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Posts Tagged ‘sacred other’

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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Witness to the Light

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , , , , on May 5, 2009| 1 Comment »

John 1:8b-9
…he [John] came only as a witness to the light.[NIV] That was the true Light which gives light to every man [and woman] coming into the world. [NKJV]

John the Baptizer was a witness to “the true Light.” He began his ministry because it was important to tell everyone about the light. They had forgotten about the light. They could not longer see the light in each other. Just talking about the light brought light into a dark place.

As human beings, I believe we are all given light. Made in God’s image, we are bequeathed the light. But, what do we do with it? Do we hide it under a bushel? Do we distort it? Do we ignore it? And what about the light of others?

Over the last few months I’ve been really interested in the concept of the “sacred other.” It is my belief now that this sacredness is the same as the light that is within each one of us. Accepting Christ is not about accepting the light; we have that already. But the light of Christ fuels our personal light and shines brighter. Light is the root of love.

To witness to the light is to recognize light in others and fuel that fire with the light of Christ. Like John, we are to tell our stories. As we follow the way of Christ, our stories carry light.

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One of the Others

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , , , , on April 28, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Luke 24:9-10
When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. [emphasis mine]

Are you just among the others? There are such a lot of “big names” out there, the “stars” of Christendom or even in our local churches… you know, those obvious leaders of the church, the worship team, the choir director, the pastor, the lay leader, etc. And so often, we feel as though our small contribution to the big picture is unworthy of mentioning.

But I tell you today, the Lord is lifting up “the others.” Perhaps they are not mentioned by name, but they were there! The others who went with the Mary’s and Joanna to the tomb… they were there. They saw the angels, they saw the empty tomb, they had a story to tell. And the others who were with the Eleven… they heard the story, they communed together despite their fears, they were there. Who knows, perhaps they also ran to the tomb.

Sometimes, it’s important just to show up. We will never know what will happen… but if God speaks, we need to be present to hear. We need to be ready to “witness” what we see and hear. Your story is important. Your witness is important. Let us be present today to see God’s hand.

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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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See How You Are

Posted in Time Up to Pentecost, tagged , , , on April 23, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Matthew 7:3
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?

My daughter has picked up this phrase from friends at school. It’s said lightheartedly, but it’s always said when someone doesn’t do what she asks. It’s drawing attention to an action (or lack thereof) that is not lining up with her expectation or request. I’m still working on a comeback.

In the end, this pointing out is just another way of adding fuel to a flame. I think we are all saying this in our hearts when we have made a judgment against others. One way to catch these judgments is whenever we use the words of extreme generalizations like “never” or “always.” (Example: my husband “never” compliments me. Today, my husband does not compliment me when I went to extra effort to look nice: See how you are… you “never” compliment me.) It’s like we are building up the evidence to “make our case” … but to what end?

Wouldn’t it be lovely if, instead, we could use the same phrase when it’s a good thing: oh, he remembered to take out the trash, oh, she remembered my birthday, oh, he went the extra mile to help me, and so on. How powerful it could be to build the evidence for good.

Today, help me “see” how others really are… let me find the moments that are edifying and uplifting and to tell them so. “See how you are”… and thank you for being you in my life.

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Humility is an Attitude Change

Posted in Lent, tagged , , , on March 23, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Luke 18:14
“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Saturday, my friend and I went to see a Charles Fuller play called Zooman and the Sign. It is not an easy play to watch, over 90 minutes of a family in grief at the loss of their 12 year old daughter/sister/neice to a random drive-by shooting in the city. In addition, the audience experiences a series of interspersed monologues by the killer, Zooman, who has no remorse, and yet, we see his life as a series of losses … and despite his anger and viciousness, there is an “understanding” of sorts that evolves. And when he dies, there is a realization, that every person has a story and every person has a family somewhere and everyone has a kernal of sacred.

In the story about the Pharisee and the tax collector who come to the synagogue for confession, we see the difference between them. It is the tax collector (or street thug?) who knows who is is. He is humbled. So must I remember to be the same. Everyone has a story and it is not for me to judge… this is how I may learn to “love” all in Christ. This is how I may discover an authentic humility within.

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Servant Leader

Posted in Lent, tagged , , , on March 6, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Matthew 20:26-28
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Choosing to serve is a daily decision. But it also requires that we think outside the box. Serving is not just getting someone a cup of coffee or making breakfast or giving them a ride. It’s prayer … whether they know you are praying or not. It’s giving them the benefit of the doubt. It’s letting them fail and disappoint you. It’s understanding that they make mistakes … just like you do. It’s stepping back, just a little, really looking, and seeing that this one… is the sacred other, made by God.

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