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Posts Tagged ‘trust’

Follow the Rabbi

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , on July 27, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 12:26
“Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”

People in Jesus’s culture understood what his call of “follow me” demanded. He was offering his rabbi’s yoke; he was asking them to acknowledge his authority as their “master” (literal translation of the word rabbi from Hebrew).

This is not so easy for our modern day culture, particularly here in the West where rugged individualism is the norm. Most of us don’t trust anyone who would be called the master. It conjures up all kinds of negative images. My mind immediately goes to the idea of a “slave-owner” — not exactly a role model or a yoke I would want to take on by choice.

But Jesus is the epitome of the benevolent dictator. That’s another word that will turn everyone off: dictator. In our age, we have seen power corrupt and that’s all. The idea that anyone could be powerful and benevolent is an oxymoron.

So, following Christ Jesus, is no easy decision. It is a decision of humility and trust. This is where faith begins. And truthfully, most of our lives then are spent in struggling with this relationship. We keep testing and challenging him: Is this really what is best for me? Is this the best you can do for me? If I give up everything, what will be left for me? Eventually, we figure out the first lesson: it’s not about “me.”

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Late on Purpose

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , on July 21, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 11:21, 32
“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”… [32]When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

While it’s happening, we can’t imagine why God would allow bad things to come into our lives. Both Mary and Martha loved, adored and trusted Jesus, and yet, despite their complete confidence in his ability to heal, he was unable to arrive in time [at that point, I don’t believe they knew he delayed intentionally].

I always thought the women were expressing their disappointment in him and perhaps even chastising him a little. (Hey! You’re late! You missed the bus!) Instead, I believe their words expressed something else entirely: their faith in Him. In other words, they were confirming that there was a greater purpose in their brother’s death and trusted Jesus in that purpose. They allowed their faith to be stronger than their understanding.

They still experienced sadness as did Jesus. The circumstances were difficult. It was a trial. And yet, their faith was unshaken.

When we walk through the challenges in our lives, we must take heart from the story of these two sisters. We can always imagine in our human way that situations could have worked out differently, but “his ways are not our ways.” [Isaiah 55:9] If we can get better at accepting the “now,” we may see the miracle of tomorrow more readily.

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No Kidding. He’s the One.

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , on July 16, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 10:24-25a
The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe….”

I mean it, the book of John, so far, is this same message over and over again. He’s the one, no joke. Jesus said it, the disciples said it, the blind man said it. Even the Pharisees were saying, “he said it” which is why they wanted to kill him.

As I think about it, this is the whole point. I mean, we can talk about love and mercy and grace and all those other warm fuzzies, but none of them pile up to anything if we don’t acknowledge who he is. Either Jesus is the son of God, or not. Either he is the Messiah, or not.

This was the thing I encountered that fateful Christmas Eve, 1979. I started with just that one truth. The issues I didn’t understand or didn’t believe or didn’t want to accept came later.

Jesus was unequivocal. He asks the same of us.

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Using the Gate

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , on July 13, 2009| Leave a Comment »

John 10:9
I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.

Using the gate has parameters. Since there is only one gate into a pen, you may have to walk around. If the gate is locked and you don’t have the key, you may have to wait for the gate to be opened by someone else. The gate usually swings only one way. The gate may be opened only at certain times. The gate may not be opened wide if there are those who need to be kept out or in while you travel back and forth.

Let’s face it, most of us will try something else if the gate is locked or closed. I think I’ve jumped the fence quite a few times. Remember, I’m the fixer/problem-solver. If I want to get inside, I’ll do what I need to get in. Patience is not one of my Top Ten virtues. I am truly a product of my culture.

Here’s the thing: if we can accept the restrictions of the gate (usually for our own good), then the result is safe passage in and out to the pasture (world).

Jesus says is he is, at minimum, the gate. He is our ticket to safety. It’s a promise.

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Moment in Time

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

John 9:2b-3
… “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life…”

It’s a hard thing to accept, that my current circumstances might be meant for a particular moment in time where God desires to acccomplish something specific.

I’m a “fixer.” If someone has a problem, I’m out there with a laundry list of solutions. I rarely consider the possibility that God might want the glory for a particular “fix.” Oh, intellectually, I can say that everything is for the glory of God. But honestly, if I have a headache, I take a pain-reliever.

It’s all well and good to put it into a sermon that “in my weakness, I am made strong,” [2 Corinthians 12:10] but walking that out is much more difficult. I have never admired weakness… not in myself or in others.

We’re back to trust again. I’m reading Shaine Clairborne now, “The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical” and he shares several good quotes. Among them this from Mother Teresa, “We are called not to be successful but to be faithful.”

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Nothing to Lose

Posted in Ordinary Time, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 5, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Luke 21:2-3
He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “I tell you the truth,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others.”

The hard part of giving is struggling with our desire to keep the stuff. At least, that’s one of my issues. I grew up fairly poor. My mother was a widow who somehow managed to raise two children on less than $10,000 a year. And yet, she always provided food on the table, invited people to our table who were less fortunate than we were, and always had cut flowers in our home and on her desk to give cheer and hope to others.

She gave out of what she had: her love for beauty, her time, her enthusiasm, her hope.

Although I have managed to attain a middle class lifestyle, I find myself holding too tightly to the things that come with it. I am afraid of being poor again. And I know that fear betrays my confidence in God to take care of me. I am ashamed to admit it and even more afraid to say it: will I be tested through an unexpected loss?

The poor widow in Jesus’s story understood that she had nothing to lose, things could only get better.

This past weekend, my brother’s apartment was robbed. They took everything that had street value: all of his electronics, movies, music, jewelry (including his wedding ring), and other miscellaneous valuables. He is being stripped of so many tanglibles and like Job, he wants to know why. I have no answers.

But it is a wake up call for me. I am being challenged to simplify my life. If I can let go myself, then it may not be needful to wrench the stuff away. Oh Lord, forgive my stubborn holding on to the ephemeral things of life. Give me courage relinquish “stuff” and cherish, instead, relationships, love, joy, hope, transformation, and Spirit.

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Like a Little Child

Posted in Lent, tagged , , , , , , , , on February 25, 2009| Leave a Comment »

“I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children….” Matthew 11:25

This is my first request, that God would draw me to Him like a little child, for it is only then, I believe, that I will be most open to seeing, believing, trusting, and knowing Him. I have two pictures of myself as a little girl, quite faded now, in black and white, sitting at my father’s desk. In one, I am diligently writing. But, in the second, I have lifted my pen and my face to the camera and I am so full of joy. It is an “aha” moment for the little girl. Discovery! Success! Connection!

Children are easy vessels. What is poured in is easily poured out. That is, until the world teaches them to dissemble. May this time “in Christ” be a time of transparency. Reveal yourself to me, O God, that I might reveal You within me to others.

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