Sunday, October 19

Today’s Readings: Psalm 99; Exodus 33:12-23; Matthew 22:15-22; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

As someone who comes from a denomination connected to the Reformed tradition (that would be the United Church of Christ), the notion of what it means to be a part of “the elect” – or the chosen – is a part of my religious heritage. While some folks from Reformed traditions LOVE the notion of being part of “the elect”, I have to admit the notion makes me more than a little uncomfortable. I suppose some of this discomfort stems from the fact that I was raised in a denomination (United Methodist) whose founder (John Wesley) found the notion of “the elect” offensive. Another reason the notion of “the elect” makes me uncomfortable is because I have seen individuals who consider themselves part of “the elect” fall prey to conceit and/or apathy in their spiritual lives. So why all of this talk about “the elect” or the chosen? Well, the issue was raised for me in today’s reading from Exodus, where the notion of being “special” was raised by Moses in relation to both himself and the Israelites. A few months ago, I stumbled upon a resource that helped me frame what it meant to be part of “the elect” – or “special” - in a new way. Those who are a part of “the elect”, the author wrote, are not chosen because they themselves are special; rather, those who are a part of “the elect” are special because they have been chosen. For those outside the Reformed tradition, this distinction may sound like mere word play. For me it’s not. That’s because the author’s words helped me understand there is nothing inherent in us that makes us special; instead, it is God’s unmerited grace that transforms us into something we could never be on our own. Today, I would invite you to celebrate just how special you are – not because of who you are but special because of whose you are! Til next time…

Saturday, October 18

Today’s Readings: Psalm 66; Numbers 14:26-45; Luke 24:36-53; Ephesians 5:1-14; Psalm 91

I learned an important lesson about love from my mother when I was just ten years old. Let me tell you about that lesson. My folks had three children before I came along. My brother Gene came along 10 years before I was born; my brother Keith came along 9 years before I was born; and my sister Karen came along 7 years before I was born. By the time I arrived, my parents were probably tired of taking care of kids and were ready to do some things for themselves for a change. My mother had dreamed of learning how to paint for years; unfortunately, she could never afford painting lessons when my siblings were young so she put off those painting lessons for years. She waited until two of my siblings were out of high school before she could pull enough money together to afford the lessons. In the spring of 1977, she finally started her painting lessons. During that summer, I became insistent that I wanted piano lessons. I had watched my sister play for years, and I figured it was time for me to start playing myself. My parents couldn’t afford painting lessons for my mom and piano lessons for myself so my mom made a difficult choice; she put aside her painting lessons so my parents could provide piano lessons for me. That simple act of sacrifice might not sound like much to some people – but to this day every time I think of what the word “love” means, I think of that selfless act on my mother’s part. I was reminded of this today when I read Paul’s words from his letter to the Ephesians that read: “Watch what God does, then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that” (Ephesians 5:1-2 from The Message). In the world we live in, it’s so easy for us to settle for loving cautiously. If you are tempted to love cautiously, I would encourage you to recall those in your life who have followed Paul’s advice and loved extravagantly. Remember how transformative those extravagant acts of love were in your life and then take a risk and extend an extravagant act of love to someone in your life as well. That simple act of extravagant love could go a long way in transforming someone’s world. Til next time…

Friday, October 17

Today’s Readings: Psalm 61; Numbers 13:31-14:25; Luke 24:12-35; Ephesians 4:25-32; Psalm 20

Without even realizing it, many folks in our society have bought into the notion “Bigger is Better”. That notion hasn’t just affected our attitude toward secular interests – it’s even crept into our view of church. That’s one reason the mega church movement has exploded over the past 15 years – because folks tend to equate size with effectiveness. Growing up in a small church, however, I realized early in life that “Bigger is NOT Always Better”. I learned in a very personal way what amazing and transformative things can happen in small communities that often get overlooked. In today’s reading from Numbers, the Israelites were trying to figure out where they stood on this issue of size. After the scouts returned from scoping out the land before them, the Israelites became obsessed with rumors of the giants who lived in the land. As a result, they concluded they had no chance to move into the very land God had called them because “Bigger (in their case, the giants) was Better”. Thankfully God provided them with a leader – Moses – who helped remind them that that saying is not always true. He convinced the people that because they were pursuing something to which God had truly called them that they would be all right. And guess what? They were. Perhaps there is an area in your life that you feel called to pursue. As you have considered your call, however, you might have bumped into challenges or obstacles that seemed to dwarf your call so you too concluded “Bigger is Better”; out of fear of those challenges and obstacles maybe you abandoned your call. If that’s the case, remember Moses’ words to the people: “They have no protection and God is on our side. Don’t be afraid of them” (Numbers 14:9 from The Message). Now take a deep breath, proceed in the pursuit of your call, and remember not to equate the size of the challenges before you with your probability for success. Til next time…

Thursday, October 16

Today’s Readings: Psalm 30; Numbers 13:1-3, 21-30; Luke 23:56b-24:11; Ephesians 4:17-24; Psalm 33

For two years, I worked as an outreach worker and community educator with the HIV/AIDS program at my local health district in Washington State. Part of my duties there included working in an outreach center located in the heart of the city. During my time at the outreach center, I worked with a variety of people: the homeless, commercial sex industry workers, IV drug users – you name the population, and I worked with them. Out of all the people I ran into, I remember one best of all. The individual I remember was a 17 year old boy whom I’ll call him Brad. Brad was homeless and living under one of the local bridges. He was wrestling with drug and alcohol addictions as well. To say Brad had issues would be a huge understatement. One day Brad showed up with a 13 year old girl - whom I’ll call Amy - in tow. Now 13 year old girls living on the streets of the city were some of the most vulnerable people out there. It would have been so easy for Brad to have exploited Amy. And yet what did Brad do? He protected her and brought her into the outreach center so she could get connected with folks who would look out for her and get her help. Through Brad's act of love and grace I had an encounter with someone I least expected in that setting; I had an encounter with the Spirit of Christ. I don’t know why I should have been surprised. After all, during his lifetime Jesus had a habit of showing up at times and places when we least expected him. That day at the outreach center I was like the women at the tomb in today’s Gospel reading from Luke. I had a very specific idea of where I thought Jesus should be. In their case, they expected Jesus to be in the tomb; in my case, I expected Jesus to be in predictable (i.e. socially acceptable) places. If today’s scripture teaches us anything, it’s never to put the essence of Jesus in a box. Today, I would encourage you to head out into the world with your eyes wide open. If you do that, you just might encounter the Spirit of Christ in places you might least expect. Til next time…