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Posts Tagged ‘authenticity’

And They All Fall Down

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on September 4, 2009| 1 Comment »

John 18:4-6
Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?”
“Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.
“I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) 6When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

The gospel of John is the only account of the crowd falling down to the ground when Jesus was arrested. Isn’t that the strangest thing? How could this happen? Why would John include this in the gospel?

I really like creating pictures in my mind as I read. Needless to say, my picture for this scene is quite dramatic. The only thing I can wrap my head around is that Jesus released a great deal of power (a release of power is also recorded in the story of the woman who bled for 12 years and touched his cloak in Mark 5:32). In my mind, Jesus was always having to choose to limit himself to the human side, the human container. But this moment was really a turning point. It was no longer a possible future; it was no longer a mere concept.

Turning points are moments of power in all of our lives. Some years ago I participated in a wonderful conference on “Story” at the Mars Hill Graduate School in Seattle. Before starting the workshop, our homework was to identify the turning points in our lives. This was a very illuminating exercise and I recommend it for everyone.

The power in a turning point comes from the motive or driver that brings the moment before us. Do we take the left or right fork in the road. When we choose a direction that is under girded by the Holy Spirit, then power is released. In Jesus’s case, there was enough power to knock down a crowd of people. If we take the other path, we are on our own.

If a turning point comes today, Lord, guide my decision.

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Mystical Indwelling

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on September 3, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 17:20b-21a; 22b-23a
“I pray also for those who will believe in me through their [followers] message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. … I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me.” [Jesus praying]

How can anyone read this text and not wonder what all this indwelling is about? I think it’s quite mystical really. It’s not a feeling. It’s not something we can see. We cannot “know” if the indwelling has happened. This is strictly on faith.

For those who believe that life is more than our 3-dimensional world, the leap is not as difficult. In fact, it’s really the whole point. If we ask Christ to live within, it’s a done deal. This is not a real estate transaction where the Spirit comes in, takes a look around and says, “not interested, too many issues.” If we ask, the Spirit comes.

The next process is developing a relationship with the indwelling Spirit. We have to learn the language of love, hope, and trust within. This takes time. And that journey is different for each person. I find it a wonderful, yet sometimes disturbing, mystery. It’s simply not that easy to do.

Often, people will develop their own personal word picture to assist them in the discovery process. I remember, at one time, I pictured myself as a child who was walking on one side of a stream while Jesus walked on the other. I was looking for a bridge. It was my first foray into the Spirit’s guidance.

The most effective way to enter into process is through prayer. But too often, we turn prayer into a personal monologue. It’s too much like talking to Santa Claus: I want this and this and please do this and don’t forget this. After thirty years, I still fall into that trap. In recent years, I have taught myself to practice being still and listening more (within).

In fact, all of the spiritual practices are intended to help us in our indwelling journey; not only prayer, but also communion, reading of the Word and other challenging texts, worship, music (food for the ears), personal expressions of creativity, providing “food” for the eyes through beauty, meaningful community experiences, meditation, contemplation, time in nature and natural settings, service to the poor, widows & orphans, loving neighbor, practicing hospitality… just to name a few. These are all ways of learning about the operation of the Holy Spirit within.

But, if we don’t participate in spiritual practices regularly, we can become numb to the presence within. It’s like living in a foreign land. If we don’t use the language of Spirit, we can lose our ability to understand it. All can be regained, but it takes commitment and desire.

Today, I pray for mindfulness of Christ’s indwelling. I embrace the mystery. I accept the mystical nature of this union.

With what other practices do you experience the indwelling Christ?

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Fulfilled, Finished, Accomplished

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , on August 29, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 17:5
“I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.” [Jesus prayed]

Think about this! He finished the task that was laid out for him. He didn’t need more time. He didn’t ask for more time. The teaching part was finished. The community work was done. The message was sent. He was successful.

How many of us would have thought Jesus had done everything he had set out to do? Surely, if he would have stuck around another ten or fifteen years, we would have known more, understood more, accepted more. Or would we?

Apparently, the message was simple enough and the right people heard it (not too many, not too few). He finished the job.

It made me think about the “six degrees of separation.” Jesus touched the lives that needed to be touched “in the big picture.” Jesus healed the ones who needed to be healed to accomplish his overall purpose. Jesus faced each moment, checked with the Father, and acted accordingly. The miracles, the lessons, the parables, the witnesses… it was all part of the economical use of his time.

Those on the receiving end of his message, they also had a purpose: to carry the message of salvation and everlasting life to others, to tell the story of Jesus, the Son of God. It all worked quite well until some of the folks decided to mess with the message. It’s like the old game, “whisper down the lane,” where the first person whispers into the next person’s ear and by the time it gets to the end of the line, the message has changed. We hear what we want to hear. We fix what we don’t understand. This phenomenon is discussed in some detail in a wonderful book I’m reading, “Why We Make Mistakes” by Joseph Hallinan.

The point for me today is that every person I meet, every circumstance, every day is part of my story and now, ultimately, Christ’s story. I’m not saying I’m supposed to stuff the name of Jesus down everyone’s throat. But being me, an authentic me, must reflect Christ within. Anything less and I’m “whispering down the lane.”

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Doing the Work

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , on August 3, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 5:17
Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.”

When I was in acting school, we called acting as “doing the work.” It meant confronting the words (script) with intelligence and authenticity. It meant searching the heart and mind for truth. It meant “digging deeper.” It meant connecting with the words and others. It meant a serious application of oneself to the task at hand. It meant staying in the moment.

I find it interesting that this description is easily applied to walking in the way of Jesus each and every day. After all, what is God’s work? And if Christ Jesus is doing God’s work, what are we doing? Anything outside of Christ’s work is a hobby.

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Who Sent You?

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , on July 30, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 12:44-45
Then Jesus cried out, “When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me.”

We are all ambassadors for someone or something. We may not even realize it but it is true. People meet us or talk with us and sooner or later, they associate us with others. It could be that we end up representing our workplace, our nationality, our family, our religious affiliation, our political party, our church, our town, our state, our school, and so on. In the end, we do not enter any situation alone.

So, how are we doing? Are we good representatives? Are we authentic?

Jesus reminded people all the time that he was sent. He wanted them to see/hear/feel the One who sent him. He wanted people to remember. Do we? Or do we try to hide our affiliations (for whatever reason)?

My old friend, Tom, who ultimately introduced me to the things of God some 30 years ago, tried to hide his affiliation with Christ Jesus and all kinds of wrong assumptions were made about him. He hid his faith because he was afraid no one would like him. But they didn’t like him anyway… because he was hiding.

People around us can sense “hiding.” They may not know what we are hiding, but they know it’s something and it makes us seem untrustworthy and even suspect.

There is an old saying, “Don’t shoot the messenger.” But of course, we all know, in ancient times, that is exactly what happened. If the message was “bad news,” the messenger would suffer. Is our message “bad news” or is it our “telling” of the story (through words & behaviors) that distorts the truth? As a follower of Christ, we are asked to be true to the message and the One who sends it.

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Genuine Praise

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , on June 6, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 5:41-42
I do not accept praise from men, but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts.

Praise can be given but has no value if it is not accepted. Genuine praise must come from the depths of the heart. It is grounded in truth and love for the other. Anything else is self-serving.

It comes back to motive. Why do we praise others unless we really want them to be lifted up? Genuine praise comes from genuine humility.

And so, it is really quite simple: we are challenged to get the heart right before we give out from there. Praise that comes from the heart is full of power. It is truly about the “other” and not about self. Once we can tap into this authentic love, praise will come naturally.

Lord, fill my heart so that praise becomes a natural expression… for you and for others. This is my prayer.

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A Callous Heart

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , , , , on April 25, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Matthew 13:15
For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.

A callous is formed on the skin when it is exposed to repetitive activities and the body lays down an additional layer of skin to protect a specific area. Usually, our skin is constantly regenerating by sloughing off old cells and growing new ones. But this repetitive activity prevents the skin from sloughing off.

When a callous forms on the hands of a worker or on the fingertips of a musician, it’s a good thing. It makes it easier to do those repetitive tasks without injury. But, when the heart is calloused, it is no longer able to feel compassion, empathy, or love. The heart is calloused by repetitive hurt, betrayal, and sorrow. Our natural tendency is to “protect” ourselves from further hurt, and so we allow the callouses to form. But, the way of Christ is full of paradoxes and this is another one.

We are called upon to keep the heart open. When we allow those callouses to form on the heart, we miss God. We miss seeing what we are to see and hearing what we are meant to hear. Without a doubt, this is one of the greatest challenges of being committed to the way of Jesus… an authentic Christian.

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