Holding Gifts, Not a Gavel

Dear friends,

It always amazes me, when I get to know someone, how very different our daily lives can be. Even people with similar careers, family situations, and personal backgrounds usually have some part of their lifestyle that makes it totally unlike my own. And since I have chosen my lifestyle for what I consider to be good reasons, it's only natural that I should have concerns about people who make different choices.

..which can be a huge problem, especially for those of us in Christian community. Given that we pay attention to the moral and spiritual implications of how we live our daily lives, we easily become judgmental. Even our children can pick up on it, and we run the risk of making them more harsh towards others, especially others they consider to be somehow living the "wrong way."

Paul saw this poison taking root in the early church of Rome. Not content to be united in Christ, the community continually squabbled over issues of lifestyle. In Romans 14:1-12 the issues at stake are doubtless very important -- on what day to worship together, whether to eat or abstain from meat. And knowing Paul, who always has a strong opinion on everything, we'd expect him to weigh in hard on one side or the other. But instead of seeing those he disagrees with as the problem, Paul sees the tendency to pass judgment itself as the problem.

This is not to say that every lifestyle decision is equally good and we should never try to steer one another towards better paths. But offering help and support is worlds different than passing judgment and treating someone harshly or excluding them. So Paul rightly reminds us that judgment belongs to the Lord, and that when we see a person in trouble our hands should be holding our gifts, not a gavel. What a relief, to be freed from the compulsion to measure and criticize every little thing in the lives of those around us! 

Grace and peace be with you all on this beautiful day and throughout this week.

Blessings and best regards,
Andrew

The Simple Walk

Dear friends,

Many of us spend our days swimming in a sea of information. We U.S. Americans look at screens over 10 hours a day on average, and most of us read and listen to music or news as well. Most of the media we take in doesn't come as cold, hard facts but rather as interpretations, opinions, and ways of looking at the world. We feel differently about life after listening to Johnny Cash as opposed to Lady Gaga, and over the course of our normal day we may be exposed to dozens of competing ways of thinking about the world and how we should live in it. We protect ourselves by ignoring most of what comes at us, but nonetheless it can be a dizzying experience!

So to me Romans 12:9-21 comes as a very welcome moment of clarity. When I get swamped and disoriented by everyone's competing perspectives, when I can't decide which global issue to be most worried about or which personal diet plan I should stick to, these wonderful words can help sort out my priorities.

"Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep."
"If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all."
"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

Each of the 13 verses in this selection are absolute gems, pure and poetic. They give me more than helpful advice, they give me a way of thinking that helps make sense of the information blasting at my brain like a firehose aimed at a teacup. How do I react to my coworker's post about getting a promotion over me? What should the governments of the world do about North Korea? Why does my irritable uncle keep calling? Paul's words don't give us any direct answers, but they sure can help us find those answers for ourselves. They point us towards a simple walk with God that can ease much of our self-doubt and disorientation. May that simple walk come easily to each of us this week.

Blessings of peace and productivity be with you all,
Andrew

Already We Stress

Dear friends,

It seems astounding that the end of the summer is so close already. For many of us this next week will signal the start of the whirlwind with the start of classes at Virginia Tech; for others, the whirlwind has already been raging a while.

Stress builds up not only because of increased workloads or decreased sleep, but also because of the fear of failure. The miserable fact is that we don’t just stress when we have rough days; we stress in anticipation of rough days.

So as a preemptive antidote to our preemptive stress, I recommend Psalm 138. It’s a full-throated expression of confidence and joy, a reminder to us and a testimony before all the powers and peoples of the world. God is faithful in the tough times, “On the day I called, you answered me, you strengthened my life.”

When we call out to God, we have an opportunity to free ourselves from our narrow and contorted obsessions and look at things with broader perspective. We can put our troubles in context, and remind ourselves that God cares especially about those who suffer the most. “For though the LORD is high, he regards the lowly; but the haughty he perceives from far away.”

So when the bad days come we know that we aren’t abandoned. If we can just raise our heads a little, if we can glimpse the sweep of the stars or hear a snippet of song, we can be reminded of the enduring love of the Creator reflected in all of our lives.

Blessings of serenity in your anticipation,
Andrew

Complacent Wednesdays

Dear friends,

It’s Wednesday, that midpoint in the week when I find it the easiest to fall into my daily rhythm. We spend the great majority of our hours working, sleeping, and eating, taking care of ourselves and those in our houses. Shocking events, like what happened last weekend in Charlottesville or what is happening today in Tal Afar, Iraq, seem so far away and we easily focus on nearby problems with coworkers, friends, and family.

Complacency has a bad reputation: it can be a sign of deep selfishness, blinding us to the pain of others and making us reluctant to confront evil in ourselves or in others. But the sister of complacency is contentment, and that is something we wish on all people. Psalm 133 must be one of the shortest psalms of all time, only three verses, and it speaks to the richness found in our everyday lives when we can get along with those closest to us. No wonder we focus so much on the people we relate to on a daily basis.

So just because we don’t want to be complacent in the face of grand world events doesn’t mean we neglect those close relationships. And on the other side, just because we spend many days focused on work, sleep, and food, doesn’t mean that we don’t keep a greater vision of God’s peace for all the world in our heads, preparing and fortifying ourselves for when we may be called into action.

There is a rhythm beyond our daily rhythms, one that tells us to enjoy the small things in life but reminds us that in time we will be called to struggle with great things as well. Let this be a Wednesday of contentment more than complacency, of finding good things in our immediate surroundings, and allowing that goodness to nourish us in preparation for God’s work.

Blessings of health and happiness be with you all,
Andrew

The Freedom to Step Out of the Boat

Dear friends,

I hope that this week has afforded you many opportunities to enjoy these unexpectedly cool days. I know I've found it much easier to get outside, both for work and for relaxation. On a long summer day with a nose full of cool, clean air there are moments of extreme optimism, like I could tackle any project or navigate any problem, like I could run for miles and not get tired, like I could walk on water. 

This week's gospel passage, Matthew 14:22-33, is also about the weather and how it relates to our faith, but on the other side of the coin; the disciples get caught in heavy wind blowing against their boat as they try to cross the Sea of Galilee. If you've ever been in a small craft in high seas you know that it's very difficult to think straight much less relax when struggling against waves that threaten to dump water into the boat at any moment. In contrast, here comes Jesus, strolling across the waves. The disciples are together, battered, trapped in their boat. Jesus is alone, at peace, and free to walk where he wills.

And when the disciples see someone outside of their boat, the immediate reaction is fear: "It's a ghost!" When we see people outside of our safe, life-preserving structures, when we see people without houses or cars or churches or 40-hour workweeks, we get afraid for them and we get a little afraid of them. 

But Christ reassures the disciples - "Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid." Once we recognize Christ in a person who by some miracle manages to survive out there in the storm, without any of the things we rely on to get by, we have a choice. We can cling to our (very necessary) boat, or we can dare to step out, trusting that the miracle that sustains them will sustain us, too, for a time. 

By faith Peter stepped out, and by fear he began to sink. "Faith" is such a difficult and slippery idea; it seems like everyone has their own definition of what it means. Some say it's about what you believe; others say it's about who you trust. To me this story helps clearly illuminate that faith is about what you do. You can believe all kinds of facts about a bridge, but unless you walk on it you don't have faith in it. If your fear prevents you, all the beliefs in the world can't let you walk in faith.

Then Jesus helps Peter back into the boat, and joins him and the rest of the disciples there. The boat is a good thing, but from then on the disciples know that Jesus isn't trapped in it -- and they get the feeling that with faith, they aren't either. When the wind and waves buffet our boats, let's remember those cool August mornings when we felt like we could do anything, and let's give ourselves the option of stepping out, onto the water, to meet our Lord.

Blessings and peace be with you all,
Andrew

p.s.- This Sunday at 9:30am will be the start of the class in preparation for baptism this September. We'll meet in my office, unless there's too many of us and we need to figure out something else. We're going to have some great conversations, I'm looking forward to it!