Reptition is the Mother of Learning

"Your steadfast love endures forever."  This is a refrain that rings out again and again in Psalm 136.  In fact, it is the ending of every verse in the Psalm.

I remember going through my confirmation years.  One thing that marks many confirmation classes in the church body I belong to is memorization of the Bible basics in the Small Catechism.  You say things like the commandments and their meanings over and over to yourself, repeating them to your classmates and the teacher.  You finally stand in front of the assembly of God's people and repeat them.  The intent is not to prove how proficient you are at memorizing things, but to start the process of "inwardly digesting" them, as one of our prayers says.  You learn by repeating.

While I am fully on board with changing things up so that people don't get bored with excessive repetition, I also see the value in saying the same things again and again.  We say the Apostles Creed and the Lord's Prayer frequently in congregations I have been a part of, and in the end, we take to heart the things that we speak of God or to God in them.  Sure, repetition has the potential of becoming rote, of just doing it because it's "the thing we do", but to offset that, it means that we take the time to occasionally review why we do the things we do, teaching the importance of them again and again.

If you think about it, this is actually how life works.  How did you learn to eat with a fork and spoon?  By practicing with it.  Watch any child start working with these utensils and you will see that you only improve by doing it again and again.  The first time, food ends up all over the floor, the clothes, the table, and even the hair!  But then, over time, they get much better at it.  They learn it to such a point that they hardly even think about it anymore.  In fact, reflect on how you use your utensils.  Do you even have to think about how you use them anymore?  Repetition is the mother of learning.

That's why I have become a huge fan of singing the same thing over and over, of saying the same thing over and over.  Now, I say that with a huge caveat.  You have to teach the meaning of what you are doing, why you are doing it, and be very explicit with what you are doing.  Just saying, "That's the way we've always done it" will not suffice as an explanation.  In the end, you will even find that teaching about why you are doing what you are doing is also something that calls for repetition, thus proving the point again and again, that we need to continually hear it to truly learn it.

The Power of the Question

I was recently reading through a book in which the author mentioned that he started reading through the Gospel accounts with the goal of counting the number of questions that Jesus asked.  He said that he stopped at somewhere around 300 questions.  Think about that for a moment.  One of the things Jesus did repeatedly was ask questions.  More often than not, He also didn't answer them, but rather allowed the person to work through the answer for themselves.  (By the way, I've also read that letting others answer the question for themselves is just about the most effective way for them to not only learn, but actually retain that information.)

Over the past number of years, I have to say that I have noticed myself moving toward asking questions far more than answering questions, or inserting my thoughts into a situation.  Sure, I might have some knowledge or even wisdom to apply to a situation, and there may be a time where it is suitable to provide that.  However, far more often, it is most beneficial to ask others to work through their thoughts and assumptions on things, to see what they are thinking and, perhaps more importantly, why they are thinking that.  That begins to tap into the power of the question.

I realize that this really isn't anything all that profound.  Yet, it also goes against so much of our human nature.  We want to think that we have something to contribute to the conversation.  We have knowledge that fits the situation, and it just seems appropriate to provide it.  We have wisdom regarding what is happening, and it just seems appropriate to share it for the benefit of others.  Yet, how often have you provided knowledge or wisdom, only to have the other person do something else, regardless of how good or right your knowledge or wisdom was?  Just like we think we have something to contribute, we could also benefit from remembering that they also think that, and somewhere in the back of their mind, they may also think that their way of thinking of the situation is superior to ours.

To ask questions means that we put aside our human tendency to insert our thoughts into the situation. That, my friends, is a hard thing to do. It involves a very intentional effort.  It means that we do as Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians and consider others as more significant than ourselves.  Truthfully, we don't want to do that.  That's why the power of the question so often goes untapped.

I admit that I am still learning this.  I've been coached by a wonderful man of God, who introduced me to much of the power of the question.  I've seen repeatedly in my reading of God's Word how often God asks a question, looking for His people to consider their answer.  And I have grown to see that God's Spirit is at work in ways that I can hardly imagine, and sometimes I have to ask before I see how He is bringing this person before me at this time to contribute something that I would not have seen if I hadn't simply asked for their input.

The power of the question.  What is keeping you from making use of this powerful thing?  How do you see God using questions to grow His people in knowledge, faith, and maturity?  

Temples and Tabernacles: Permanence and Manuverability

I've been giving this some thought for a while, and so perhaps it is time to start putting it down as a series of blog entries.  When you read through the Bible, one thing that you find regarding God and His presence on earth is the place where God has interaction with His people.  We especially find this in the Old Testament, leading up to and through the time of Jesus, but it's also something that carries on even after the ascension of Jesus.

What I'm talking about here is the place of God's presence.  At the time when Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt and into the wilderness, that place was the tabernacle, a tent where God came and lived among the people.  It was at the entrance to that tent where Moses would meet God and then deliver the words of God to the people.

For quite some time after the event of the Exodus, that was God's place of His presence.  When the tabernacle wasn't present, the ark of the covenant itself carried that place of God's presence.  During the period known as the judges, the ark carried that place of presence.  It travelled with God's people, which meant that God Himself travelled with His people.

It was King David, the second king of Israel, who had the thought of creating a permanent place for God's presence, in the form of a temple.  Even though it seems that God prefered to be manuverable among His people, He permitted the building of a temple, which took place under David's son, Solomon.  There, God now had a permanent place to meet with His people.  There were still restrictions on who could enter that place of presence, and what they could do there, but now, rather than travelling with His people, God's people instead had to come to the place of His presence.

Over the next few blog posts, we will be looking a little bit more at this.  We'll look at the strengths and weaknesses of each of these, but more importantly, we will look at what it means for us Christians, in our day and age, and where the place of God's presence is.  So join me on this rambling thought of temples and tabernacles, the place of God's presence.

Thinking Between Generations

There's a saying that I have heard in recent years.  "If you can't figure out some kind of technology, just ask a teenager to show you."  The reality truly does seem to be that the younger generation is more up to date on technological advances.  After all, that is the world that they are growing up in.  For kids, even as young as elementary school, computers, tablets, and the like are already in use when it comes to the education task, so it makes sense that they would know more about such things than those of us who don't have that extensive of a background in them.

Yet, one thing we also recognize is that, with age often comes wisdom.  Those who have been there, done that, actually do have some wisdom and knowledge that they can pass down to the younger generations.  Even as they may struggle to relate to those younger than them, the effect that they can have when they take a younger person or two under their wing can truly be a remarkable thing.

However, when you look at a typical Christian church in our day and age, you are more likely to find that the ages and stages get somewhat segregated from each other.  There is Children's Ministry, Youth Ministry, Single Adult Ministry, Family Ministry, Senior Ministry, and perhaps many other flavors.  While the intent behind these is actually a good thing, the one side effect that they can have is to isolate one generation from another, and in doing that, actually increase the distance between people of faith.

Think of how these often come to light.  One generation finds their worship life enhanced by traditional music and liturgy, while another generation finds their worship life ehanced by more contemporary expressions.  Instead of working together to see how they can praise God with a new song, these often end up sitting in opposite corners, each saying that the other just simply doesn't get it. 

What if these generations were to come together in a study of God's Word, actually listen to each other, and calmly discuss what they hear the other saying, and expressing what their thoughts are?  Wouldn't that seem more conducive to building up the body of Christ, rather than having them cast their flaming arrows at each other from opposite corners?  It's a worthwhile thing to consider.

As a pastoral leader of a congregation, this is the shape of some future ministry directions that we will be going.  It will not be easy as we engage on this journey, but one thing I have noticed is that the most worthwhile things in life are not the easiest to do. 

Walking Together

Yesterday, I posted a little bit about what it could mean to be inclusive as Christians.  Today, I want to follow that thought up a little bit more.  Specifically, as we think about the things that we do as Christians, how do we seek to include those who may not yet know Jesus, as we hope for the Spirit to do His work of changing their hearts to faith.

I'll start off with a quick question.  What would you think if a new person, not yet a Christian, but interested and open to learning more, came into your church and had a wonderful voice?  Would you welcome that person into the church choir prior to their becoming a "member"? (At some point, I'll talk a little bit about membership and what all it means, but for the moment, we'll say that it means they are instructed in the faith and say that they believe what they have learned)  If you say no, what are your objections?  If you say yes, what is your reasoning for including them?

I'm not going to say that there is a cut and dried solution to such a question as this.  I will also say that we are called to proceed in caution when we think of ways to have people not yet Christian walking alongside us.  For example, I would suggest that it would be inappropriate for a non-Christian to teach in the Sunday School class, regardless of how skilled they are as a teacher.  There is an element of sharing what you have learned in teaching, and if they have not yet learned and know Jesus, how can they share about Him?

At the same time, I would also suggest that we should look for more ways to include those not yet in Jesus in walking together with us.  Could they sing in the choir?  Perhaps there the Spirit will work through the words and the music to draw them to faith.  On the other hand, if they only see it as an opportunity to show off their voice, then perhaps it isn't fully appropriate.  How do you discern between these?  Well, as with most things, it gets back to connecting with the person, growing in a relationship with them.

Ultimately, the reason that we include people in our walk together is because we want them to know the hope of Jesus in their lives.  That means that we need to do the necessary work of getting to know them, of relating to them, of loving them as the neighbor that God puts among us.  Only as we get to know them can we understand which roles are appropriate for them to participate in as they walk along with us.  Sure, we may make mistakes about that from time to time, but that is where we rest even more on the forgiveness of God in Jesus.

What it Means to be Inclusive

When we think about God's message of grace and forgiveness through Jesus, we see that God intends for this gift to be inclusive.  God wants all people to have access to their forgiveness in Jesus and to eternal life.  God wants all people to be included in offering their prayers and praise, as they receive His grace and goodness.  God is inclusive in this sense.  He wants all people to be part of His eternal, enduring kingdom.

Yet, we find that which may, in some ways, seem contradictory.  God tells us that those who make up His kingdom are indeed an exclusive group.  They are those who believe in what Jesus has accomplished for them, and who make that the center and anchor of what they believe and how they live.  God is exclusive in that, not all roads lead to God.  Only the road that goes through the cross and resurrection of Jesus leads to God.

That impacts how we go about our lives together as God's people.  In a way, we strive to be like God in this.  We want all people to hear the message.  We want to be an inclusive group, reaching out with that message to let all people groups know that God has redeemed them and made them His own.  And sometimes, that means that we also bring them alongside with us to learn about this one named Jesus, and what He has done, and how that impacts our lives lived together in faith.

That's what it means to be inclusive.  It means that we tell all people that this message is for them, and we walk along with them as they explore this message, as they ask questions about this message, and as they work with what that means for how they live their lives.  Sometimes it means that we ask them to work alongside us, learning how our God would have us live as forgiven people with an enduring message for the people of the world, sharing God's compassion with others. 

In one sense, that means that we should probably look more at ways, as Christians and as congregations, in which we can include people rather than exclude them.  Yes, there are elements of our faith in which God calls for some level of exclusivity, and we honor those, even as we explain them to those who do not yet know of them, seeking to bring them to a point where they are welcomed with us in those.  Yet, when it comes to such matters as feeding the poor, working on compassionate ministries, and the like, including them to work with us will likely provide more avenues for God's Spirit to work in their hearts than if we were to exclude them.

As I would explain it, inclusive means that we invite them to walk along with us as we all learn more about this God who has seen fit to forgive us in Jesus, and who wants all people to know of this forgiveness for them.

The Depth of Good News

It's probably happened to you as it has happened to me.  You meet someone who says that they are truly passionate about something.  You see the evidence in their life.  Not only do they talk about this thing that they are passionate about, but it infiltrates their life in very deep, meaningful ways.  You may or may not necessarily agree with the thing they are passionate about, but you cannot deny the depth of their passion.

I've been that way about running in the past.  I love to run.  It's not always easy, but I enjoy it when I get the chance.  (Yes, sometimes work and family matters preclude me from getting to that which I love, but the love remains, even when the miles aren't being pounded.)  If you look on my nightstand, you see running magazines.  If you look in my closet, you see running shoes and clothes.  It's something that I have a certain amount of passion toward.

Just imagine if we, the people of God, who have been rescued and redeemed by Christ Jesus, would carry that passion over into all aspects of our lives.  Now, let me be clear, you can be God's child, but not necessarily spilling out this passion in many and various ways.  However, as you are filled with the forgiveness of Christ Jesus, and as the new life springs up in you through your Baptism, imagine if that passion for Christ Jesus started revealing itself in passionate ways in your life.

Far too often, we settle for a shallower Christian faith.  After this blog post, I'm going to post another one, with a link to a youtube video that I believe speaks somewhat to this.  To me, it's sad that we often settle for a shallower version of the good news of God in Christ Jesus, and therefore, we have less to be passionate about.

Think about it for a moment, though.  Isn't the good news of what God has done for us in Jesus just about the most meaningful, valuable thing we could ever have?  If I'm passionate about running shoes, shirts, and shorts, how much more should I be passionate about eternal life, and forgiveness of sin?  The depth of God's Good News is far deeper than my best run ever. 

Growing in that passion would be a good thing.  It's not the goal of faith, but rather, an expression of faith.  May that expression be growing in your life as you live as God's redeemed, forgiven child.

Dealing with the Less Gifted

"Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness."  Romans 12:6-8

"I really wish I could do ____________ like so-and-so does."  Ever caught yourself saying or thinking such a thought?  You see another person, especially a brother or sister in Christ, and you see how they seem to have a gift for something in particular that you seem to be lacking, and you really wish you could do the same thing.

There are many times where we want to be like someone that we perceive as having a greater "quantity" of some spiritual gift that we ourselves seem to be lacking.  And I could spend a whole post on that subject, and perhaps will in the future.  But perhaps you've also been on the other end of this spectrum.  It's the one that looks something like that.

"Why can't so-and-so just ________________ like I do?"  Let's say, for example, that you find it really pretty easy to be generous with your time, money, and possessions.  And then, you look around at many of your fellow brothers and sisters in Jesus, and you wonder why they just cannot seem to do like you find it so easy to do.  They seem to hold on tight-fisted to the things that God has given them, and you wonder why they can't see that freely and generously giving is actually a great blessing.

Could it be that God disperses even these kinds of gifts in different "quantities?"  St. Paul, in the quotation from Romans above, seems to indicate so.  And that presents a challenge to those who have received greater proportions of the gifts. 

Do you look down on others who aren't able to manifest these gifts as easily or well as you are able to?  If so, that's a misuse of the gift that God has given you.  He has given you such a gift to build up the body of Christ, not to look upon yourself as one who is exalted because you received a greater proportion of the gift.  Sure, it's acceptable to serve as an example, but remember, an example is one that demonstrates to others how to be built up in the gift, not to exalt one's self for having the greater proportion.

If you discover that you have been given a greater proportion of a spiritual gift than others, rejoice and be thankful to God.  He has given you a great gift.  At the same time, remember that humility is the best road to follow as you interact with others who have received a lesser proportion of the gift.  Humility strives to teach them, to raise them up, and to see them grow in the gift, rather than exalting yourself at their expense. 

Created To Interact

"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ..."  Ephesians 4:11

Over my last couple of posts, I've been writing about how God doesn't create people equally, at least in the respect that we all have the same gifts, same talents, and same aptitudes in this world.  For the most part, we really do get this.  We understand that some people are born with great athletic talent, others with great intellectual talent, others with great social talent, still others with great leadership talent, and so forth.  Often, we find ourselves wishing that we could have some of those talents that we see in others.

During our lives in this world, we face an interesting situation.  We desperately want to fit in with others, and yet, we also want to be unique.  I have seen these competing desires play themselves out in many different ways in the lives of people.  (As a side note, we don't outgrow this as we grow up.  We might think it's a teenage thing, but it really does still touch us all.)  As people, we struggle to be unique, and yet to fit in with others.

The thing is, as God would design it, we can actually celebrate both our uniqueness and how we are designed to fit in with each other.  It's actually not about looking the same, or having the same gifts, talents, and abilities.  It's much more about discovering how we "fit together" as God's people.  And that's where the verse quoted above actually sheds a lot of light on this for us.

God gave different people different gifts, talents, and roles.  St. Paul realized that, and wrote about how those are all to work together to build up the body.  They aren't to each argue that they are more important than the others.  They aren't to be held up as one being greater than another.  Rather, they are meant to be complementary.  In fact, I would even be so bold as to suggest that, if one of these is missing, then the body is suffering from a lack.

God created us to interact with each other in our uniqueness.  But the thrilling thing to discover is that God fits us together, much in the same way a puzzle fits together.  God provides the pieces, and no two look alike.  Yet, they are all needed for the picture to look correct. 

What do we take away from this?  God created you different from others, but He did so with the intent that you interact with others to build up the body of Christ.  You are a necessary part of it, just as are the other members and parts.  Each is to be celebrated, embraced, and interacted with.

More To Some, Less To Others

I know that most people don't enjoy reading through some parts of the Bible.  In particular, the book we call Leviticus tends not to be one of the more favorite books.  Part of the reason for this is that the different sacrifices are explained in great detail, what they are, how they are to be offered, and other matters like that.  Since there is relatively little action, such mundane matters often get overlooked for the more exciting stories.

However, if you read through the book, there's one thing that really stands out.  God intentionally doesn't give to an entire tribe of His people.  He doesn't give land to them, and that means that God seems to also be depriving them of the opportunity to plant crops and raise animals to sustain themselves.  The tribe of the Levites basically gets left out of the inheritance of the land, and at God's express command.

Why is this?  Well, one significant part of it is that God had set aside the Levites to oversee the rituals and practices of the sacrifices on behalf of God's people.  They were to dedicate themselves to this.  And so, God seems to have set up a way in which they could focus completely on such a task, and not have to worry about things like farming and husbandry.  It is as though God said, "Concentrate on your task, and I'll make sure you get fed and taken care of."

That leads almost directly to what I see as a second, and maybe equally as important, reason for setting up this system.  One thing we often hear God saying is that His people are to love their neighbor as themselves.  God gives much to some, and it almost seems as though He gives that abundance to them just so they can share with those who have less than they do.  In the context of the setting up of the Promised Land, God gave much to the other tribes, and then left the Levites to rely upon their provision, simply so that the people would have to practice charity and generosity in caring for their priests.

We often get taken by the idea of equality, especially in the country I live in.  But what if God gives more to some and less to others, not because it's a statement about their relative worth, but because God truly wants to see to it that His people practice charity and generosity.  What if God gives more to some and less to others specifically with the purpose of showing the importance of loving our neighbor as ourselves?

What if, in the end, God isn't so much concerned with equality, as He is with keeping His will and design for life, which includes charity, generosity, and also the humility to accept graciously what others have been given to provide?  And if that is the case, where do you happen to find yourself standing in that equation?

Being Encouragers

One of the things that I think we as Christians can do a much better job of is in the area of encouraging each other.  We're very quick to point out why things won't work, especially when it's something new in the context of our congregation or gathering.  We're also very good at pointing out how it may depart from our traditional approach to things, and to render a bit of resistance to the thought of changing in accordance with any new proposals.

We also find it very natural to grumble about a lot of things, especially when they don't go our way.  If we don't like the direction of something, we're often not shy about speaking up about our discontent.  And I will say that there is a role for things like this.  In some respects, we should always be challenging the things we do (new as well as traditional) because if we discover that they are no longer serving the Gospel, then perhaps it is time to look at something different.

But when it comes to encouraging, we often lack any consistent basis of doing this.  Sure, we may complement the choir and the director when they have a good piece offered in worship, but we perhaps fail to encourage them outside of that time.  We send our children to be taught by Sunday School teachers, but fail to consistently thank them for the sacrifices that they have to make to prepare lessons, to put up with our children, and then we wonder why no one wants to serve as a Sunday School teacher.

The encouragement to encourage is found throughout the pages of the Scriptures.  Quite frequently in his letters, St. Paul says to speak well to each other, to encourage one another, and to build up one another.  And so, I'm going to issue a challenge today.  When you go to worship tomorrow, keep track of how many expressions of encouragement cross your lips.  Observe how many you hear in the context of your time with God's people overall. 

Being an encourager means a few things.  First, you have to be looking for opportunities to encourage.  Believe me, they are there.  In fact, I would dare say you will find more of them than you should find of reasons to be critical of others.  Second, it means you have to be prepared to actually speak that word of encouragement.  Just noticing the fine job someone else does, but not mentioning it to them or to others really amounts to the same as not encouraging.  Encouraging requires words of encouragement being spoken.

WARNING: If you start encouraging others a lot, be prepared for people to think that you have rose colored glasses on, or something along those lines.  It may sound strange, but we simply are not that used to hearing words of encouragement, so we tend to look somewhat strangely at those who are openly encouraging of others.  But just imagine if that became the norm rather than the exception.  Maybe, just maybe, that would be a service to our God and His Gospel message.

The Art of Training

Proverbs 22:6--Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

It's likely that you have read this verse before.  So many Christians have looked at this verse over the ages and thought it a worthwhile one to pursue.  And so, many programs have developed around the idea.  Teach children about God, about the Bible, about their faith, and it should "stick". 

In a sense, this kind of approach is a very "modern" approach.  Now, when I use the word "modern", I don't mean a current, up to date approach.  I mean an approach that is typical of the period of time that has been called "modern" in recent years.  And the reason I suggest that this is a "modern" approach is because of the presumptions that go into the approach are ones that came to highlight the "modern" era.

So what are those presumptions?  Well, one of them presumes that, if you fill a child's mind with good things, then good things should come out of the child.  If we apply the proper knowledge and information to the child, then the child should come out right.  And yet, every single one of us can likely name a child who went through a program like Sunday School, confirmation, or some other teaching of the Christian faith, and then failed to live up to the second part of the verse above.  They departed from it.  While their heads may have been filled with good things, the good that was hoped for did not emerge.

That's why I really like the first word of the verse.  "Train."  Training is not merely learning.  Training involves far more than knowledge.  Training aims to penetrate into the entire life.  It involves what we know, as well as how we think, how we act, how we discipline ourselves, and how we actually live out what we think and believe.  Training doesn't presume that, if you put good in, good will come out.  Training presumes that you will have to actively work to bring that good to life.

One of the downsides of traditional "modern" education is that it focuses primarily on the knowledge component of learning.  In recent years, the thought of actually getting out and experiencing what we learn has started to gain much traction.  I'm actually very much in favor of such an approach.  As we actively engage our world with the teachings of our Christian faith, we'll start to see how God's wisdom applies and works within the world.  We'll see the obstacles that we have to learn to deal with, such as inherited sin, greed, selfishness, and alternative worldviews.  And as we encounter those, we then come back together to share those experiences, see what God says about them, and learn and grow with one another.

Training.  It means intentional work.  When St. Paul says to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, I have a suspicion that this is something of what he means.  Not that we have to work to be right with God.  God has done that completely through Jesus, the cross, and the resurrection.  But as we see just how deeply that impacts every aspect of our lives, we recognize the need for training to live that faith out daily.

The Lord of Your Life

In my role, I tend to do a decent amount of reading.  Yesterday afternoon, I was reading through a few different books and publications, and for some strange reason, it seemed as though I detected a theme coming out.  It wasn't that I had chosen the different reading materials because they all related to each other.  Far from it, they had vastly different topics.  However, a single thought somehow seemed to be coming through to me pretty loudly.

That thought could perhaps best be summed up in a single question.  Is Jesus the Lord of all your life?  At first glance, most Christians would say that He really is.  We recognize the value that Jesus places on our lives, and so we realize that He is Lord of our life.  However, the thought that kept coming back to me focused on the question, so how do we demonstrate that in our life?

Think of it this way.  Is Jesus the Lord of your finances?  Sure, it's easy to overstate this one, but how we make use of the financial gifts God provides for us will certainly demonstrate the centrality of Jesus in our lives.  Do we use our finances for the good of others, and to support God's work and ministry, or do we use them to focus on ourselves and our own wants?

Is Jesus the Lord of your free time?  Or, I could ask it another way.  How does Jesus play a role in your planned trips and vacations?  Again, it would be very easy to overstate this, but is the focus of your vacation only upon your fun and adventure and rest, or does Jesus somehow have a part in what you plan with your vacation time?

Is Jesus the Lord of your family time?  As with all others, this one could also be overstated.  For some of us, we need the reminder that Jesus does indeed have some thoughts on our family time, and we would be wise to heed them.  Spending time with family is something that God greatly desires.  At the same time, does family time centralize in some form or fashion around Jesus, or is it just play time or fun time? 

I write all these things knowing that far too many have overstated them and therefore burned us out on them.  At the same time, I write these things knowing that many of us need the reminder that Jesus is indeed the Lord of all of our lives, and not just the "churchy" parts.  Jesus is part of everything that we do in life, whether we invite Him in or not.  As Christians, it's always a good to remember that Jesus is Lord of our lives, and we benefit greatly when we remember that and live it out.

"We've always done it that way."

We are creatures of habit and routine.  It gets challenging to do things in a different way than what we normally do.  A few years ago, I was reading a book on change, and it had an interesting challenge in it.  Most of us have a pretty set routine when we bathe ourselves.  So the challenge that this book presented was, at the next shower/bath, do everything in the reverse order that you typically follow.  So, say you wash your hair first, and then your body, the challenge would be to wash your body first, and then your hair.

I was surprised at how difficult I found that simple challenge.  For one thing, it made me think about how I normally do things.  I hadn't realized how easily I had fallen into a habit, and mostly didn't even have to think about what I was doing.  Even something as simple as changing the order of my routine proved to be more difficult than I thought it would.  I also found that it took quite a bit longer than normal, because I had to think about so many things.

Change is not easy, especially when it comes to something that we have been doing the same way for a long time.  We slip into the comfort of the routine, and hardly even have to think about what we are doing.  This goes for many areas of life, but also includes our faith life.  Think about how challenging it is to attempt something different than what you have been doing.  Maybe you want to add a family prayer time or devotion time.  It's not normal, and it's different, and so the family struggles to get it as part of the routine.  There's even an element of active dislike toward it.  It takes the place of other things, and those other things are more preferable, in some instances, simply because we are familiar with them.  It may not be so much the prayer or devotion that is disliked, but the change in routine, and that we have to think differently now.

When it comes to our faith life, there is comfort in the familiar.  But should the familiar begin to become routine and rote, where we aren't thinking about the meaning and intent behind it, we start to fall into the danger of doing something just for the sake of doing it.  I don't have a connection with God in which He has revealed this directly to me, but it seems that God would much rather have us engaged and thinking about what we are doing with our faith life rather than simply going through the motions of our routine and habit.

Routine is good.  It gives structure to life.  The danger is when we fail to be properly engaged in the routine, and simply want it to stay the same because we've always done it that way.

Renewing the spirit, the mind, and the body

From Acts 3:19-20, "Repent therefore and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus,..."

You haven't heard from me for a few days.  In part, this is because I have been undertaking a bit of a time of refreshing.  So often in life, we find that our particular careers and vocations make us hit the ground running, and I have experienced some of that over the past several months.  It isn't that we dislike our work, or that we find it burdensome, but rather, we discover that you can be doing something you love, but as you give your best and your all to it, every once in a while you need to have some time to just sit back and take a brief break from it.

My break is in the form of a class that I am taking.  But more than that, it's a time away from the hustle and bustle that comes with my chosen vocation (or maybe I should say the vocation chosen for me).  Time away doesn't mean that I'm uninvolved, but rather, that I take the opportunity for a bit of renewal of the mind, the spirit, and the body.  In fact, a couple of days ago, I found it very refreshing to simply sit in a church building for a time of prayer and of Bible reading.  In a way, it truly seemed as though the Spirit was doing some measure of cleansing of my mind and my spirit, which truly did cause my body to feel refreshed as well.  I hope to do that a few more times.

God's Spirit refreshes our spirits.  But more than that, I also believe that He does the same thing to our minds and our bodies.  Sometimes we need to feel the burdens of our vocations lifted for a time, to be re-invigorated for what God prepares ahead for us.  That refreshing then allows us to re-discover the joy of our vocation, as well as a greater focus.  For me, the academic portion of it also serves to sharpen my mind, which provides endless benefits when it comes to ministry.

Faith in Action

From James 2:18, "But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."

This morning I had some yogurt as part of my breakfast.  This particular yogurt is supposed to have some good living things in it that are good for your insides.  You consume them, and they are supposed to help bring a good, healthy balance to the things that live inside of us.  As they do their work, good health and better digestion are supposed to follow.

 There is a part of me that has long been fascinated by the interplay of our faith and the good that we do in life.  The order of these two things has been recognized as important by the Christian church for centuries.  Indeed, what I say today is nothing new at all.  God does His good work in us by planting faith within us.  He does this either through the water of baptism or through the hearing of His Word.  Either way, faith simply cannot come into being within us if God is not the first and acting agent.

As God does that good and gracious work, something incredible happens.  We become a new creation.  Where formerly there was only a sinful person, now there is a new creation also within the person.  And that new creation recognizes its creator, and desires nothing more than to live as the Creator designs and desires.  To put it another way, the new creation desires to do the good that God calls for in our lives.

This process simply cannot go in any other order.  To say that we have to do good in order for God to make us into a new creation is like saying that our insides need to be healthy before the bacteria can be introduced that does that.  The good bacteria cause the good health to follow.  Good health doesn't precede the bacteria of my yogurt.  One takes place first, and the other happens in response.

The good we do is the work of the new creation that God creates within us.  It does that work because it recognizes God as the good and gracious giver of all things.  May our new creation strive to do even more as it sees God and strives to live according to His design and desires.

Who ya talkin' to?

One of the traditions in my Lutheran heritage is the speaking of "creeds", statements about our faith, which describe who our God is and what we know He has done for us through the Bible.  In fact, it's a very rare Sunday or worship service that goes by without one of the three basic creeds of the church being spoken (those three are the Apostles, Nicene, and the rather lengthy Athanasian creeds).

Part of the tradition of the speaking of these creeds is to have every stand for them.  We then tend to speak them as we face the front of the church.  In many ways, this is a good thing to do.  Part of the confession of what our faith consists of is made to our God.  In that way, we are praising God for what He has done, and for who He tells us that He is.  And our response is to acknowledge our faith by declaring what we believe about Him.

But in recent years, I have also taken some slightly different approaches at times with the speaking of the creeds.  True, these are the confession of faith that we make to God.  But we also make this confession to one another, as a reminder of the faith that we share, and of the fact that God has done this for each of us, and we are part of the Church together.  On those occasions, I have actually had the people of God face one another and speak of their faith to one another.  Our confession of faith unites us together as the people of God, since God has done His work for us all.

I'm also planning to have God's people do something else in the not too distant future.  Rather than facing the altar (which is our way of speaking to God) or facing one another, I will have the people of the congregation turn toward the walls of the building.  We will then speak our faith out toward the community that we are part of.  I see this as a good thing to do.  After all, we live our Christian lives in the context of the various communities that we are part of.  As we live our lives, we strive to live in such a way that our lives declare our faith.  Our confession of faith is directed also toward those who are not part of our gathering of faith.

Our Christian faith is not intended to be something that is kept under wraps and only revealed in connection with our fellow believers.  It's a statement that is made as we encounter the people of the communities in which God has placed us.  My hope is that this simple exercise grows us as we think about how our faith is an important part of our life, not just when we gather, but as we go forth into a community, declaring our faith and boldly proclaiming our God.

Living The New Life

One thing I often get asked about are ways that a Christian can live out their faith in a way that extends beyond the self.  How do I live my faith without being offensive, but with a desire to see opportunities to share that faith in witness to Christ Jesus to others?  It's a good question, and one that I love to hear from people.  It means that their eyes are open to more than just their own standing with God.  It demonstrates a heart that yearns for others to know the great gift of forgiveness and new life that we have received in Jesus' life, death, and resurrection.

Since this is something that continues to come up in ministry, I'm going to start a new weekly "series" of sorts.  I'm planning on calling it "Living the New Life."  I call it this because these kind of questions and answers aren't ways that we make ourselves right with God, or even that we do to please God.  Instead, I see these as ways that the new self, created by God in the water of baptism, wants to live before God and before neighbor.  So don't take these as ways to improve yourself, or to be in better standing in God, but as ideas for what opportunities the new life has to live out our faith in Jesus as our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer.

Today I want to start off with something that may seem really simple, and may not even seem to be all that impactful.  Yet, I see it as one way to watch doors open by the Holy Spirit, and a way in which our eyes and hearts can become even more open to the opportunities that God presents in life.  The suggestion: a prayer walk.  And no, I don't mean something that you get a lot of people lined up for, and then going around praying out loud as though you're part of a parade.  I mean a personal or even small family sized prayer walk.

A lot of people have gotten into the "getting fit" trend.  Walking is a great way to do it, and I know of a lot of people who go for a walk on a daily or weekly basis.  So this suggestion merely adds one element to it.  As you walk, why not offer up prayers on behalf of the people, businesses, our households in the area that you are walking through?  If you walk through your neighborhood, why not ask God to pour His grace into those households?  Why not ask Him to open up doors where you can demonstrate your neighborliness in Christ to that household?  If you are walking through a park, why not ask for God to show His grace to the people or families that you pass?  Likewise, if you walk through a mall, you can do the same thing, and even extend it to the businesses in the venue.

Again, this seems like a small thing.  Yet, the new life in you in baptism wants to demonstrate love for neighbor, and prayer is one of the ways to demonstrate that love.  And you never know what will happen as God listens to your prayers.  He may even put one or two of the people in your path with an opportunity that the Spirit is creating.  He may simply be opening your eyes and heart up to those that you may not have thought of as neighbors before.  He could simply be preserving those for whom you pray, planning to work through the impact of another, and yet preserving them in line with your prayer. 

It may seem small, but our God often does great things through small means and packages.  Praying is natural for the new life that God has created in you through your baptism.  And, if you were looking for an added benefit, walking is also good for you, demonstrating some good stewardship of the body that God has gifted to you by His grace.

Who is my neighbor? part 4

Continuing our look at one of Jesus most well-known parables in Luke 10:25-37, today I want to paint a bit of a different picture than where we have gone so far.  Up to this point, I've focused on the background of the parable, where the lawyer asks Jesus about eternal life.  I've looked at the priest and the Levite, who failed to show compassion, and at the Samaritan, who demonstrated great compassion.  But today, I want to take a bit of a different angle when looking at these words.

Remember, Jesus was speaking these words in a particular context, at a particular time, and for a particular purpose.  Essentially, Jesus answered the lawyer's question "Who is my neighbor" not by giving him a definition of his neighbor, but by demonstrating what it means to be a neighbor to others.  Pulling the meaning to us, it's not to ask "who shall I serve as my neighbor", but rather, "how can I be a good neighbor to those around me?"

There is also a deeper meaning to this parable that moves beyond the meaning to that lawyer on that day.  When we look at the primary people of the story, one of the things we can realize is that we are that broken, beaten man on the side of the road.  That's our natural condition in God's eyes, to some degree (and I would say that God's viewpoint would see it even worse for us).  We're unable to help ourselves, unable to fix ourselves, and are simply laying there dying on the side of the road.

That's when we see God in human flesh, Jesus, come along.  He sees us on the side of the road, and Jesus has great compassion on us.  He carries us to the place of healing (instead of an inn, we might picture a cross and an empty tomb), where He pays the full price for our healing.  And then, He makes the promise to come and make everything better as we receive our healing. 

In that respect, we gain a lot when we see ourselves as the beaten, broken man, and Jesus as the Samaritan.  True, that isn't the natural "fit" of the parable as Jesus told it to the lawyer, but it is a quite apt example of what Jesus came to do.  And it serves to remind us that we have a God who has restored our health, who has paid our price, and who has promised to return for us.  What a great joy to think about!

Who is my neighbor, part 2

Yesterday's post talked a bit about the background and context of the famous "Good Samaritan" parable of Jesus.  A lawyer, who would have been well-versed in the law from Moses, asked Jesus about what to do to inherit eternal life.  Jesus responded by asking him what the Law said.  The lawyer responded, love God and love your neighbor.  Jesus told him to do this and he would live.  And then, in an effort to justify what we can only assume to be a lack of love toward his neighbor, the lawyer asked Jesus, "who is my neighbor?"

Jesus responded with the parable that so many people know as the Good Samaritan.  Truth be told, there are a lot of elements in this story that we could cover.  But for today, I want to take some time to focus on the first two characters who pass the man who had been beaten and robbed and left for dead.  They bear some consideration as we ponder the question, "Who is my neighbor?"

Jesus mentions a priest and a Levite passing the beaten man.  Each of them walks to the other side of the road.  But I want to point out an interesting detail about these two.  Both of them would have been involved with the religious life of the people of Israel.  In fact, they likely would have held positions of respect.  They had significant duties to attend to on behalf of God and for His people. 

But you notice something interesting.  Jesus doesn't really give us a reason for their lack of compassion.  I'm sure many have assumed their motivations, both good and bad.  But for Jesus, the very plain and simple fact is, they didn't stop.  They left the man there.  They surely failed to love their neighbor as themselves. 

That's what I'm going to call a negative example.  These two men in Jesus' parable are examples of what NOT to do.  Love for one's neighbor does NOT involve simply leaving them there on the side of the road in their broken condition.  The example that Jesus is painting for this lawyer is that we can say for sure that failure to demonstrate compassion to others is a failure to love our neighbor. 

Tomorrow, we'll jump in and take a look at the Samaritan.