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Posts Tagged ‘faith’

I Believe–I Write

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »

I know I can be a bull in a china shop with my voice. Sometimes I don’t think things through before I say them. In fact, I’m known for speaking just to hear what I’m thinking! It’s not always well-formed. It’s one of the reasons I blog. . .

II Corinthians 4:13
Yet we have the same spirit of faith as he had who wrote, I have believed, and therefore have I spoken [Psalm 116:10]. We too believe, and therefore we speak, . . . [Amplified]

Writing slows me down (a little) and it gives me a chance to contemplate more thoroughly the verses for the day. It gives me a chance to look for truths in the Word for me. Writing helps me articulate my faith more clearly and ask deeper questions of myself and others.

My faith has grown in many directions, not just wider and longer but deeper. And with that growth has come challenges and changes.

I find myself embracing the simplicity of the message: Love God, Love others. There is much more wiggle room than there used to be. There are gray areas after all. There is acceptance of the mystery and the paradox. There is a willingness to say, “I don’t know.” There is more tolerance for other lifestyles and mistakes. There is greater hope in the ultimate power of God.

Our world is very complex. It’s not the same world of the disciples. It’s much more expansive. We are aware of the tiniest changes across continents and space. We can know and communicate with thousands and millions of people in an instant. We hear of good and evil proliferating around the earth and beyond. Sin and disease abound. Fear builds exponentially. Death is proud.

And yet, it’s still the same message that will stand the test of time: Love God, Love others.

This is what I believe. This is what I am doing here.

My writing comes out of my faith. God is sovereign. Christ is real. And what I am living and learning along the way may help someone else discover the kingdom within.

After all these years, my personal mission still resonates for me: To inspire meaningful change, to build faith in God and to connect people with resources that make a difference in their lives.

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Relying on God

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , on July 11, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Why should I rely on God? Hmmm, that should be a no-brainer. You know, God, the who who raises people from the dead? God, the Spirit. God within. God of the kingdom: all there and available to me. And yet, I still try to to work it out alone, to go my own way.

II Corinthians 1:9b-11
But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers.

The faith walk includes a submission to the Spirit within.

The story of Eve, whether viewed as an actual event or an allegory, is about the decision a person must make, either to broker all knowledge alone and to “be like God” [Genesis 3:5] or to trust God and not necessarily understand everything that happens but follow all the same.

I believe there is world space different than the 3-D world we can see, touch, and smell. That world is Spirit.

But how do I connect to this “other” world? That is the whole point, isn’t it? That is the reason believers have been meeting together over the millenniums. That is the reason for the “spiritual disciplines.” That is the reason for prayer (inner talking and dialogue with Spirit). That is the reason for a Christ, the way.

What’s also interesting in this brief passage is the allusion to the prayers of others has having direct impact on the process. When I pray for another person on his/her journey, circumstances, and perils, I am actually helping that person stay on the path and recognize the way.

Sometimes it’s easier to rely on God to work and do for someone else than for oneself. It’s a good enough place to start. In either case, I must acknowledge God to be God and I may not understand all of that. In fact, I know I don’t. But revelation does not come without commitment and trust.

One cannot believe without a willingness to believe.

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Way of Love

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , on June 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »

It’s a journey, the way of love. And like any journey, initially, we make a plan based on what we know in the moment, but along the way, the directions may change. There will be detours and road work. There will be fallen trees and washed out streets. But the way is still the way.

I Corinthians 14:1a
Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it—because it does. [The Message Bible]

This theme of love has bee with me now for several days and I am embracing it as best I can. But I see the challenges right away. It’s one thing to talk about love and it’s another to walk it day to day and minute to minute. Even if I choose to love, it doesn’t change the other guy. Loving in the way can be a lot of one-way streets at first. There’s a reason why Paul says in I Corinthians 13:4 that “love is patient” first. It requires all the patience in the world to love.

All of the “ways” in scripture are the same really: the way of Jesus, the way of God, the way of love. These are just words to help us understand the direction and the intent.

Sometimes, I feel like I’m on some kind of busy on ramp and a little fearful to enter the highway. Once I’m really on this way, once I commit fully, things will change. My life will change.

I am afraid of the way of the way of love.

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Why do we need idols?

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , on May 26, 2010| 1 Comment »

Tim Keller, in the book Counterfeit Gods, writes that idolatry is anything that isn’t God and yet, put in the place of God. That gives me pause.

I Corinthians 10:7
Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.”

The author goes on to say that one of the central principles of the Bible is rejection of idols.

Makes sense. It also puts more light on another verse that appears to come out of nowhere in I John 5:21, the last verse of the book, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.” With some thought, I realize it’s an amazing summation. And, like, Keller, I’m seeing the simple truth of this idea.

How many times do I say I don’t have “time” to do this or that for the building up my faith, you know, things like prayer, study, meditation, contemplation, service to others. Oh yeah, and why don’t I have time? Because other things are “more important.” Other things have taken place, taken root, in my calendar and my heart.

Our culture offers a plethora of idols. Take your pick: they all do the job. They all have the power (which we endow them) to suck up our time and our energy.

I used to think some of my post-millennial friends (or were they pre-millenial?), were being ridiculous as they identified things in our culture as a “Beast” from revelation–things like television. But, are they so off? I’m not talking about that kind of literalness, but doesn’t a lot of entertainment become addictive and consuming? How many people order their lives around watching a particular television show? (Apparently, they have not found TIVO yet.)

So what is my time suck? And why do I need it?

Internet. Facebook. Over-committed volunteerism. Hobbies. Old movies. Re-runs. Yard sales. Lattes. Reading. Work.

None of these things are inherently bad or necessarily “idols.” But I do fill up my day. I fill up my mind with planning.

There are 330,000 gods in India. How about me? How many do I have?

I have a friend who married an African man and recently, had his child here in the United States. However, in a few days, they will be returning to Namibia, with no real jobs waiting for them (they used to work at an orphanage we support which is how we met them). So, she will be entering into a much more rustic lifestyle, she will be living, truly, more closely to the norm of African families in small cities: a new simplicity. She will be confronting her personal “idols” soon.

Why do we need idols? I think it’s part of our culture. To let go of many of them would mean stepping back from the lifestyle to which we have become accustomed.

“. . . let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus . . . [Hebrews 12:1b-2a]

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This Current Crisis

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 14, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Other translations of this phrase are “this present distress” or “this present trouble.” The entire discussion on not marrying or marrying is about that moment in time. Paul believed the time was short. But we’re still here. And what is the application for us?

I Corinthians 7:26, 29a, 30b
Because of the present crisis, I think that it is good for you to remain as you are. . . .What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. . . . For this world in its present form is passing away.

The commentaries are numerous on these passages and the emphasis is almost entirely on the attachments to worldly comforts and the responsibilities of a mate and/or children (I presume). And certainly, much can be said for being unattached to any of these things. But alas, I am neither. I am a wife, a mother, and culturally, I confess, I’m tethered to the conveniences of my world.

But for me, it’s the phrase about timing that intrigues me the most. Paul was pretty sure that Christ would return within his generation, if not within his lifetime. This, in itself, does reflect on the human-ness of Paul. He was wrong on this point, and in a big way. For him, the times were bad. Later, they got worse for that part of the world when the Romans besieged Jerusalem and destroyed it. That was certainly the end of the “their world in its present form.”

And what about our own crisis? What about our culture’s troubles? What would help? Only one thing, single or married, could make a difference. The practice of the presence of Christ. Nothing else. It is this presence within that has the power to change our responses to the world. It is the Christ spirit that is perceived as light. It is the love of God that transforms situations. When that is present, then the attachment to the world becomes less by default. Marriages remain whole. Singles remain trusting.

We cannot take on the outer trappings of Paul’s recommendations and expect change. For me, it must begin within.

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A Case for Mediation

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 3, 2010| Leave a Comment »

2000 years ago, mediation was advocated and encouraged, particularly among believers. And yet, where are we today? Courts are filled, lawyers plea bargain, guilty people go free, innocent people are executed, and those who should be a light in a dark place are silent and dull.

I Corinthians 6:5b
Can it be that there really is not one man among you who [in action is governed by piety and integrity and] is wise and competent enough to decide [the private grievances, disputes, and quarrels] between members of the brotherhood . . . [Amplified]

Where is the accumulated wisdom of the years? Why are believers of today seemingly less capable to handle disputes?

Part of the problem is that we are in too many silos (a business and information management term that refers to systems that cannot speak to each other). Our churches are silos. We are primarily divided by our denominational preferences. It is next to impossible to cross these arbitrary boundaries to create a trusted body of authority. Our efforts to date include organizations like the World Council of Churches which is disdained by most conservatives. In fact, as soon as the word “ecumenical” is brought up in conservative circles, the eyes glaze over. In many minds, ecumenical might as well be another word for “non-believer.” I know, I’ve been in that circle for your years (but no longer feeling quite so comfortable there).

Oh, there’s the National Council of Churches USA. While American churches don’t participate much in the World Council, denominationally, they are well represented at the NCC. Here they work in broad strokes: advocacy, resource building, communication, education initiatives, and academic research.

But nothing is really here for the resolution of disputes and grievances, nothing for mediation. That kind of authority would have to be given by the people. That kind of authority would require trust.

In our contemporary church, the doling out of “justice” has been handed over to Pilate. We are no different from the Jews of Jesus’s time.

Mediation is becoming more popular in the secular world. People are being trained in this process. Believers have a real opportunity to step up and embrace this trend and use it within the body. This is not necessarily a role for pastors, although it could be. More importantly, it’s a role for the faithful, those committed to truth, to God, to the Christ, to prayer, and to the Holy Spirit: these could build a forum for justice.

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It’s All About the Power

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on April 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

The Amplified Bible translates “power” as the “moral power and excellence of soul.” But I am more inclined to think of power as authority because, from where I sit, authority trumps everything.

I Corinthians 4:19b-20
. . . I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.

A person (or government) can acquire authority in a wide variety of ways such as inheritance or violence or even a gift.

When I accepted Christ the Redeemer, I gave the Holy Spirit full authority over me (of course, I keep trying to take back that gift when circumstances are not to my liking). Nonetheless, God does not take over human beings. God must be invited into the heart. That was part of the covenant, the original deal.

Evil, on the other hand, will take any and every opportunity to gain a foothold within. Evil wants to “take over the land,” and rule. Evil is like a cancer that destroys everything in its path, consuming all that is healthy, while removing strength and hope for healing or recovery.

I look around and consider the people who have authority in my life. There are the supervisors and managers at my work, be that a limited authority, because it’s within the confines of employment. I agreed to work there.

Some would say, as a married woman, my husband has authority over me [Ephesians 5:23 & I Corinthians 11:3]. I’ve never been particularly comfortable with this teaching based on position alone. However, like giving authority to Christ, it would be up to me to “give” authority to my husband for any power to have value. And if, like Christ, my husband sacrifices his life/desires for the family, undoubtedly the gift is easier to give. [Ephesians 5:28-29]

In our society, I agree to allow certain servants of the state to have authority over me: police, elected officials, etc. By living in a land of laws, I agree to give those laws the power to classify right from wrong, with consequences. When I vote, I agree to give authority to the winner of an election process.

In some countries, authority is wrenched from the people by violence and maintained through fear. When it is stripped from a person in this way, it is very difficult to believe in a loving invitation from God who desires control of the inner life while the despots control the outer life. I am grateful I do not live in such an environment. I am free to choose in both inner and outer arenas.

But what about my own authority? Do I allow others to choose to be under my authority or am I using “control” to lasso followers? Are my children under my authority willingly? My pets? My staff?

Jesus offered himself and his power draped in love: a truly benevolent dictator who can command the heavens as well as the heart. But without love, this kind of power doesn’t work. Love is the fuel. Jesus spent his lifetime teaching this message by example, by teaching, by humility.

The flow of power manifests as miracles and healings but it must be preceded by love. Only as we offer sacrificial love to others will there be true power or true authority to wield.

Why would I trust you with power if I don’t believe you love me?

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