Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 41; Isaiah 50:4-9a; John 13:21-30; Hebrews 12:1-13; Psalm 55
Last night at our church’s lectionary discussion group, we were kicking around our experience of Psalm 118. One of the sticking points that many of us had regarding the language used in the Psalm had to do with the psalmist’s desire to rub his enemy’s face in the dirt. This just didn’t seem like the God of grace, mercy, and compassion that we knew. And then one of the group members made an insightful remark. He said, “When I read those passages, I don’t think of the enemy purely in human terms, I think of it in terms of issues I face – issues like greed, envy, jealousy, etc. That helps me understand in different ways what the psalmist might be trying to get at.” I loved that remark! And it came in especially handy this morning as I read the psalmist’s words in Psalm 41:2: “God looks after us all, makes us robust with life. Lucky to be in the land, we’re free from enemy worries” (The Message). What a powerful experience it is to read today’s Psalm from this new perspective. Can you imagine a life free of worries – not just from neighboring peoples but from things like fear, control, and worry! This concept of thinking of enemy as an issue rather than a person also helped give me new insights into the Passion Story. It’s so easy to approach the Passion Story purely from a traditional perspective and view Jesus’ enemies only as people like Pilate, Judas, the religious authorities, and the Roman officials. But were they the real threats Jesus faced? Or were the biggest threats Jesus faced things like apathy, the desire for comfort, and the quest for control? Today I invite you to think about the most powerful enemies you face. Think about your enemies perhaps in a new way. Instead of thinking about people (i.e. your demanding supervisor or your cranky neighbor), think about your enemies as issues. Then seek God’s empowering presence in your life to help you combat those enemies. Perhaps then you’ll begin to get a taste of life where you too are free from enemy worries. Til next time…
Last night at our church’s lectionary discussion group, we were kicking around our experience of Psalm 118. One of the sticking points that many of us had regarding the language used in the Psalm had to do with the psalmist’s desire to rub his enemy’s face in the dirt. This just didn’t seem like the God of grace, mercy, and compassion that we knew. And then one of the group members made an insightful remark. He said, “When I read those passages, I don’t think of the enemy purely in human terms, I think of it in terms of issues I face – issues like greed, envy, jealousy, etc. That helps me understand in different ways what the psalmist might be trying to get at.” I loved that remark! And it came in especially handy this morning as I read the psalmist’s words in Psalm 41:2: “God looks after us all, makes us robust with life. Lucky to be in the land, we’re free from enemy worries” (The Message). What a powerful experience it is to read today’s Psalm from this new perspective. Can you imagine a life free of worries – not just from neighboring peoples but from things like fear, control, and worry! This concept of thinking of enemy as an issue rather than a person also helped give me new insights into the Passion Story. It’s so easy to approach the Passion Story purely from a traditional perspective and view Jesus’ enemies only as people like Pilate, Judas, the religious authorities, and the Roman officials. But were they the real threats Jesus faced? Or were the biggest threats Jesus faced things like apathy, the desire for comfort, and the quest for control? Today I invite you to think about the most powerful enemies you face. Think about your enemies perhaps in a new way. Instead of thinking about people (i.e. your demanding supervisor or your cranky neighbor), think about your enemies as issues. Then seek God’s empowering presence in your life to help you combat those enemies. Perhaps then you’ll begin to get a taste of life where you too are free from enemy worries. Til next time…
2 comments:
Good morning. I found your blog while trying to locate information on what an "emergent worship" looks like. I'm the pastor of an open and affirming Disciples congregation heading into a transformation process.
We are just about to hold our first Recovery of Hope worship service aimed at the unchurched folks in 12 Step and LGBTQ communities. I'd like to investigate using emergent style worship but I can't seem to find an example of what that looks like. Could you help?
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