Shining Spirit

I wrote recently about the delicate art of making choices, particularly choices generated by fear or disappointment. Something happens, some event, opens the door to fear or anxiety, and we have to decide how to express our thoughts and feelings. There are two basic choices: Respond or React. Either will determine how we act, speak and feel. For instance, React is usually packed with emotion; it has energy about it. Respond, on the other hand, carries with it a sense of thoughtful consideration. Responding has energy, too, but different from reacting.

When I read the New Testament, I get a sense that Jesus advocated Responding, taught his disciples how to face challenges and opportunities, and lived the principle himself. Reacting is often spur-of-the-moment, emotion loaded. Responding comes closer to the principles that Jesus taught: thoughtfulness, reason, justice, compassion; the list goes on. The Apostle Paul carried the same thought to all the churches under his supervision. You can hear it in his letter to the various congregations.

Just yesterday I got an email that led me back to personal choices, the way we live, and what we do when things don’t go our way. The writer said we can “throw our hands up in the air,” he called it Reacting. Or, we can “roll up our sleeves,” the second option, Responding. Reacting might be the initial reaction to a bad situation, but it’s Responding that makes a difference. “Throw your hands up in the air” or “roll up your sleeves”, think, reason, make a plan, make a difference.

So when disappointment knocks on your door, remember you have a choice: Slam the door in his face, scream and shout, throw your hands up in the air. Or, roll up your sleeves and make a difference.

It’s up to you. Your choice.

There is a remarkable story in the Christian scriptures about an empty tomb. No, not that one. Not the Easter tomb. We might call this the Lazarus tomb, because that’s where the man was buried by his sisters, Mary and Martha. Probably hewn out of a large stone, sealed with another stone rolled over the opening, the tomb was the final stopping place for people of importance.

Informed of the death of Lazarus, Jesus went to the tomb and was greeted by the sisters: So, where have you been! Why weren’t you here when he was sick and now you arrive after he’s been dead for almost a week. Where were you when we needed you? Jesus consoles them, explains that it’s not too late, that he will take care of the situation. And then he orders the stone sealing the tomb be pushed back. “Lazarus, come out!” Again the sisters express themselves: Come out! He’s been dead for days and you know what the smell of decay is like.

To their dismay, an understatement, the still-wrapped body of Lazarus comes stumbling out of the tomb. One final thing needs to be done. Those death-wrappings need to come off so Lazarus can live freely again. Now, here’s something that can slip by in the story, something seemingly insignificant. Jesus said: Unbind him and set him free. He didn’t say: stumble over here, Lazarus, and I will unbind you and you will be free. He didn’t say that. Jesus looked at those witnessing this unbelievable event and said: Unbind him and set him free. You do it! You and you and you. Touch the death cloths, remove the shroud, release him, set him free. You do it.

I’m just wondering who I will meet today, a person still wrapped in the grave clothes of anger or fear or despair. And I’m wondering if I will have the compassion or the courage to “unbind” him or her, to set them free. That will happen only if I see the other’s pain, be conscious of it, and act with the power of God’s spirit.

I’m wondering that about you, too.

Hear these wise words, both general and particular, from the late Buddhist master of contemplative spirituality, Thich Nhat Hanh: “An entire sea of water can’t sink a ship unless it gets inside the ship. Similarly, the negativity of the world can’t put you down unless you allow it to get inside you.”

This is a general truth that can be a foundational pillar for life. It is also a particular truth when storms arise and the sea threatens. Pair this wisdom up with 1 John 4:4 “Greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world,” and you’re set for any day and any circumstance.

May peace live within you today and all your tomorrows.

Sunrise at 30,000 feet.
Whether you are on the ground or six miles up in the air,
sunrises can be spectacular. On this very important day
in our nation’s history, we pray for light to make clear
the path we should take, hope for the welfare of all people,
and courage to press on in efforts to secure justice
grounded in the God-inspired value of all human beings.
God be our light.

We are a couple of days away from a national day of decision. Perhaps more so than in previous presidential elections, we are going to determine the future of the nation. Every citizen should vote thoughtfully, thinking of the common good before personal preferences.

Biblical historians tell us that the earliest Christians faced major challenges, too. Sometimes within a congregation there was discord and division, and it took wise counsel to hold things together. The Apostle Paul gave some good advice when he wrote a letter to the church in Ephesus and reminded them that “There is one body and one Spirit…make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.” (Ephesians 4). If you are a follower of the Jesus Way, this expression of faith we call Christianity, you have an obligation to be a peace maker, to be a proponent of unity in the midst of discord. This is who we are. This is in our spiritual DNA, and Paul’s spiritual advice extends beyond the life of a congregation into the community and culture. We, of all people, must demonstrate the life and message of Jesus. His life principles and practices were universal, world oriented, not religiously restricted. No matter what political position we support, we walk The Way of Jesus as a first commitment.

Lord God, king of the universe, help me see light in all darkness, hope when life looks challenging. Help me find the courage to live the faith commitment that I profess. I will honor you by my intentional efforts to create unity, to bind us all together in peace, and to work in the spirit of Jesus toward a future that blesses and benefits this nation and all your precious creation. Amen

In my hometown there is a sporting event called El Tour de Tucson. Thousands of cyclists gather to attack the 102 mile course in this annual event. It takes a lot of hard training, some basic skills, the right equipment and lots of determination to finish the route. O, and one other thing: the good sense to work with the other riders, as depicted in this picture above. The single line is called “drafting” and that means cooperating, working together, so that all benefit, conserve energy and finish the race faster and more efficiently. Here’s the point: what if your church decided to become more than a worship/educational center? What if there was an expectation, indeed a requirement, that each of us takes very seriously the concept of “Community?” What if we stopped encouraging personal ministry, sending people out to burn out and finally fall away? And if you say: Well, my church feeds me spiritually so that I can go out and do the work of the Lord, I would reply: “me” and “I” need to be replaced by “we.” Our mindset and our methods matter. Further, the biblical concept of “community” is inherent in our faith. There are lots of reasons to re-think the concept and nature of Christian community as something more than a filling station. I’ll give you one: a lot more can be accomplished by “we” than by “me.” There is a theological principle called “sola scriptura” which means scripture alone is our authority for faith and practice. It’s time for “sola ecclesia” when we call in all the lone rangers and think primarily about “we”, we who are the Body of Christ. Like drafting in cycling, the results, the rewards, and the blessings could be overwhelming if we practiced “Community” seriously and faithfully.

At least, that’s what I think.

O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! (Psalm 8)

The Potomac River is at its spectacular best when it becomes Great Falls in Virginia.

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, what is man?
A lesson in humility, wonder, and gratitude.
Indeed.

This was a dream in someone’s mind in 1720. That’s the date the Virginia General Assembly of the Episcopal Church created St. George’s Parish, now located in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Dreams really do come true, especially if the dreamer also has the courage, the resources, and the personal will to make it real. Walking around the sanctuary, sitting in one of the numbered pews with its little door on the end, standing in the pulpit, I felt the quiet presence of St. George’s saintly faithful. Churches have memories, this one three hundred years old. And they have histories.

So many remarkable people have knelt at the communion rail in this particular church. The list includes the family of George Washington. In the church’s adjacent graveyard are markers identifying William Paul Jones, the brother of John Paul Jones, and other recognizable names. James Monroe, the fifth President of the United States, had his law office a block away from the church and, as a life-long Episcopalian, was associated with the Parish. But churches are sustained over the years, the one over centuries, by common folk who faithfully guide the church with wisdom and courage. Perhaps in your prayers today
you could pray for your church and its leadership, for churches of all denominations as they speak to the world about faith. Whether your church is new or old, the message it brings to the world is universal and eternal. One other presence associated with this parish is the Holy Spirit of God, who is the insight, the will and the power to change the world through the famous and the unheralded alike. For that presence, the faithful bow in thanksgiving and trust, saying from their hearts: Thanks be to God.

It is a time of quiet still.
Early, yes; but not yet the dawn.
Whisper, speak softly lest
you wake the trees.

Walk gently through the wet
grass. Be mindful of the
little ones who sleep still,
nestled in the pine needles.

Prepare yourself for what is
about to happen. In moments
or minutes the world will be
transformed before your eyes.
Darkness and light will embrace
and very slowly all that exists
around you will come into focus.
You will see because of the Light.
Vision is always clearer when Light comes.

Listen for the birds’ songs, for they
are the heralds of Light. You will
know it is day when the singing begins.
You will know it is day when you
stand in wonder, hearing your
heart say: My Lord and my God.

May peace follow your steps today,
and may hope hold your hand.
See. The Light comes.

Amen

"For the beauty of the earth,
for the glory of the skies,
for the love which from our birth,
over and around us lies,
Lord of all to Thee we raise
this our hymn of greatful praise."

"For The Beauty Of The Earth"  Folliott Pierpoint  based on Ephesians 5:20