in which I grew up, Lent (like most of the church calendar) was not even on our radar. We celebrated Christmas, Palm Sunday, and Easter. I had a vague notion that other days were observed in other traditions, but we were taught that those days were not important. So, I’m a bit late to the keeping of the church calendar, and still learning.
As I go through the Lenten period, I am struck by the fact that our bodies are formed from the dust of the ground, and to that dust they will return. Because of the brokenness of Creation, we face the inevitable decay of our physical selves. As a more than middle-aged man who has tried to compete in sports at the same level he did when he was in his twenties, I can attest to that. At some point our bodies will wear out and no longer be useful to us. When they are then placed in the ground, they will return to the dust from which they came. As we look around us, we see that decay in every part of our world. Ash Wednesday and Lent are good reminders that we are broken and in need of a savior.
Thankfully, that is not the end of the story. During this time, we take a good hard look at our humanity and our brokenness, but we also look ahead to the time when our Savior will return and will restore Creation. We look forward to the resurrection and the Kingdom of God coming in all its fullness. When I think about Ash Wednesday, and the symbolism of the ashes on the forehead, I think of the song, “Beauty Will Rise.” In that song Steven Curtis Chapman sings, “Out of these ashes… beauty will rise and we will dance among the ruins We will see Him with our own eyes Out of these ashes…beauty will rise For we know, joy is coming in the morning… in the morning …This is our hope. This is the promise. That it would take our breath away to see the beauty that’s been made out of the ashes…”
As we go through this season of Lent, contemplating our sinfulness and our need of a redeemer, let us remember that we do have a Savior who has made us a new creation, and who will one day make all things new.
Standing Stones: Joshua 4
In our gathering this week we looked at Joshua 4 and standing stones.
A New Year
Today we enter into a new year. Not only a new year, but also a new decade. Yes, I know that technically the new decade begins next January. But it is the 20s now, so I’m going with calling this a new decade.
I’ve seen a lot of talk about reviewing the past decade, ten year plans, etc. I think it’s a good idea to look back over the last few years and see the changes that have occurred in our individual lives, in our families, and in our world. As I look back over the time since 2010, I can think of a number of things that are different as I enter 2020.
Ten years ago, Jan and I were parents of two unmarried young adults. Now we have added a daughter-in-law, a son-in-law, and three grandchildren. In 2010 I was working as a teacher’s assistant and Jan was working at an assistant living facility. As this decade begins, I am a driver at a retirement community and Jan is semi-retired and tutoring. During this time we have lost Jan’s father and oldest sister.
Ten years ago, we were helping plant a church that met in a bagel shop. In the past ten years the church plant ceased to be and we are now part of a small Presbyterian church that seeks to serve our city. Since 2010, I have lost about 25 pounds and been able to keep it off. My hair has become grayer, and my joints creakier. When the last decade began, we had never heard of Huntington’s Disease. As the new decade begins, we are dealing with the reality of Jan having HD, and all of what that means.
As I look back on the last ten years, I see some happy times and some sad times. I see times of accomplishment and times where I wonder what in the world I was thinking. Sometimes life seemed relatively normal and sometimes it seemed like a long, strange trip. There were times when my faith was strong and there were times when my usual prayer was, “Lord I believe, help my unbelief.”
As I look ahead to the 20s, I don’t know if they will be roaring or calm. I am not even going to attempt a ten year plan and my crystal ball shattered long, long ago. The only thing I do know (and have to constantly remind myself of) is that my Father in heaven loves me and my family with a furious, inexhaustible love and will bring everything about for my good and his glory.
Check back in another ten years. Maybe.
Reflections
A couple of days ago I celebrated another trip around the sun, my 64th. It was good to be with family.
There’s a lot to reflect on as I look back over the years. Our country has been through quite a few military conflicts, none as important to the world as WWII, although a couple have lasted much longer. We have bounced back and forth between conservative and liberal administrations and seem to have lost the center, as the two major parties move further away from each other.
The evangelical wing of the church is becoming as divided as the parties, with one group siding with the Republicans and one group throwing their lot in with the Democrats. We have forgotten that we are not to depend on government to “deliver” us, but only on the Savior who gave his life for us.
I reflect back on my own life, how so much of what I was absolutely sure of as a young person has faded away and how what I don’t know may be greater than what I do know. I still hold to the core beliefs of my faith in Jesus, but that is more and more being distilled down to loving God with every fiber of my being and loving others as Jesus loves me.
Physically, I am feeling the effects of getting older. I move a lot slower than when I was younger, and the only way I can touch the rim on a basketball goal now is by climbing up a stepladder. I can no longer eat the way I used to, and sometimes I forget and misplace things.
All in all, with all the changes, there is not much I would change and very little that I regret. While there are things I might have done differently, I believe that my steps have ordered by a gracious and loving Heavenly Father and that he has and will continue to work everything for my good. To quote one of my favorite stories, “How goes the world?” “The world goes not well. But the Kingdom comes.”
Advent
We are currently in the middle of the time in the church calendar known as Advent. It is a four week period in which we remember the expectant longing of the people of Israel for their Messiah, the promised king who would deliver them from bondage.
At the same time we remember their longing and hope, we look at our own hope and our own longing for our King to return and set all things right. As we look around us, we can see that today’s world is not all that different from that of the first century.
It was a dark time then. The people of Israel had returned to their land, but they were still in bondage to an oppressive empire in addition to their bondage to their own sin. We too, live in dark days. As we look at the world around us it seems as if wickedness and oppression is increasing, and even creation seems to be groaning more and more.
As the first century Jews were divided spiritually and politically, so the twenty first century church seems to have forgotten who its allegiance belongs to. I know that is a broad over-generalization, but that is what gets all the press. We long for the day when the true Kingdom will be consummated.
Like the Jews, we hope and long with expectation because we believe that our King Jesus will return and fully make all things new, that there will be no more pain, sickness or death, and that, to paraphrase Sam Gamgee, everything sad will become untrue.
Even so come, King Jesus.
The Voice Crying in the Wilderness
This past Sunday we kicked off the Advent season with John the Baptist.
Blast From the Past: More From My Journey
This is from 2008.
Most of my life I’ve heard that God wants us to “dream big”, “attempt great things for God, expect great things from God”, and desire to be “greatly used”. Well, I’ve dreamed big dreams and I’ve asked God to let me do great things for him. And, guess what? *crickets chirping*
That’s right. Nothing has come of those dreams. In fact, most of them have crashed and burned. The dreams have ranged from competing in the Olympics (or at least getting to the Trials), to coaching college basketball and building a program that would be among the best in the country and having a ministry that would deeply impact the campus. I’ve even dreamed of of helping plant a church that would touch my community and advance the community. I’ve followed the advice of Christian motivational speakers and asked God to give me his dream for me, and I really believed he had done this.
I have come to the point in my life where I am done with dreaming. I believe that God does give some big dreams and big things to do for the Kingdom. I don’t believe that I’m one of those people. Through my reading (Bible, blogs, and books), praying, and thinking, I’ve come to believe that God has called me to simply be a follower of Jesus. He is telling me to not worry about where the road is going to go, or what I am going to do along the journey. When I ask, he just says, “You’ll find out”. There were a lot of followers of Jesus in the 1st century that didn’t make it into the New Testament or any of the writings of the time, but they were faithful to what God called them to do. That’s what the Father is calling me to be. And, I’m okay with that.
I’ve often described my walk with God as a journey on the back roads. One of the things about the back roads is that they are away from the crowds, away from the spotlight. Back roads are not the places to do great things or become famous. They are places where a traveler can slow down and get to know their companions, where those you encounter are more likely to give and accept anything that is needed.
So, I’ll continue following my Teacher and Friend down the back roads (and sometimes along narrow trails). There’s a lot to see along the way and many interesting people to meet. And at the end, I look forward to the Father saying, “Welcome home”.