This morning, Samuel, our almost 4 year old, got fairly mad at me when I wouldn't let him watch tv all morning. Cries...sobs... Normally we really don't watch tv, but he's been sick and inside for something like 5 days. So we watched about 45 minutes of Seseme Street.
At the end, he wanted to keep going.
Nope.
"But Daaaaaaaaaddddyyyyy!!!!"
Nope.
So as he left the room, angry and crying, closing the door he said "If I don't I won't be happy!"
And he left.
But wait...I want my kid to be happy. Don't I?
Nope. I don't.
In our society, we have elevated "happy" to the level of golden calf. We worship happy. We are all about immediate gratification, about self-fulfillment, about completing ourselves.
Tony Campolo said: "My Mama didn't care if I was happy; she wanted me to be goooooood. If I was good, happy would follow."
It seems that we've put the emotional cart before the horse.
Sam, I'm sorry you weren't happy. But I hope that you're good. Happy will follow. Be patient.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Monday, December 04, 2006
Sunday, December 03, 2006
"The Gift of Wonder"
“Gift of Wonder”
Luke 1:5-25
Todd Buegler
Dec. 2-3, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who comes as gift! Amen.
A couple of weeks ago, we held our 7th and 8th grade confirmation retreats. The retreats went really well…they were great! There was all the normal stuff…music, large group sessions, small group sessions and some wicked games of “dodge ball.” One of the new things we did this year was a session called “Ask Pastor Todd anything you want.” The kids could put any questions about life and faith anonymously into a box and we took turns pulling them out and answering or discussing them. There were a few questions like “What’s for supper?” or “How long is this going to last?” and of course, my favorite, “How old are you?” To which I made the classic mistake and asked “How old do you think I am?” All I can say is, based on their answers, some of those kids aren’t getting confirmed until they’re my age.
But by far, most of the kids asked unbelievably great questions. Questions like:
• “So if God created everything, who created God?”
• “What if I’m not sure I’m good enough to go to heaven?”
• “Why do people get sick and die?”
• “How do we know that the whole Bible is true?”
We had great conversation together. In the end, my observation was that these kids are in the process of “wondering” about their faith. This is an important stage of faith development. When you begin to wonder about your faith; when you begin to ask questions and to try to understand, you move towards a deeper faith, one that experiences the “wonder”, the awe, of God. We all are constantly moving from a simple, question based faith to a “wonder” based faith.
We don’t think much about “wonder” in our culture. And when we do, we think of it as a question; as in “I wonder what’s for supper…or I wonder what movie we’ll go see tonight.” It’s a simple kind of wonder. These were many of the questions the 7th and 8th graders asked me. “Why do people get sick and die” is an important question; an “I wonder” question. But there is a second way of using the word “wonder”. As in, the deeper sense of wonder that we mature into, that borders on awe. At this stage, we ask things like “How can God’s love really be for me?” It is not just a simple question, it is a deep wonder. It is positive. It looks forward to what God is doing.
I made sure the 7th and 8th graders understood that it is good to ask questions. It is good to wonder, both in terms of asking simple questions, and of being in awe at things we can’t fully understand. Most of us have times in our lives when we ask hard questions of God. This is an important step for us as we grow in faith. Our Gospel lesson for today is all about the difference between the kind of wonder which focuses on questions, and the kind that focuses on awe. And the author, Luke, is telling us which of the two God would like us to experience.
Our story serves as a kind of a “prequel” for the Jesus story, focusing on two fairly obscure characters from the Bible, Zecheriah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist.
Luke sets the story up in an interesting way. First, he tells the story of the Angel Gabriel visiting Zecheriah, and telling him about the upcoming birth of their Son, John. Then immediately after this story is told, he launches into telling the story of the Angel Gabriel visiting Mary and telling her of the coming birth of her son, who is also John’s cousin, Jesus. Then he tells of John’s birth, followed by the telling of Jesus’ birth. There is clearly a pattern here: Announcement of John, Announcement of Jesus, birth of John, birth of Jesus, with a link between the two pairs as Elizabeth and Mary, pregnant with these two unexpected children, finally meet each other.
With this pattern, Luke wants to compare and contrast Jesus and John, and to compare and contrast Zechariah and Mary.
There are similarities in the stories that are obvious:
• Both children are announced in advance by the angel Gabriel;
• Both births are unnatural or miraculous.
• In both cases the angel Gabriel tells what the name of the child should be.
But today, I want us to pay attention to the contrasts.
• John was born to an aged couple…I’m not talking about Todd on a confirmation retreat old, I mean really old. And they were never able to have children.
• Jesus was born to a young woman who was a virgin.
• John was given a name which means “God is gracious.” Jesus was given a name which means “savior.” John describes grace; Jesus is grace.
• John was to prepare for the Lord, Jesus was the Lord who would reign forever.
How did Zechariah respond when told what was happening? You have to know a little bit about Zechariah: He was a priest and he had just been given the honor of entering into the temple, an honor for which he would only be selected once during his lifetime. And now, inside that temple, face to face with Gabriel, he is given a gift. He is told that at his age, he is to become a father. He can’t bring himself to believe. Zechariah had been a priest for a very long time. He was a good man, and had followed the rituals, traditions and laws faithfully. But when confronted with God’s working in his life in an unexpected way, old Zechariah just couldn’t think himself outside of the box. He said he couldn’t believe. He couldn’t move beyond the wonder that asks questions, into the wonder that is in awe at what God would do. Zechariah was stuck…stuck in an immature faith where if he couldn’t get the answers he wanted, he wouldn’t believe.
How did Mary’s faith express itself? When the angel was finished predicting the miraculous birth of Jesus, Mary said in verse 34, “How can this be, since I have no husband?” Note the contrast: Zechariah said “This can’t be.” Mary says “How can this be?” Zechariah asks for more evidence, while Mary asks for an explanation. Zechariah says he can’t be sure…he doubts; Mary says she can’t understand. This is an important distinction. Zechariah doesn’t believe. As an old man, he is stuck in an immature faith. Ironically, it is the young Mary, who demonstrates mature faith. She may not understand, but she believes. Gabriel’s response to Mary? “Nothing is impossible for God.” That’s it. No deeper explanation than that. That’s the way it is for many of us. Often we don’t find the answers we seek. But we believe.
And Gabriel’s response to Zechariah? Gabriel, who apparently takes his cues from the “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all” school of thought, tells Zecheriah: “…you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words...” Zecheriah was silenced, muted, until the birth of his Son, 9 months later. Apparently, Gabriel did not appreciate his disbelief.
Contrast this with Mary. After she is pregnant, Mary sings the Magnificat…the song of Praise to God.
This points out another thing that I think Luke wants us to see: There is a right way and a wrong way to respond to God’s promises.
Luke clearly wants us to follow Mary’s example, not Zechariah’s.
I think this story teaches us that it is possible to demand too much evidence before you believe God’s promises. When we do this, we risk slipping into disbelief.
God wants us to believe, and to wonder with awe. Mike Yaconelli has a great image of wonder. In one of his books, he writes of his two year old nephew, who lived in a snowless part of the country. When the nephew came north to visit Mike and his family, they choreographed the moment perfectly.
Mike writes that “…they opened the screen door and set him on the deck. His eyes stretched wide with astonishment, as though the only way to understand what he was seeing was for his eyes to become big enough to contain it all. He stood motionless, paralyzed. It was almost too much for a two year old. He twitched and jerked each time a snowflake landed on his face…His mind was a confusion of strange conflicting realities: …causing an overload so great, so overwhelming, he fell backward…a slow-motion landing in the billowy whiteness, the snow tenderly embracing him. He had given up trying to understand snow and had given in to experiencing snow. It was a moment of pure wonder.”
This was the wonder of Mary, when Gabriel explained to her what she was going to experience. Her words? “How can this be?” And she gave herself to the experience. It was a moment of pure wonder.
God calls us to a faith like Mary. God calls us to wonder. Zecheriah had the right resume…he was a faithful priest, a religious leader…but when confronted with the grace of God, he buckled under the weight of doubt. He couldn’t believe God.
Mary had no resume. She was an unmarried pregnant teenage girl in a culture where she had everything to lose. And she was carried away by the grace and the wonder of a God who loved her.
My friends, I believe that God speaks to us in the same way. Jesus’ birth has been announced, and like Mary, we await the day. God offers you a gift. He says “my grace, my love, my forgiveness…it is for you, in my Son.” Sometimes our natural reaction is to look at such a gift with doubt; to say “How can I know this?” Don’t. Look at it with wonder. Say “how can this be?” Accept that we won’t understand it. Whether you are a 7th grader, are as old as me, or are approaching the age of Zecheriah, accept that nothing is impossible for God…and let the grace of God create in you moments…no…full lives…of pure wonder.
Amen.
Luke 1:5-25
Todd Buegler
Dec. 2-3, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who comes as gift! Amen.
A couple of weeks ago, we held our 7th and 8th grade confirmation retreats. The retreats went really well…they were great! There was all the normal stuff…music, large group sessions, small group sessions and some wicked games of “dodge ball.” One of the new things we did this year was a session called “Ask Pastor Todd anything you want.” The kids could put any questions about life and faith anonymously into a box and we took turns pulling them out and answering or discussing them. There were a few questions like “What’s for supper?” or “How long is this going to last?” and of course, my favorite, “How old are you?” To which I made the classic mistake and asked “How old do you think I am?” All I can say is, based on their answers, some of those kids aren’t getting confirmed until they’re my age.
But by far, most of the kids asked unbelievably great questions. Questions like:
• “So if God created everything, who created God?”
• “What if I’m not sure I’m good enough to go to heaven?”
• “Why do people get sick and die?”
• “How do we know that the whole Bible is true?”
We had great conversation together. In the end, my observation was that these kids are in the process of “wondering” about their faith. This is an important stage of faith development. When you begin to wonder about your faith; when you begin to ask questions and to try to understand, you move towards a deeper faith, one that experiences the “wonder”, the awe, of God. We all are constantly moving from a simple, question based faith to a “wonder” based faith.
We don’t think much about “wonder” in our culture. And when we do, we think of it as a question; as in “I wonder what’s for supper…or I wonder what movie we’ll go see tonight.” It’s a simple kind of wonder. These were many of the questions the 7th and 8th graders asked me. “Why do people get sick and die” is an important question; an “I wonder” question. But there is a second way of using the word “wonder”. As in, the deeper sense of wonder that we mature into, that borders on awe. At this stage, we ask things like “How can God’s love really be for me?” It is not just a simple question, it is a deep wonder. It is positive. It looks forward to what God is doing.
I made sure the 7th and 8th graders understood that it is good to ask questions. It is good to wonder, both in terms of asking simple questions, and of being in awe at things we can’t fully understand. Most of us have times in our lives when we ask hard questions of God. This is an important step for us as we grow in faith. Our Gospel lesson for today is all about the difference between the kind of wonder which focuses on questions, and the kind that focuses on awe. And the author, Luke, is telling us which of the two God would like us to experience.
Our story serves as a kind of a “prequel” for the Jesus story, focusing on two fairly obscure characters from the Bible, Zecheriah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist.
Luke sets the story up in an interesting way. First, he tells the story of the Angel Gabriel visiting Zecheriah, and telling him about the upcoming birth of their Son, John. Then immediately after this story is told, he launches into telling the story of the Angel Gabriel visiting Mary and telling her of the coming birth of her son, who is also John’s cousin, Jesus. Then he tells of John’s birth, followed by the telling of Jesus’ birth. There is clearly a pattern here: Announcement of John, Announcement of Jesus, birth of John, birth of Jesus, with a link between the two pairs as Elizabeth and Mary, pregnant with these two unexpected children, finally meet each other.
With this pattern, Luke wants to compare and contrast Jesus and John, and to compare and contrast Zechariah and Mary.
There are similarities in the stories that are obvious:
• Both children are announced in advance by the angel Gabriel;
• Both births are unnatural or miraculous.
• In both cases the angel Gabriel tells what the name of the child should be.
But today, I want us to pay attention to the contrasts.
• John was born to an aged couple…I’m not talking about Todd on a confirmation retreat old, I mean really old. And they were never able to have children.
• Jesus was born to a young woman who was a virgin.
• John was given a name which means “God is gracious.” Jesus was given a name which means “savior.” John describes grace; Jesus is grace.
• John was to prepare for the Lord, Jesus was the Lord who would reign forever.
How did Zechariah respond when told what was happening? You have to know a little bit about Zechariah: He was a priest and he had just been given the honor of entering into the temple, an honor for which he would only be selected once during his lifetime. And now, inside that temple, face to face with Gabriel, he is given a gift. He is told that at his age, he is to become a father. He can’t bring himself to believe. Zechariah had been a priest for a very long time. He was a good man, and had followed the rituals, traditions and laws faithfully. But when confronted with God’s working in his life in an unexpected way, old Zechariah just couldn’t think himself outside of the box. He said he couldn’t believe. He couldn’t move beyond the wonder that asks questions, into the wonder that is in awe at what God would do. Zechariah was stuck…stuck in an immature faith where if he couldn’t get the answers he wanted, he wouldn’t believe.
How did Mary’s faith express itself? When the angel was finished predicting the miraculous birth of Jesus, Mary said in verse 34, “How can this be, since I have no husband?” Note the contrast: Zechariah said “This can’t be.” Mary says “How can this be?” Zechariah asks for more evidence, while Mary asks for an explanation. Zechariah says he can’t be sure…he doubts; Mary says she can’t understand. This is an important distinction. Zechariah doesn’t believe. As an old man, he is stuck in an immature faith. Ironically, it is the young Mary, who demonstrates mature faith. She may not understand, but she believes. Gabriel’s response to Mary? “Nothing is impossible for God.” That’s it. No deeper explanation than that. That’s the way it is for many of us. Often we don’t find the answers we seek. But we believe.
And Gabriel’s response to Zechariah? Gabriel, who apparently takes his cues from the “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all” school of thought, tells Zecheriah: “…you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words...” Zecheriah was silenced, muted, until the birth of his Son, 9 months later. Apparently, Gabriel did not appreciate his disbelief.
Contrast this with Mary. After she is pregnant, Mary sings the Magnificat…the song of Praise to God.
This points out another thing that I think Luke wants us to see: There is a right way and a wrong way to respond to God’s promises.
Luke clearly wants us to follow Mary’s example, not Zechariah’s.
I think this story teaches us that it is possible to demand too much evidence before you believe God’s promises. When we do this, we risk slipping into disbelief.
God wants us to believe, and to wonder with awe. Mike Yaconelli has a great image of wonder. In one of his books, he writes of his two year old nephew, who lived in a snowless part of the country. When the nephew came north to visit Mike and his family, they choreographed the moment perfectly.
Mike writes that “…they opened the screen door and set him on the deck. His eyes stretched wide with astonishment, as though the only way to understand what he was seeing was for his eyes to become big enough to contain it all. He stood motionless, paralyzed. It was almost too much for a two year old. He twitched and jerked each time a snowflake landed on his face…His mind was a confusion of strange conflicting realities: …causing an overload so great, so overwhelming, he fell backward…a slow-motion landing in the billowy whiteness, the snow tenderly embracing him. He had given up trying to understand snow and had given in to experiencing snow. It was a moment of pure wonder.”
This was the wonder of Mary, when Gabriel explained to her what she was going to experience. Her words? “How can this be?” And she gave herself to the experience. It was a moment of pure wonder.
God calls us to a faith like Mary. God calls us to wonder. Zecheriah had the right resume…he was a faithful priest, a religious leader…but when confronted with the grace of God, he buckled under the weight of doubt. He couldn’t believe God.
Mary had no resume. She was an unmarried pregnant teenage girl in a culture where she had everything to lose. And she was carried away by the grace and the wonder of a God who loved her.
My friends, I believe that God speaks to us in the same way. Jesus’ birth has been announced, and like Mary, we await the day. God offers you a gift. He says “my grace, my love, my forgiveness…it is for you, in my Son.” Sometimes our natural reaction is to look at such a gift with doubt; to say “How can I know this?” Don’t. Look at it with wonder. Say “how can this be?” Accept that we won’t understand it. Whether you are a 7th grader, are as old as me, or are approaching the age of Zecheriah, accept that nothing is impossible for God…and let the grace of God create in you moments…no…full lives…of pure wonder.
Amen.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Microsoft redesigns iPod packaging
| Let's hope that this never becomes a reality... Original video: http://www.arctic.org/~patrick/misc/ms-ipod-parody.wmv | |
Sunday, November 19, 2006
A Retreat
This weekend was the 8th grade retreat at Lord of Life. It went well. We used the theme "Eyes Wide Open" and focused on the scripture of the disciples on the road to Emaeus.
One piece of the program is a Q&A session called: "Ask Todd whatever you want."
Great questions...
...about creation
...about families
...about sexuality
...about sin
...about grace
Fundamentally, the root of many of the questions came down to "what if I'm not good enough."
Imagine the look of surprise on their (and some of their adult leader's) faces when I said "You're not good enough."
It has nothing to do with us. Quite simply we are not good enough. Not at all. So how do we communicate that it is God who makes us good enough.
They heard me. I'm not sure if they believe me.
One piece of the program is a Q&A session called: "Ask Todd whatever you want."
Great questions...
...about creation
...about families
...about sexuality
...about sin
...about grace
Fundamentally, the root of many of the questions came down to "what if I'm not good enough."
Imagine the look of surprise on their (and some of their adult leader's) faces when I said "You're not good enough."
It has nothing to do with us. Quite simply we are not good enough. Not at all. So how do we communicate that it is God who makes us good enough.
They heard me. I'm not sure if they believe me.
Friday, November 17, 2006
There Is No Simple Answer
I just had a fun conversation with a friend and colleague. We were discussing "The Model", and how at the institution where he teaches, "the model" they are supposed to teach is done, often at the exclusion of all else, and with a sense that it is THE way of doing things in congregations.
It's not.
Far from it.
We look for single, "one-size-fits-all" solutions to problems. Life is full of adaptation. I am wary of those who tell me how to do things, especially those who do not know my context.
There is no model...no simple answer. And when those models begin with the presupposition that because I am not doing "the model", I must be doing it wrong...well...that just annoys me.
Life was not created to be simple. And people of faith, more than everyone, need to recognize that life is full of opportunity to "make good". God did not choose to give us an owner's manual for the world...lprobably mostly because we don't own it...we are tourists on the earth, living lives that are completely dependent on God.
It seems like we should get over ourselves.
It's not.
Far from it.
We look for single, "one-size-fits-all" solutions to problems. Life is full of adaptation. I am wary of those who tell me how to do things, especially those who do not know my context.
There is no model...no simple answer. And when those models begin with the presupposition that because I am not doing "the model", I must be doing it wrong...well...that just annoys me.
Life was not created to be simple. And people of faith, more than everyone, need to recognize that life is full of opportunity to "make good". God did not choose to give us an owner's manual for the world...lprobably mostly because we don't own it...we are tourists on the earth, living lives that are completely dependent on God.
It seems like we should get over ourselves.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
A political upheaval
How interesting were the elections last night?
The debate is: was it a referendum on George Bush and the current direction?
Sure it was. To argue otherwise if foolishness.
People are not happy with the direction of the country. People are not happy with the war. People are not happy with the economy. People are not happy that the government seems to be more about maintaining power than sharing, or giving away power.
I think the American people spoke clearly last night, whether or not we choose to hear what was said. The question remains: Can the President and those in leadership listen and interpret?
The debate is: was it a referendum on George Bush and the current direction?
Sure it was. To argue otherwise if foolishness.
People are not happy with the direction of the country. People are not happy with the war. People are not happy with the economy. People are not happy that the government seems to be more about maintaining power than sharing, or giving away power.
I think the American people spoke clearly last night, whether or not we choose to hear what was said. The question remains: Can the President and those in leadership listen and interpret?
Red
I read about the campaign that Bono, Oprah and others have kicked off called the "Red" campaign. There are selected items, (i.e. the iPod) being sold in a new red version. If you buy one, proceeds go towards the One Campaign. I am a big fan of Bono. I am a huge fan of the One campaign. But I find the Red program troubling.
From what I understand, the stars are basically saying "Hey, we know that you're going to buy stuff. We know that we can't defeat consumerism. So go ahead...buy...get more stuff...and we'll try to take some advantage of that to raise some money. Now, this may or may not actually be what they are saying, but from my angle, it is what it sounds like.
This bothers me. I don't think we need to sell out to consumerism. Is this not merely treating the symptoms of the problem, rather than treating the problem? Is this not "buying into" buying? It seems to me that much of our problem really is rampant consumerism. It is the attitude that "I can buy happiness...if that takes resources away from someone else, well then, so be it."
I'm troubled and a little disappointed.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Eyes Wide Open - Luke 24:13-35
“Eyes Wide Open”
Luke 24:13-35
Todd Buegler
October 28 & 29, 2006
Lord of Life
Service of Confirmation
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who is the light of the world! Amen.
Let me be the first today to say “congratulations” to all of you on this chance to affirm your baptismal vows. For most of you, baptism happened somewhere around 16 years ago, when your parents made promises for you. Today, it is your turn. And we are all very, very proud of you!
What we’ve been a part of here is about God’s work in your lives. We’d never want to reduce it all to cold, hard statistics. But, sometimes I get a little curious, so I’ve done some math and want to share with you all some statistics about this group of young people. There are a total of 146 of you being confirmed this weekend. You were a part of 19 different small groups that met on Wednesday nights and on retreats for a total of 74 hours of time together. Add up all that time your class gave to small groups in your faith journey and it comes out to 10,730 people hours. Together, you have all given (and this is a conservative estimate), 4,500 hours of service to people in need, and to the church. You have turned in a total of 4,350 worship notes. (actually, the number was 4,347, but as soon as the 3 of you still turning in the last ones on this sermon do so, it will be 4,350.) Finally, and perhaps most remarkably, over three years, your class personally ate 1,040 large Domino’s pizzas.
When all is said and done, however, confirmation ministry at Lord of Life is not about numbers and statistics. It is about transformation and change. It is about what God does within you.
In college, I was overjoyed to discover when I first registered, that I was only required to do one credit of physical education courses. Phy. Ed. courses were never my favorite thing. (My theory is, I only run when I’m being chased.) So this was good news! Then, I read the fine print of the course catalog. These college people were tricky…each of their phy. ed. courses were given out in eighth, or even sixteenth of a credit chunks. This ruined my theory of slipping through college with only one phy. ed. course. So I made it my mission to take as many of the strange and obscure phy. ed courses that I could.
While I couldn’t avoid some of the standard courses like running, or tennis, I did mange to take courses like “bowling”, “ballroom dance”, “badmitton” and “Archery.”
Archery stands out for me because of one particular event that took place there. The class met on the concrete floor of the hockey arena. So there were chairs surrounding the arena up high, and glass block windows behind the chairs. They had 7 or 8 targets, and a group of 4 or 5 of us would stand in front of each target in a line, and would take turns shooting arrows. When a row would finish, the coach would cue us to walk up and pull the arrows, or to go find them, and give them to the next person in line.
I stood at my place in line with my arrow. I aimed. I pulled back on the bow. . The arrow hit the target…just a few inches from the bulls eye. Only one problem. The arrow…it wasn’t mine. I hadn’t shot yet. Confused, I looked to my left, and then my right. Karen, a woman in the next line, had a horrified and embarrassed look on her face. She had shot, and had completely missed her target, hitting mine. “Thanks!” I said.
The next time we were both up, I was curious, so I watched her out of the corner of my eye. This time, she took her shot and instead of shooting straight toward the target, the arrow kind of lofted up in the air, tumbling end-over-end and landing with a clatter on the floor halfway to the target. This got the Coach’s attention, as well as the rest of the class. She was again, horribly embarrassed.
The third time our line came up to shoot, the whole class was pretty much watching Karen to see what would happen. Karen notched the arrow, aimed in the general direction of the target, pulled back on the bow and went like this. Just before she released, she squeezed her eyes shut. The third arrow launched and shot up over the target, over the hockey arena seats shattering one of the glass block windows and out of the building.
The coach had been standing behind Karen. He leaned forward and whispered in her ear “open your eyes.”
I tell you this story because I believe that this is the way many of us live our faith lives. We go through much of life blind to the things of the world going on around us…blind to God in our life. We run around looking for evidence of God, but blind to what God is doing. We are willing to ask questions: “Where is God? What is God doing?” But God is active. God is doing things; things that we may not see. And there are moments in our life when it’s as if God stands behind us and whispers in our ears, “open your eyes!”
I tell you this as a confession. I often don’t see things. Sometimes it’s just the routine and the mundane. My wife, Lori, swears that I have what she calls “Guy Disease.” I can stare directly into the refrigerator, where the bottle of mayonnaise is 10% obstructed by the milk, and I can ask her “Honey, where’s the mayo?” She’ll walk over, grab the jar from in front of my face and hand it to me. I don’t understand why I didn’t see it. I just don’t. Husbands, for how many of you is this true? Wives, for how many of you is this true of your husbands? (Sometimes we’re blind to the fact that we can’t see!)…and let’s not event talk about my car keys or my wallet.
Likewise, I can be blind to the ways of God. I believe fully that God is working in the world. I have seen the results of God’s work. But when things are most difficult for me…when I am most in need of seeing God’s work; then I can be most blind to it. When I am the most anxious about something in my life, when out of my anxiety, I grip tighter and tighter control, that is when I should be “eyes wide open”, looking for the work of God. Instead, it’s as if I’ve grabbed the bow, squeezed my eyes shut and am drawing back the arrow.
This was certainly the case for the disciples. The story: Two followers were walking along the road one day near the village of Emmaus, some seven miles outside of the capital city of Jerusalem. The two friends were depressed. They felt this way because Jesus had been crucified, the disciples had run away, a hysterical and hallucinating woman named Mary claimed she saw the Risen Christ, somebody had broken into the tomb and stolen the body, and the Jesus movement was over and dead. They were depressed, because their Lord and master, Jesus of Nazareth was killed, and it was all over.
As they walked, a stranger was soon walking with them. The two friends told the stranger about why they felt down and how Jesus had been killed. The stranger then started to teach them the Scriptures; when he did, something happened: the disciples described their hearts as burning with amazement. The two friends invited the stranger to go with them that night and have dinner. At the meal, the stranger took the bread, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to them. In that sacramental moment, the two friends eyes were opened wide, and they realized that this stranger was Jesus, the Risen Christ. Later they said “Did not our hearts burn within us when he opened up the Scriptures to us?” They also said, “As he took the bread, offered thanks, broke the bread and gave it to them, he made himself known to us…” Their eyes were opened wide, and they saw Jesus.
At different times in our lives, we have these moments, when it’s almost as if God stands behind you and whispers in your ear “open your eyes.” For you, the first of these moments took place here, at the baptismal font. When you were brought to the water, and it was poured on your head, “in the name of the Father…in the name of the Son…in the name of the Holy Spirit…” you received the promises of God: The promise of the gift of eternal life. The promise of the forgiveness of sins. The promise that wherever you go, God will know you each by name, and the promise that you are a part of a community of faith; a family where you are always welcome. God raised you out of the water with a promise and a word. The word? Open your eyes…see Jesus. See God in the world around you.
Our hope and prayer is that C3 has been full of “Eyes Wide Open” moments for you. Moments where you experienced God in a new way. Moments where your heart burned because God’s love for you came alive. We seek these moments. I believe that our greatest need, the thing we strive for more than anything else, is a relationship with the God who seeks a relationship with you. We spend our lives looking for how to have this relationship. We sometimes try to fill the void with other things…success, ambition, greed, chemicals, whatever it may be…but nothing can fill that “God sized” hole in our heart like the presence of Christ. And the grace of God is for each one of you, whether your eyes are opened or not. It is a constant. It is always there.
So where do we see Christ? Where do we find God? I believe the story of the two disciples gives us a clue. It was when Jesus read from the Scriptures that their hearts started to burn with amazement. And it was when Jesus broke the bread in the meal that they recognized Him. What does this tell us?
Open your eyes and read the scriptures. When we hear the story of the God who loves us unconditionally, our eyes are opened to recognize Him. Our hearts can burn as the disciples did.
Open your eyes to the bread and wine of communion. When we receive the meal, when we receive God’s grace, when we come into contact with the Holy, we are able to see Jesus.
Open your eyes to community. I read your faith statements and your C3 evaluations. I know how important your small groups have been to your faith. Remember that there are always people in the Christian community to connect with. You are always welcome.
Open your eyes to serving others. It is when we humble ourselves and care for others that we experience the kind of giving that Jesus speaks of.
Today, at your confirmation, God stands behind you, leans forward and whispers in your ear “open your eyes. See my work in your life. Be in relationship with me.” But remember that this is not a one-time event. Now it is your responsibility is to remember that every day, when your feet hit the floor in the morning, God says “open your eyes. See me today.” Confirmation is not the end of a process; it is the beginning of a lifestyle.
May you live that lifestyle, full of the grace of God, eyes wide open.
Amen.
Luke 24:13-35
Todd Buegler
October 28 & 29, 2006
Lord of Life
Service of Confirmation
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who is the light of the world! Amen.
Let me be the first today to say “congratulations” to all of you on this chance to affirm your baptismal vows. For most of you, baptism happened somewhere around 16 years ago, when your parents made promises for you. Today, it is your turn. And we are all very, very proud of you!
What we’ve been a part of here is about God’s work in your lives. We’d never want to reduce it all to cold, hard statistics. But, sometimes I get a little curious, so I’ve done some math and want to share with you all some statistics about this group of young people. There are a total of 146 of you being confirmed this weekend. You were a part of 19 different small groups that met on Wednesday nights and on retreats for a total of 74 hours of time together. Add up all that time your class gave to small groups in your faith journey and it comes out to 10,730 people hours. Together, you have all given (and this is a conservative estimate), 4,500 hours of service to people in need, and to the church. You have turned in a total of 4,350 worship notes. (actually, the number was 4,347, but as soon as the 3 of you still turning in the last ones on this sermon do so, it will be 4,350.) Finally, and perhaps most remarkably, over three years, your class personally ate 1,040 large Domino’s pizzas.
When all is said and done, however, confirmation ministry at Lord of Life is not about numbers and statistics. It is about transformation and change. It is about what God does within you.
In college, I was overjoyed to discover when I first registered, that I was only required to do one credit of physical education courses. Phy. Ed. courses were never my favorite thing. (My theory is, I only run when I’m being chased.) So this was good news! Then, I read the fine print of the course catalog. These college people were tricky…each of their phy. ed. courses were given out in eighth, or even sixteenth of a credit chunks. This ruined my theory of slipping through college with only one phy. ed. course. So I made it my mission to take as many of the strange and obscure phy. ed courses that I could.
While I couldn’t avoid some of the standard courses like running, or tennis, I did mange to take courses like “bowling”, “ballroom dance”, “badmitton” and “Archery.”
Archery stands out for me because of one particular event that took place there. The class met on the concrete floor of the hockey arena. So there were chairs surrounding the arena up high, and glass block windows behind the chairs. They had 7 or 8 targets, and a group of 4 or 5 of us would stand in front of each target in a line, and would take turns shooting arrows. When a row would finish, the coach would cue us to walk up and pull the arrows, or to go find them, and give them to the next person in line.
I stood at my place in line with my arrow. I aimed. I pulled back on the bow. . The arrow hit the target…just a few inches from the bulls eye. Only one problem. The arrow…it wasn’t mine. I hadn’t shot yet. Confused, I looked to my left, and then my right. Karen, a woman in the next line, had a horrified and embarrassed look on her face. She had shot, and had completely missed her target, hitting mine. “Thanks!” I said.
The next time we were both up, I was curious, so I watched her out of the corner of my eye. This time, she took her shot and instead of shooting straight toward the target, the arrow kind of lofted up in the air, tumbling end-over-end and landing with a clatter on the floor halfway to the target. This got the Coach’s attention, as well as the rest of the class. She was again, horribly embarrassed.
The third time our line came up to shoot, the whole class was pretty much watching Karen to see what would happen. Karen notched the arrow, aimed in the general direction of the target, pulled back on the bow and went like this. Just before she released, she squeezed her eyes shut. The third arrow launched and shot up over the target, over the hockey arena seats shattering one of the glass block windows and out of the building.
The coach had been standing behind Karen. He leaned forward and whispered in her ear “open your eyes.”
I tell you this story because I believe that this is the way many of us live our faith lives. We go through much of life blind to the things of the world going on around us…blind to God in our life. We run around looking for evidence of God, but blind to what God is doing. We are willing to ask questions: “Where is God? What is God doing?” But God is active. God is doing things; things that we may not see. And there are moments in our life when it’s as if God stands behind us and whispers in our ears, “open your eyes!”
I tell you this as a confession. I often don’t see things. Sometimes it’s just the routine and the mundane. My wife, Lori, swears that I have what she calls “Guy Disease.” I can stare directly into the refrigerator, where the bottle of mayonnaise is 10% obstructed by the milk, and I can ask her “Honey, where’s the mayo?” She’ll walk over, grab the jar from in front of my face and hand it to me. I don’t understand why I didn’t see it. I just don’t. Husbands, for how many of you is this true? Wives, for how many of you is this true of your husbands? (Sometimes we’re blind to the fact that we can’t see!)…and let’s not event talk about my car keys or my wallet.
Likewise, I can be blind to the ways of God. I believe fully that God is working in the world. I have seen the results of God’s work. But when things are most difficult for me…when I am most in need of seeing God’s work; then I can be most blind to it. When I am the most anxious about something in my life, when out of my anxiety, I grip tighter and tighter control, that is when I should be “eyes wide open”, looking for the work of God. Instead, it’s as if I’ve grabbed the bow, squeezed my eyes shut and am drawing back the arrow.
This was certainly the case for the disciples. The story: Two followers were walking along the road one day near the village of Emmaus, some seven miles outside of the capital city of Jerusalem. The two friends were depressed. They felt this way because Jesus had been crucified, the disciples had run away, a hysterical and hallucinating woman named Mary claimed she saw the Risen Christ, somebody had broken into the tomb and stolen the body, and the Jesus movement was over and dead. They were depressed, because their Lord and master, Jesus of Nazareth was killed, and it was all over.
As they walked, a stranger was soon walking with them. The two friends told the stranger about why they felt down and how Jesus had been killed. The stranger then started to teach them the Scriptures; when he did, something happened: the disciples described their hearts as burning with amazement. The two friends invited the stranger to go with them that night and have dinner. At the meal, the stranger took the bread, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to them. In that sacramental moment, the two friends eyes were opened wide, and they realized that this stranger was Jesus, the Risen Christ. Later they said “Did not our hearts burn within us when he opened up the Scriptures to us?” They also said, “As he took the bread, offered thanks, broke the bread and gave it to them, he made himself known to us…” Their eyes were opened wide, and they saw Jesus.
Our hope and prayer is that C3 has been full of “Eyes Wide Open” moments for you. Moments where you experienced God in a new way. Moments where your heart burned because God’s love for you came alive. We seek these moments. I believe that our greatest need, the thing we strive for more than anything else, is a relationship with the God who seeks a relationship with you. We spend our lives looking for how to have this relationship. We sometimes try to fill the void with other things…success, ambition, greed, chemicals, whatever it may be…but nothing can fill that “God sized” hole in our heart like the presence of Christ. And the grace of God is for each one of you, whether your eyes are opened or not. It is a constant. It is always there.
So where do we see Christ? Where do we find God? I believe the story of the two disciples gives us a clue. It was when Jesus read from the Scriptures that their hearts started to burn with amazement. And it was when Jesus broke the bread in the meal that they recognized Him. What does this tell us?
Open your eyes and read the scriptures. When we hear the story of the God who loves us unconditionally, our eyes are opened to recognize Him. Our hearts can burn as the disciples did.
Open your eyes to the bread and wine of communion. When we receive the meal, when we receive God’s grace, when we come into contact with the Holy, we are able to see Jesus.
Open your eyes to community. I read your faith statements and your C3 evaluations. I know how important your small groups have been to your faith. Remember that there are always people in the Christian community to connect with. You are always welcome.
Open your eyes to serving others. It is when we humble ourselves and care for others that we experience the kind of giving that Jesus speaks of.
Today, at your confirmation, God stands behind you, leans forward and whispers in your ear “open your eyes. See my work in your life. Be in relationship with me.” But remember that this is not a one-time event. Now it is your responsibility is to remember that every day, when your feet hit the floor in the morning, God says “open your eyes. See me today.” Confirmation is not the end of a process; it is the beginning of a lifestyle.
May you live that lifestyle, full of the grace of God, eyes wide open.
Amen.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
What kind of faith?
I'm really not that concerned that young people are able to answer questions in the same way that I do. I'm really not that concerned that their personal sense of "doctrine" mirrors that of me, my church or my denomination. If it does, so be it. That's great.
But I am concerned that young people have the tools to explore the faith that is a gift from God. When they are 20 and the college philosophy or religion professor challenges the assumptions that they have lived with for so long, will they be able to deconstruct and then reconstruct their faith for who they are?
When they are 30, and are making decisions about their involvement in a community of faith...is it for them, or for their kids, will they know where to turn and how to connect?
When theyh are 40, and their parents health is beginning to fail, and they are challenged with issues of life and death in a deeply "in your face" kind of way, perhaps for the first time in their life, will they have the hope of the resurrection to cling to?
Think of the rate of change and progress in our world. Think of the things we can do now that we could not even conceive of 15 years ago. Think of how the rate of change in the world is accelerating. What will the world be like 15 years from now? 30 years from now? 50 years from now?
Are we doing anything to prepare young people for living a life of faith in that world? Does our imagination have the capacity to dream the visions that God has for faith and family in the future?
Are we even asking ourselves the right questions?
Ponder.
But I am concerned that young people have the tools to explore the faith that is a gift from God. When they are 20 and the college philosophy or religion professor challenges the assumptions that they have lived with for so long, will they be able to deconstruct and then reconstruct their faith for who they are?
When they are 30, and are making decisions about their involvement in a community of faith...is it for them, or for their kids, will they know where to turn and how to connect?
When theyh are 40, and their parents health is beginning to fail, and they are challenged with issues of life and death in a deeply "in your face" kind of way, perhaps for the first time in their life, will they have the hope of the resurrection to cling to?
Think of the rate of change and progress in our world. Think of the things we can do now that we could not even conceive of 15 years ago. Think of how the rate of change in the world is accelerating. What will the world be like 15 years from now? 30 years from now? 50 years from now?
Are we doing anything to prepare young people for living a life of faith in that world? Does our imagination have the capacity to dream the visions that God has for faith and family in the future?
Are we even asking ourselves the right questions?
Ponder.
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Signs - John 6:24-35
“Signs”
John 6: 24-35
Todd Buegler
August 5, 6 & 7, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who is the Bread of Life! Amen.
If you’ve ever made a cross-country road-trip, you’ve undoubtedly heard of a place called Wall Drug Store. Though it’s located in tiny Wall, South Dakota (population – 800) this little business starts advertising its distant presence while you’re at least a dozen states away. Especially on interstate 90 somewhere around Idaho to the West and Wisconsin to the east, strange little signs start popping up every couple hundred miles: “Only 1,314 miles to Wall Drug.” Or “Just 529 more miles and you’ll be at Wall Drug.” Even in remote areas like Canaan Valley, West Virginia, a sign is tacked up outside the local general store and gas station proclaiming that “Wall Drug” is only 1813 miles from where you stand. There is, believe it or not, a Wall Drug sign at the South Pole, and another at the North Pole.
I have to admit that I’ve never actually been to Wall Drug. But it sure isn’t because of their lack of trying or a lack in advertising. Wall Drug has over 3000 billboards and signs letting people like me know how close I had come to that roadside Mecca. These signs don’t tell you why you should stop. You’re supposed to stop and see the place, just to say you have.
Apparently, the crowd of people who followed Jesus from one side of the Sea of Galilee to the other would have been great fans of Wall Drug. They love signs! They had just been the recipients of one of Jesus’ most astonishing miracles…all five thousand of them had been fed to fullness with just five loaves and two fish. But that was yesterday. Today they clamor for more signs…or at least, more bread.
Jesus refuses to do more tricks for the crowd. Jesus declines to whip up a new batch of bread on demand. He knows this crowd is looking only for they kind of signs they can hold in their hands and place in their mouths.
The problem is that this crowd thinks the signs are the be-all and end-all. They forgot why God provided signs for their ancestors in the first place. God provided signs like the pillar of fire, or the bread from heaven, not to impress the people, but to point towards something else they needed to know, or to follow. Actually, we’re not all that different from the Jews who tracked down Jesus. Do you remember in the news a couple of years ago the people who were convinced that the image of Mother Theresa had appeared in a cinnamon roll? Seriously! “It’s a sign…it’s a sign!” they said. A sign of what? It’s not a sign if it doesn’t point to something. Or how about the “miracle” that’s been in the papers in the last couple of weeks. People are in awe of a small, 2-foot long alligator. If you look carefully, you can just make out the word “God” in its scales. “G…O…D…” Yeah, I suppose it’s there. “It’s a sign, a sign!” people say. A sign of what? It’s not a sign if it doesn’t point to something.
We’ve all done the same kind of searching for signs. I spent a long time wrestling with whether God was calling me to ordained ministry. I had completed the necessary education, but wasn’t sure if it was really where God was calling me…and, to be honest, I was comfortable with what I was doing. I was waiting for the big sign. The skywriting from God; the scroll dropped out of the sky…the sign. I wasn’t paying attention to my friends and colleagues who were encouraging me to be ordained…who were saying that they believed this was what God was calling me to do. I was looking for what God was saying to me…and was ignoring what God was saying to me. I would have fit in great with the crowd that surrounded Jesus.
Like today, in Jesus’ day, the people looked for signs and miracles. But Jesus tells them not to be wowed by signs, but to seek substance; the bread he gives is not intended as a sign, it is intended as a gift that sustains life. And beyond the simple gift of bread, the Son of Man will give them the gift that never spoils; is never wholly consumed and that never runs out…the gift of forgiveness, and of eternal life. To receive this gift, Jesus reveals, doesn’t require a sign. It is a pure gift.
Signs and miracles are thick around us. But there will never be enough signs until there is faith. And real faith doesn’t need signs because real faith is based on a relationship, not on evidence. And that relationship is with Jesus. God’s greatest sign, God’s greatest miracle, isn’t a symbol; it is a person.
Ultimately, the greatest need we have is not for more signs…not for more miracles. It is for a relationship with the living Christ. And Jesus Christ is saying that it is our relationship with Him that brings life. Humans are wired to need relationships. We are relational people. We need a relationship with God…we need relationships with each other. Relationships are “bread” to us…a basic…a staple of life, a fundamental need.
I believe this to be true now more than any other in history.
Unless you’ve been hiding out in an unplugged concrete bunker for the last few years, you know that the biggest ratings grabbers on television are so-called “reality TV shows.” America’s newest favorite guilty pleasure is reality TV. There isn’t a night left that you can’t tune in a bachelor, a bachelorette, a wannabe millionaire, a wannabe singing sensation, a house full of has-been stars, or a house full of overhyped college students on a hormone rampage, all trying to establish some kind of relationship with someone else. It might be a shot at fame and fortune, as in the American Idol series. Or it might be a conniving alliance against someone else, as in the Survivor or Big Brother shows.
I don’t think this is your or my reality…I’m not sure whose reality it is supposed to be. If reality TV is anything, it is mis-named. But there is something we can learn from it.
These shows, regardless of their plot, all revolve around who can establish the most successful relationships; the relationships with (or against) each other, the relationships with the judges, and ultimately the relationship with you as the audience.
But no matter how mind-numbing, bizarre or insulting we find these shows, the church needs to sit up and take notice of them for they are themselves a sign of our times. The sign they’re giving?
People are desperate not for more signs, but for relationships.
We’re a remote-controlled, security-fenced, internet-commuting, hyper-busy society. We’re increasingly cut off from genuine experiences and expressions of community. “Drive-thru’s” can outpace sit-down restaurants; we can have our groceries delivered right to our door to avoid the crowds; we even can “pay at the pump” and completely avoid social interaction. Sociologists have observed that starting with the suburban building booms in the sixties and seventies, we build our homes in different ways than in the past; ways that cut down on opportunities for relationships. In rural, smaller towns, the most prominent thing you see when you look at someone’s home is the front porch. These homes were designed so that people could sit there and interact with their neighbors as they walked by on the sidewalk.
Now, most of our neighborhoods don’t even have sidewalks, and when you look at a home the most prominent feature you see is the garage where people enter and exit without having to step outside. You hit the switch, drive in and close the door behind you; the front porch has been renamed the “deck” and has been moved to the back, behind the privacy fence or the shrubbery. Of course, in our Minnesota climate, we’re not helped by the fact that we can go months without seeing our neighbors unless it’s waving at them while we shovel or snowblow.
Big business has noticed this phenomenon. Theologian and writer Leonard Sweet once interviewed the CEO of Starbuck’s and asked him “how do you get away with charging almost $4 for a cup of coffee?” The CEO smiled and answered, “Starbuck’s doesn’t sell coffee. Starbuck’s sells the experience.” He’s right. Starbuck’s, and the other coffee chains, don’t sell coffee, they sell the front porch. It is a place to gather, to build relationships and to talk. And if the price is a $4 cup of coffee, people, (myself included…I’m on a first-named basis with most of the coffee shop employees in Maple Grove) we will gladly pay it. We are that starved for relationships.
I was driving home Tuesday night and was reminded on the radio that it was “National Night Out.” The radio commentator said that the purpose of National Night Out was to get people together in the front of their homes to get to know each other. Neighbor relationships have now become so rare and scattered that we have to select a single night each year to focus on them. Once upon a time, everyone was out in front of their homes all the time. National Night Out was every night.
Now I don’t mean to sound like I’m just ripping on progress, or technology, or home architecture, or anything like that; far from it. And I’m not sitting up here pining for days gone by…I know that “The Andy Griffith Show” wasn’t “reality TV” any more than “American Idol” or “The Real World” is. But these changes in our society point toward something that we in the church need to take notice of.
In a culture awash in false relationships, in a culture looking to TV shows to teach us how to do relationships, the church is needed more than ever to be a sign of true and authentic relationships. Jesus spoke about the greatest sign God had given, the gift of the Son. The miracle of establishing a living, breathing, saving relationship with the one who offers us eternal life…this was a relationship as basic and essential to living a true life as bread was to keeping the body alive. Our relationship with Jesus is all about substance, not about signs.
No wonder Jesus calls himself the Bread of Life. The relationships between the Son and the world are just as essential and just as life sustaining. Every culture has some sort of bread that represents the basic sustenance of life. Whether it’s with manna, a tortilla, pita-pockets or bowls of rice, breadfruit or wonderbread…every culture recognizes the importance of bread. Jesus did not randomly choose the image of “bread of life” when describing himself. Jesus did not randomly choose bread as one of the central elements of the sacrament. And it is within this sacrament that we come into closest contact with the Holy…with the relationship that brings us life.
People of God, we are surrounded by signs and miracles of God’s presence. But God does not call us to follow signs and miracles. People spend far too much time arguing about whether something is a sign from God or not. Signs and miracles are not the be-all and end-all of our faith. Like the Wall Drug signs that dot the landscape, the signs God gives exist to point the way towards something far greater. They direct us toward a God who comes to us seeking a relationship.
In present tense, Jesus looks you in the eye and says “I want to be in relationship with you, and I want you to be in relationship with each other.” This is a relationship that brings life, grace and forgiveness to you. I believe that if God has a vision for the church…for our church, it is to reclaim our role as the front porch for a world and a community that is desperately looking for a place to gather and to be in relationships with each other. Whether it is in worship, in a small group, in a learning opportunity, or over a cookie in Fellowship Hall in just a few minutes, God calls us to make this place a place where relationships happen; with God…with each other.
Don’t go chasing false idols…don’t spend your time honoring unhealthy relationships…don’t stop when you see the sign. Look to what the sign points at. It points at a Savior who seeks you out…who looks for you like a shepherd looks for a lost sheep…who wants to be in a relationship with you. It will be a relationship that brings abundant life, which brings forgiveness and love. It is grace, and it is for you.
Amen.
John 6: 24-35
Todd Buegler
August 5, 6 & 7, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who is the Bread of Life! Amen.
If you’ve ever made a cross-country road-trip, you’ve undoubtedly heard of a place called Wall Drug Store. Though it’s located in tiny Wall, South Dakota (population – 800) this little business starts advertising its distant presence while you’re at least a dozen states away. Especially on interstate 90 somewhere around Idaho to the West and Wisconsin to the east, strange little signs start popping up every couple hundred miles: “Only 1,314 miles to Wall Drug.” Or “Just 529 more miles and you’ll be at Wall Drug.” Even in remote areas like Canaan Valley, West Virginia, a sign is tacked up outside the local general store and gas station proclaiming that “Wall Drug” is only 1813 miles from where you stand. There is, believe it or not, a Wall Drug sign at the South Pole, and another at the North Pole.
I have to admit that I’ve never actually been to Wall Drug. But it sure isn’t because of their lack of trying or a lack in advertising. Wall Drug has over 3000 billboards and signs letting people like me know how close I had come to that roadside Mecca. These signs don’t tell you why you should stop. You’re supposed to stop and see the place, just to say you have.
Apparently, the crowd of people who followed Jesus from one side of the Sea of Galilee to the other would have been great fans of Wall Drug. They love signs! They had just been the recipients of one of Jesus’ most astonishing miracles…all five thousand of them had been fed to fullness with just five loaves and two fish. But that was yesterday. Today they clamor for more signs…or at least, more bread.
Jesus refuses to do more tricks for the crowd. Jesus declines to whip up a new batch of bread on demand. He knows this crowd is looking only for they kind of signs they can hold in their hands and place in their mouths.
The problem is that this crowd thinks the signs are the be-all and end-all. They forgot why God provided signs for their ancestors in the first place. God provided signs like the pillar of fire, or the bread from heaven, not to impress the people, but to point towards something else they needed to know, or to follow. Actually, we’re not all that different from the Jews who tracked down Jesus. Do you remember in the news a couple of years ago the people who were convinced that the image of Mother Theresa had appeared in a cinnamon roll? Seriously! “It’s a sign…it’s a sign!” they said. A sign of what? It’s not a sign if it doesn’t point to something. Or how about the “miracle” that’s been in the papers in the last couple of weeks. People are in awe of a small, 2-foot long alligator. If you look carefully, you can just make out the word “God” in its scales. “G…O…D…” Yeah, I suppose it’s there. “It’s a sign, a sign!” people say. A sign of what? It’s not a sign if it doesn’t point to something.
We’ve all done the same kind of searching for signs. I spent a long time wrestling with whether God was calling me to ordained ministry. I had completed the necessary education, but wasn’t sure if it was really where God was calling me…and, to be honest, I was comfortable with what I was doing. I was waiting for the big sign. The skywriting from God; the scroll dropped out of the sky…the sign. I wasn’t paying attention to my friends and colleagues who were encouraging me to be ordained…who were saying that they believed this was what God was calling me to do. I was looking for what God was saying to me…and was ignoring what God was saying to me. I would have fit in great with the crowd that surrounded Jesus.
Like today, in Jesus’ day, the people looked for signs and miracles. But Jesus tells them not to be wowed by signs, but to seek substance; the bread he gives is not intended as a sign, it is intended as a gift that sustains life. And beyond the simple gift of bread, the Son of Man will give them the gift that never spoils; is never wholly consumed and that never runs out…the gift of forgiveness, and of eternal life. To receive this gift, Jesus reveals, doesn’t require a sign. It is a pure gift.
Signs and miracles are thick around us. But there will never be enough signs until there is faith. And real faith doesn’t need signs because real faith is based on a relationship, not on evidence. And that relationship is with Jesus. God’s greatest sign, God’s greatest miracle, isn’t a symbol; it is a person.
Ultimately, the greatest need we have is not for more signs…not for more miracles. It is for a relationship with the living Christ. And Jesus Christ is saying that it is our relationship with Him that brings life. Humans are wired to need relationships. We are relational people. We need a relationship with God…we need relationships with each other. Relationships are “bread” to us…a basic…a staple of life, a fundamental need.
I believe this to be true now more than any other in history.
Unless you’ve been hiding out in an unplugged concrete bunker for the last few years, you know that the biggest ratings grabbers on television are so-called “reality TV shows.” America’s newest favorite guilty pleasure is reality TV. There isn’t a night left that you can’t tune in a bachelor, a bachelorette, a wannabe millionaire, a wannabe singing sensation, a house full of has-been stars, or a house full of overhyped college students on a hormone rampage, all trying to establish some kind of relationship with someone else. It might be a shot at fame and fortune, as in the American Idol series. Or it might be a conniving alliance against someone else, as in the Survivor or Big Brother shows.
I don’t think this is your or my reality…I’m not sure whose reality it is supposed to be. If reality TV is anything, it is mis-named. But there is something we can learn from it.
These shows, regardless of their plot, all revolve around who can establish the most successful relationships; the relationships with (or against) each other, the relationships with the judges, and ultimately the relationship with you as the audience.
But no matter how mind-numbing, bizarre or insulting we find these shows, the church needs to sit up and take notice of them for they are themselves a sign of our times. The sign they’re giving?
People are desperate not for more signs, but for relationships.
We’re a remote-controlled, security-fenced, internet-commuting, hyper-busy society. We’re increasingly cut off from genuine experiences and expressions of community. “Drive-thru’s” can outpace sit-down restaurants; we can have our groceries delivered right to our door to avoid the crowds; we even can “pay at the pump” and completely avoid social interaction. Sociologists have observed that starting with the suburban building booms in the sixties and seventies, we build our homes in different ways than in the past; ways that cut down on opportunities for relationships. In rural, smaller towns, the most prominent thing you see when you look at someone’s home is the front porch. These homes were designed so that people could sit there and interact with their neighbors as they walked by on the sidewalk.
Now, most of our neighborhoods don’t even have sidewalks, and when you look at a home the most prominent feature you see is the garage where people enter and exit without having to step outside. You hit the switch, drive in and close the door behind you; the front porch has been renamed the “deck” and has been moved to the back, behind the privacy fence or the shrubbery. Of course, in our Minnesota climate, we’re not helped by the fact that we can go months without seeing our neighbors unless it’s waving at them while we shovel or snowblow.
Big business has noticed this phenomenon. Theologian and writer Leonard Sweet once interviewed the CEO of Starbuck’s and asked him “how do you get away with charging almost $4 for a cup of coffee?” The CEO smiled and answered, “Starbuck’s doesn’t sell coffee. Starbuck’s sells the experience.” He’s right. Starbuck’s, and the other coffee chains, don’t sell coffee, they sell the front porch. It is a place to gather, to build relationships and to talk. And if the price is a $4 cup of coffee, people, (myself included…I’m on a first-named basis with most of the coffee shop employees in Maple Grove) we will gladly pay it. We are that starved for relationships.
I was driving home Tuesday night and was reminded on the radio that it was “National Night Out.” The radio commentator said that the purpose of National Night Out was to get people together in the front of their homes to get to know each other. Neighbor relationships have now become so rare and scattered that we have to select a single night each year to focus on them. Once upon a time, everyone was out in front of their homes all the time. National Night Out was every night.
Now I don’t mean to sound like I’m just ripping on progress, or technology, or home architecture, or anything like that; far from it. And I’m not sitting up here pining for days gone by…I know that “The Andy Griffith Show” wasn’t “reality TV” any more than “American Idol” or “The Real World” is. But these changes in our society point toward something that we in the church need to take notice of.
In a culture awash in false relationships, in a culture looking to TV shows to teach us how to do relationships, the church is needed more than ever to be a sign of true and authentic relationships. Jesus spoke about the greatest sign God had given, the gift of the Son. The miracle of establishing a living, breathing, saving relationship with the one who offers us eternal life…this was a relationship as basic and essential to living a true life as bread was to keeping the body alive. Our relationship with Jesus is all about substance, not about signs.
No wonder Jesus calls himself the Bread of Life. The relationships between the Son and the world are just as essential and just as life sustaining. Every culture has some sort of bread that represents the basic sustenance of life. Whether it’s with manna, a tortilla, pita-pockets or bowls of rice, breadfruit or wonderbread…every culture recognizes the importance of bread. Jesus did not randomly choose the image of “bread of life” when describing himself. Jesus did not randomly choose bread as one of the central elements of the sacrament. And it is within this sacrament that we come into closest contact with the Holy…with the relationship that brings us life.
People of God, we are surrounded by signs and miracles of God’s presence. But God does not call us to follow signs and miracles. People spend far too much time arguing about whether something is a sign from God or not. Signs and miracles are not the be-all and end-all of our faith. Like the Wall Drug signs that dot the landscape, the signs God gives exist to point the way towards something far greater. They direct us toward a God who comes to us seeking a relationship.
In present tense, Jesus looks you in the eye and says “I want to be in relationship with you, and I want you to be in relationship with each other.” This is a relationship that brings life, grace and forgiveness to you. I believe that if God has a vision for the church…for our church, it is to reclaim our role as the front porch for a world and a community that is desperately looking for a place to gather and to be in relationships with each other. Whether it is in worship, in a small group, in a learning opportunity, or over a cookie in Fellowship Hall in just a few minutes, God calls us to make this place a place where relationships happen; with God…with each other.
Don’t go chasing false idols…don’t spend your time honoring unhealthy relationships…don’t stop when you see the sign. Look to what the sign points at. It points at a Savior who seeks you out…who looks for you like a shepherd looks for a lost sheep…who wants to be in a relationship with you. It will be a relationship that brings abundant life, which brings forgiveness and love. It is grace, and it is for you.
Amen.
40 Hours and Counting
We are 40 hours away from putting Nathan on the bus for the first time and just trusting our School District with his very being. It's pretty weird.
I've always been something of a smart aleck when it came to "helicopter parents", that is parents who hover too much over the lives of their children. Yet now I understand how it is possible.
"Put him on a bus? One that I'm not driving? Show up at the end of Kindergarten back at the bus stop and assume he's going to get out?"
I know. I'm basically a rational person.
This is the first big "letting go."
We went to his Kindergarten open house last Wednesday. It was very well done. Very efficient, very professional... as someone who works with young people, I appreciated how well it was done.
This being said, I found myself getting slightly emotional when I saw his name on the wall of kindergartners...when we met his teacher...
He is so excited to go, and I am really happy for/with him. It's just going to take a little "getting used to."
Or a lot.
I've always been something of a smart aleck when it came to "helicopter parents", that is parents who hover too much over the lives of their children. Yet now I understand how it is possible.
"Put him on a bus? One that I'm not driving? Show up at the end of Kindergarten back at the bus stop and assume he's going to get out?"
I know. I'm basically a rational person.
This is the first big "letting go."
We went to his Kindergarten open house last Wednesday. It was very well done. Very efficient, very professional... as someone who works with young people, I appreciated how well it was done.
This being said, I found myself getting slightly emotional when I saw his name on the wall of kindergartners...when we met his teacher...
He is so excited to go, and I am really happy for/with him. It's just going to take a little "getting used to."
Or a lot.
Monday, July 31, 2006
Surrender
“Surrender”
John 6:1-21
Todd Buegler
June 29, 30 & 31, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who is the Bread of Life! Amen.
We all have old stories that we love to share with our family and friends. When you get together with these people, at a holiday, or an event, you can count on the fact that sooner or later the conversation will get around to an old, favorite story which begins with “Do you remember when we…” and people will immediately start to groan or to laugh. We all have these stories…they never get old…no matter how many times we’ve heard them, we love to tell them, we love to hear them…
For example, when I get together with my college friends, we inevitably get around to the “sod story.” We lived in a dorm with 6 small, single rooms, surrounding a living room and a bathroom. Groups of friends would get one of these “sections” together. One weekend in the spring, one of our sections mates left for the weekend and forgot to lock the door to his room. That’s like an invitation for trouble. The college was finishing up a large construction project on campus right around then and laying sod in front of the building next door to our dorm. There were hundreds of rolls of sod just lying around. Mistake. When our friend returned to campus, he opened his room to find that his room had been completely sodded with beautiful new green turf, complete with a small sign that said “please keep off the grass. That story gets told over and over again. Why? Because this story makes us laugh. But even more, because the story captures the essence of our friendships.
Well, the gospel story for today is just this kind of story. It is an old favorite about Jesus and his disciples, which has been told over and over again. There are many of these kind of Bible stories. They are all told only one time in the gospels. The story of the Good Samaritan: told only once; the story of the Prodigal Son: told only once. The story of the Sheep and the Goats: told only once. These are favorite, great stories, but they are told only once in our Gospel.
But our story for today, about the five loaves and two fish, is told four times in the Bible. In fact, it is the only Gospel miracle which is told in its fullness in all four Gospels.
Now, why is this story told over and over again? I believe it is because this story captures the truth, the essence of all the people involved; the essential truth about Jesus and the essential truth about the disciples and the essential truth about God.
So I would like to tell you this story again, but this time, include elements from the other Gospel versions of the story and some other local history.
It was springtime in Israel. The rains of March and April had come and the land was now fresh and green. The brown hills had soaked up the spring rains and the flowers were blooming and the hills were green again.
It was Passover time in Israel. Passover was their great religious feast, like Easter is for us. That meant a holiday from school, and a holiday from work. That meant that people were taking trips, packing their donkeys and going on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. It was a time of religious aliveness, of fasting and feasting and traveling.
It was popularity time for Jesus. Jesus had healed people of their diseases, had spoken before thousands, and his popularity was becoming enormous. Though he didn’t seek the limelight, he was like a rock star, and thousands would gather wherever he was.
But it was also tragedy time in Israel. According to the Gospel of Matthew, John the Baptist had just been beheaded by king Herod. John the Baptist was the greatest moral and spiritual force, and the greatest prophet the land of Israel had experienced for four hundred years. Everyone was stunned by this tragedy and grieved the loss. This included Jesus, who was John’s cousin, and who John had baptized.
Jesus wanted to get away by himself to grieve, to pray, to remember. He wanted to get away to a lonely place and so he got into a boat to sail across The Sea of Galilee to a remote point, some four miles away, in order to get away from the massive crowds who were following him, to be alone, and grieve the loss of John the Baptist.
But the crowds could see from the shore where he was sailing to. And so the crowds, like “groupies”, followed along the shoreline, keeping an eye on his boat, and so when Jesus’ boat landed, many of the crowd had already arrived.
And what was Jesus’ reaction to the thousands who had shown up? Irritated? Angry? Imposed upon? No, he looked on the massive crowd with compassion, like they were sheep without a shepherd, like people who were in need of feeding for their spiritual hungers inside. And so he taught them, and he healed them.
The day quickly passed. One of the disciples said “Lord, the hour is late and the people don’t have any food and we are a long way from any villages. Maybe you should send them home now.” According to John’s version of the story, Jesus said to Philip, “How are we going to buy bread, so that the people can eat?” Jesus knew the answer. He asked this in order to test Philip. Philip replied “It would take more than two hundered denari, more than two hundred days of wages, and even that wouldn’t be enough bread to feed all these people.” Jesus said, “Look around the crowd and see what you can find.” Andrew found a young boy with five loaves of bread and two fish. The boy gave the fish and bread to Jesus. Jesus invited everyone to be seated on the green grass. Jesus took the bread…looked up into heaven…gave thanks…broke it…gave it to his disciples…who gave it to the crowds. And they all ate and were all satisfied…and…there were twelve baskets of bread left over. The number who ate were five thousand men, plus women and children.
This story was told over and over again in the gospels. But there is a sequel: A few days later, Jesus was again out in the wilderness, again with a large crowd of four thousand men plus women and children and the same story happens again. This time seven loaves and a few fish were found. And everyone ate and everyone was satisfied…and…there were seven baskets of bread left over.
And then comes the final twist to the story. Jesus and his disciples got into a boat and sailed back again across The Sea of Galilee. As they arrived in the boat, the disciples began discussing quietly among themselves, out of earshot of Jesus, “Who brought the bread? Did anyone bring any bread for lunch?” And Jesus, knowing their thoughts, asked them: “Don’t you get it? Don’t you understand? Are you so hard headed? Are you so hard hearted? You just saw the feeding of the five thousand and twelve baskets of bread were left over. You just saw the feeding of the four thousand and seven baskets of bread were left over. Don’t you get it about who I am? Don’t you get the abundant generosity of God? Don’t you get it that God will take care of you in your needs? Don’t you understand what is possible? Don’t you get it, even after you have personally seen these miracles?
This story captures the essence of all of the people involved. That’s why it was told over and over again. This story captures the very essence of Jesus as the wondrous Son of God. It captures the very essence of God, in God’s abundant and extravagant generosity and grace. And it captures the very essence of his disciples, who don’t get it, even after we have seen first hand, God’s miraculous work in our lives.
At the heart of the story is a little boy who brought his meager gifts to Jesus, his five loaves and two fish, and look what mighty miracles God did with them. And God wants to do the same with us; that we bring our meager gifts to God, our meager and ordinary talents and gifts, we bring the simplicity of who we are to God, and look what mighty miracles God can do with our little lives.
The Greek word John used when the boy gave the fish and bread to Jesus translates to “surrendered.” This is the key to the story for me. The little boy surrendered his meager gifts to Christ. At the heart of the story for us is the implied invitation for us to surrender our little gifts, the gift of our lives to Christ and then to see what mighty miracles God can do in and through us. That’s what God wants from you and me, to surrender, to give the gifts of our meager lives to him.
This story is a story of transformation, of change. Jesus changed the attitude and understanding of the disciples. And in this story, God is working to change something in ourselves. To be honest, we are people who want to be in control of our own lives. We want to own…we want to possess…we want to set the agenda. But God asks us to allow the Holy Spirit to change us; to surrender ourselves to God.
To surrender literally means to give up or give back something that has been granted. God calls us to take our simple, meager gifts and to give them back to Him. God calls on us to trust that His grace really is sufficient for us.
The last twist the story is what really speaks to me: The disciples personally witnessed the feeding of the five thousand, then witnessed the feeding of the four thousand, and then when they were alone, facing their own need, they asked the question among themselves: “Who brought stuff for lunch? Who brought bread?” They didn’t get it. They saw miracles for others but didn’t understand it for themselves.
So often, I am just like that. I see the miracles of God first hand. I saw the attic where a family survived Hurricane Katrina…it was, quite simply, a miracle. I have seen people who lived in complete poverty, living in shacks on garbage heaps, lifted out of poverty by the Grace of God through the work of volunteers. I see God’s miracles. I see signs of God working and intervening in the world…in your lives, and then I still question God’s existence and intervention in my own life. Does this ring a bell in you? Do you do the same? Seeing miracle after miracles in the lives of others but then when it comes to you and your own life, you question and doubt God’s miraculous goodness to you? How human we are.
Today, we are like the people on the hillside, seeking out and listening to God’s word. With the simple gifts that we surrender, God will do mighty things to transform the lives of others, and to transform our own hearts.
God promises that there will be enough. God promises that his grace, his love, his forgiveness is sufficient, and it is for each one of you. Surrender your will, your desire to be in control. Surrender the gifts that you have been given…offer them back to God. Allow God to make you be the miracle that can change the world. And when you doubt and question, remember the story we love to tell and to hear, and rest in the promises of the living God who is the Bread of life.
Amen.
John 6:1-21
Todd Buegler
June 29, 30 & 31, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who is the Bread of Life! Amen.
We all have old stories that we love to share with our family and friends. When you get together with these people, at a holiday, or an event, you can count on the fact that sooner or later the conversation will get around to an old, favorite story which begins with “Do you remember when we…” and people will immediately start to groan or to laugh. We all have these stories…they never get old…no matter how many times we’ve heard them, we love to tell them, we love to hear them…
For example, when I get together with my college friends, we inevitably get around to the “sod story.” We lived in a dorm with 6 small, single rooms, surrounding a living room and a bathroom. Groups of friends would get one of these “sections” together. One weekend in the spring, one of our sections mates left for the weekend and forgot to lock the door to his room. That’s like an invitation for trouble. The college was finishing up a large construction project on campus right around then and laying sod in front of the building next door to our dorm. There were hundreds of rolls of sod just lying around. Mistake. When our friend returned to campus, he opened his room to find that his room had been completely sodded with beautiful new green turf, complete with a small sign that said “please keep off the grass. That story gets told over and over again. Why? Because this story makes us laugh. But even more, because the story captures the essence of our friendships.
Well, the gospel story for today is just this kind of story. It is an old favorite about Jesus and his disciples, which has been told over and over again. There are many of these kind of Bible stories. They are all told only one time in the gospels. The story of the Good Samaritan: told only once; the story of the Prodigal Son: told only once. The story of the Sheep and the Goats: told only once. These are favorite, great stories, but they are told only once in our Gospel.
But our story for today, about the five loaves and two fish, is told four times in the Bible. In fact, it is the only Gospel miracle which is told in its fullness in all four Gospels.
Now, why is this story told over and over again? I believe it is because this story captures the truth, the essence of all the people involved; the essential truth about Jesus and the essential truth about the disciples and the essential truth about God.
So I would like to tell you this story again, but this time, include elements from the other Gospel versions of the story and some other local history.
It was springtime in Israel. The rains of March and April had come and the land was now fresh and green. The brown hills had soaked up the spring rains and the flowers were blooming and the hills were green again.
It was Passover time in Israel. Passover was their great religious feast, like Easter is for us. That meant a holiday from school, and a holiday from work. That meant that people were taking trips, packing their donkeys and going on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. It was a time of religious aliveness, of fasting and feasting and traveling.
It was popularity time for Jesus. Jesus had healed people of their diseases, had spoken before thousands, and his popularity was becoming enormous. Though he didn’t seek the limelight, he was like a rock star, and thousands would gather wherever he was.
But it was also tragedy time in Israel. According to the Gospel of Matthew, John the Baptist had just been beheaded by king Herod. John the Baptist was the greatest moral and spiritual force, and the greatest prophet the land of Israel had experienced for four hundred years. Everyone was stunned by this tragedy and grieved the loss. This included Jesus, who was John’s cousin, and who John had baptized.
Jesus wanted to get away by himself to grieve, to pray, to remember. He wanted to get away to a lonely place and so he got into a boat to sail across The Sea of Galilee to a remote point, some four miles away, in order to get away from the massive crowds who were following him, to be alone, and grieve the loss of John the Baptist.
But the crowds could see from the shore where he was sailing to. And so the crowds, like “groupies”, followed along the shoreline, keeping an eye on his boat, and so when Jesus’ boat landed, many of the crowd had already arrived.
And what was Jesus’ reaction to the thousands who had shown up? Irritated? Angry? Imposed upon? No, he looked on the massive crowd with compassion, like they were sheep without a shepherd, like people who were in need of feeding for their spiritual hungers inside. And so he taught them, and he healed them.
The day quickly passed. One of the disciples said “Lord, the hour is late and the people don’t have any food and we are a long way from any villages. Maybe you should send them home now.” According to John’s version of the story, Jesus said to Philip, “How are we going to buy bread, so that the people can eat?” Jesus knew the answer. He asked this in order to test Philip. Philip replied “It would take more than two hundered denari, more than two hundred days of wages, and even that wouldn’t be enough bread to feed all these people.” Jesus said, “Look around the crowd and see what you can find.” Andrew found a young boy with five loaves of bread and two fish. The boy gave the fish and bread to Jesus. Jesus invited everyone to be seated on the green grass. Jesus took the bread…looked up into heaven…gave thanks…broke it…gave it to his disciples…who gave it to the crowds. And they all ate and were all satisfied…and…there were twelve baskets of bread left over. The number who ate were five thousand men, plus women and children.
This story was told over and over again in the gospels. But there is a sequel: A few days later, Jesus was again out in the wilderness, again with a large crowd of four thousand men plus women and children and the same story happens again. This time seven loaves and a few fish were found. And everyone ate and everyone was satisfied…and…there were seven baskets of bread left over.
And then comes the final twist to the story. Jesus and his disciples got into a boat and sailed back again across The Sea of Galilee. As they arrived in the boat, the disciples began discussing quietly among themselves, out of earshot of Jesus, “Who brought the bread? Did anyone bring any bread for lunch?” And Jesus, knowing their thoughts, asked them: “Don’t you get it? Don’t you understand? Are you so hard headed? Are you so hard hearted? You just saw the feeding of the five thousand and twelve baskets of bread were left over. You just saw the feeding of the four thousand and seven baskets of bread were left over. Don’t you get it about who I am? Don’t you get the abundant generosity of God? Don’t you get it that God will take care of you in your needs? Don’t you understand what is possible? Don’t you get it, even after you have personally seen these miracles?
This story captures the essence of all of the people involved. That’s why it was told over and over again. This story captures the very essence of Jesus as the wondrous Son of God. It captures the very essence of God, in God’s abundant and extravagant generosity and grace. And it captures the very essence of his disciples, who don’t get it, even after we have seen first hand, God’s miraculous work in our lives.
At the heart of the story is a little boy who brought his meager gifts to Jesus, his five loaves and two fish, and look what mighty miracles God did with them. And God wants to do the same with us; that we bring our meager gifts to God, our meager and ordinary talents and gifts, we bring the simplicity of who we are to God, and look what mighty miracles God can do with our little lives.
The Greek word John used when the boy gave the fish and bread to Jesus translates to “surrendered.” This is the key to the story for me. The little boy surrendered his meager gifts to Christ. At the heart of the story for us is the implied invitation for us to surrender our little gifts, the gift of our lives to Christ and then to see what mighty miracles God can do in and through us. That’s what God wants from you and me, to surrender, to give the gifts of our meager lives to him.
This story is a story of transformation, of change. Jesus changed the attitude and understanding of the disciples. And in this story, God is working to change something in ourselves. To be honest, we are people who want to be in control of our own lives. We want to own…we want to possess…we want to set the agenda. But God asks us to allow the Holy Spirit to change us; to surrender ourselves to God.
To surrender literally means to give up or give back something that has been granted. God calls us to take our simple, meager gifts and to give them back to Him. God calls on us to trust that His grace really is sufficient for us.
The last twist the story is what really speaks to me: The disciples personally witnessed the feeding of the five thousand, then witnessed the feeding of the four thousand, and then when they were alone, facing their own need, they asked the question among themselves: “Who brought stuff for lunch? Who brought bread?” They didn’t get it. They saw miracles for others but didn’t understand it for themselves.
So often, I am just like that. I see the miracles of God first hand. I saw the attic where a family survived Hurricane Katrina…it was, quite simply, a miracle. I have seen people who lived in complete poverty, living in shacks on garbage heaps, lifted out of poverty by the Grace of God through the work of volunteers. I see God’s miracles. I see signs of God working and intervening in the world…in your lives, and then I still question God’s existence and intervention in my own life. Does this ring a bell in you? Do you do the same? Seeing miracle after miracles in the lives of others but then when it comes to you and your own life, you question and doubt God’s miraculous goodness to you? How human we are.
Today, we are like the people on the hillside, seeking out and listening to God’s word. With the simple gifts that we surrender, God will do mighty things to transform the lives of others, and to transform our own hearts.
God promises that there will be enough. God promises that his grace, his love, his forgiveness is sufficient, and it is for each one of you. Surrender your will, your desire to be in control. Surrender the gifts that you have been given…offer them back to God. Allow God to make you be the miracle that can change the world. And when you doubt and question, remember the story we love to tell and to hear, and rest in the promises of the living God who is the Bread of life.
Amen.
Friday, July 21, 2006
Sunday, June 18, 2006
When You Least Expect It
“When You Least Expect It”
John 3:11-17
Mission Jamaica Weekend
Todd Buegler
June 10, 11 & 12, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus Christ, His Son and our Lord, who brings us to new life. Amen.
I would like to begin our time together this morning with a little quiz. Nothing hard…we won’t record your score…I’m just looking for some information that might be helpful for the rest of the morning.
You may be seated.
Mission Jamaica isn’t just about the people in funny shirts going on a trip. This is a ministry of our whole congregation, reaching out to touch the lives of these children, and many, many others in Jamaica. Today we celebrate this ministry, and what God is doing to touch the lives of the people of Jamaica, and the people of Lord of Life who participate in it.
Mission Jamaica is a “When You Least Expect It” experience. People go on Mission Jamaica with certain expectations about what is going to happen there. Pastor Peter said in last week’s sermon that if you want to make God laugh, make plans. The corollary to that statement is that “when you least expect it, God acts. Usually in ways you don’t expect, God acts in our lives and in the lives of others.
A quick summary: While the Mission Jamaica organization works in many different ministries and projects on the island, Lord of Life was involved in 3 ministries this past year: The first is Westhaven, an orphanage for children in the mountains about 45 minutes outside of Montego Bay. This is a home for children who are developmentally disabled, most of whom have been abandoned. At Westhaven, we provide direct care for the children and work on construction and repair projects to raise their quality of life.
Next door to Westhaven is the Place of Safety, a place for boys who have nowhere to go, or safe place to be, or where boys are sent by the courts. There, our team also works on physical projects to improve conditions, or leads simple Vacation Bible School sessions to make God’s Word alive for them.
Our third set of projects was a medical team that worked in Montego Bay, providing medical care for residents. People who would otherwise receive no care would line up in the early hours of the morning and sometimes wait all day to see a doctor or a dentist.
I’ve asked two friends to come and to share their experience of Mission Jamaica this past year. The first is Larry Stokes. Larry is a long-time member of our congregation, and is a leader in our Alpha program. This was his first-time on Mission Jamaica.
The second is Phil Leith. Phil has been on 6 Mission Jamaica trips and has seen the growth and development of the children. He and his family are also active in our congregation and in our community. If you go to the CROSS Community Players production of “The Wizard of Oz”, you will see Phil in a vital role. So please join me in welcoming Larry Stokes, and Phil, the “Mayor of Munchkinland” Leith.
“When you least expect it”, God acts. This should not surprise us. God has been doing this work for thousands of years.
There is nothing magical about Jamaica. It’s not as if God is more present there than God is here, in Maple Grove. Sometimes, however, it is stepping outside our comfort zone, and being willing experience what we don’t expect that opens ourselves up to great opportunities to grow in our faith. If you are at all interested in experiencing this next year, I invite you to talk to the people who will be at the tables between worship services today.
But whether it is in Jamaica or in Maple Grove, remember that God acts in your life, and does so with love and with grace. And remember that that love and grace comes not only at times we anticipate. God works in His own time and way. We need to open up our hearts to God’s work in our life. Be open to where God is calling you to stretch. And then wait, because when you least expect it, God acts.
Amen.
John 3:11-17
Mission Jamaica Weekend
Todd Buegler
June 10, 11 & 12, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus Christ, His Son and our Lord, who brings us to new life. Amen.
I would like to begin our time together this morning with a little quiz. Nothing hard…we won’t record your score…I’m just looking for some information that might be helpful for the rest of the morning.
I would like to ask you to stand if:
- You have ever gone on Mission Jamaica.
- You have ever donated material to go into the shipping container or a suitcase going to Jamaica.
- You have ever packed food for Feed My Starving Children
- You ever bought something at the MJ silent auction
- You ever enjoyed a funnel cake at Maple Grove Days or the Osseo Lion’s Roar
- You have ever made a donation to Habitat for Humanity of time or money.
- You have ever brought a child to Parent’s Night Out, or have ever volunteered at a Parent’s Night Out.
- You have ever been a prayer partner for a Mission Jamaica Missionary, or have ever prayed for Mission Jamaica.
- You have ever made any kind of donation or have given offering to Lord of Life.
- You have ever worshipped here (this one is a trick question…think about it…)
I asked you to stand because many times we see or hear about particular ministries or activities of the church and we say to ourselves, “that’s nice…it’s great that they’re doing that.” But look around the room. Mission Jamaica, like all of the other outreach ministries that we support, is not “them doing that.” This is us. All of us. You are a part of Mission Jamaica.
You may be seated.
Mission Jamaica isn’t just about the people in funny shirts going on a trip. This is a ministry of our whole congregation, reaching out to touch the lives of these children, and many, many others in Jamaica. Today we celebrate this ministry, and what God is doing to touch the lives of the people of Jamaica, and the people of Lord of Life who participate in it.
Mission Jamaica is a “When You Least Expect It” experience. People go on Mission Jamaica with certain expectations about what is going to happen there. Pastor Peter said in last week’s sermon that if you want to make God laugh, make plans. The corollary to that statement is that “when you least expect it, God acts. Usually in ways you don’t expect, God acts in our lives and in the lives of others.
A quick summary: While the Mission Jamaica organization works in many different ministries and projects on the island, Lord of Life was involved in 3 ministries this past year: The first is Westhaven, an orphanage for children in the mountains about 45 minutes outside of Montego Bay. This is a home for children who are developmentally disabled, most of whom have been abandoned. At Westhaven, we provide direct care for the children and work on construction and repair projects to raise their quality of life.
Next door to Westhaven is the Place of Safety, a place for boys who have nowhere to go, or safe place to be, or where boys are sent by the courts. There, our team also works on physical projects to improve conditions, or leads simple Vacation Bible School sessions to make God’s Word alive for them.
Our third set of projects was a medical team that worked in Montego Bay, providing medical care for residents. People who would otherwise receive no care would line up in the early hours of the morning and sometimes wait all day to see a doctor or a dentist.
I’ve asked two friends to come and to share their experience of Mission Jamaica this past year. The first is Larry Stokes. Larry is a long-time member of our congregation, and is a leader in our Alpha program. This was his first-time on Mission Jamaica.
The second is Phil Leith. Phil has been on 6 Mission Jamaica trips and has seen the growth and development of the children. He and his family are also active in our congregation and in our community. If you go to the CROSS Community Players production of “The Wizard of Oz”, you will see Phil in a vital role. So please join me in welcoming Larry Stokes, and Phil, the “Mayor of Munchkinland” Leith.
“When you least expect it”, God acts. This should not surprise us. God has been doing this work for thousands of years.
- When Moses least expected it, God appeared as a burning bush and called him into leading the Israelites out of Egypt.
- When the Israelites least expected it, God chose a shepherd boy who would become king, to defeat a giant.
- When the disciples least expected it, Jesus changed a little bread and wine into a feast of grace that will feed the world.
- When the world least expected it, God changed death into resurrection and new life, for you.
- When Larry least expected it, God took his plans, that his week would be limited to good, hard labor, and turned him into a Word of hope for a young man named Marshall.
- When Phil least expected it, God took Phil’s plans, shaped by years of work at Westhaven in the past, and turned them into new relationships with these children.
There is nothing magical about Jamaica. It’s not as if God is more present there than God is here, in Maple Grove. Sometimes, however, it is stepping outside our comfort zone, and being willing experience what we don’t expect that opens ourselves up to great opportunities to grow in our faith. If you are at all interested in experiencing this next year, I invite you to talk to the people who will be at the tables between worship services today.
But whether it is in Jamaica or in Maple Grove, remember that God acts in your life, and does so with love and with grace. And remember that that love and grace comes not only at times we anticipate. God works in His own time and way. We need to open up our hearts to God’s work in our life. Be open to where God is calling you to stretch. And then wait, because when you least expect it, God acts.
Amen.
Ugly Ducklings...All of Us
“Ugly Ducklings…all of us…”
John 15:9-17
Todd Buegler
May 20 & 21, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who calls us friend! Amen.
At the classy Peabody Hotels in Memphis and Orlando, hundreds come to lunch every day for one specific reason. It's not that the chef is glamorous or that the deserts are gigantic or that the menu is amazing. That all may be true. But that's not why they come.
No, the diners come to watch ducks. The Peabody Hotel is famous for its schooled entourage of ducks who arrive every day at 11am via elevator from the “Duck Palace,” their home on the roof to the marble fountain in the Grand Lobby. To the sound of a John Phillip Sousa march, these ducks stride down the red carpet single file, keeping rhythm with the music. The ducks spend the afternoon swimming in the hotel fountain. Then at 5pm they walk out again in single file to enter their waiting elevator and return to their rooftop home.
Ducks just swimming in a hotel fountain wouldn’t be that big a deal. But ducks marching single-file through a hotel lobby in a perfectly synchronized strut have been unusual and amusing enough to establish and maintain a million dollar reputation for the Peabody Hotels.
Ducks, for whatever reason, have been symbols of order and repetitive sameness throughout history. It's there in our language. We allude to getting our ducks in a row, and to sitting ducks. Ducks are what roll by in front of us in neat lines at shooting arcades. In their procession through the Peabody Hotel, the ducks' movements are perfectly predictable. Each duck precisely mimics the duck parading in front of it. They march strictly in step, reach their destination, then retreat in the same orderly fashion.
I’m telling you about the Peabody ducks not because it’s an amazing thing to see, which it surely is. I’m telling you about the Peabody ducks because I believe that they are a metaphor. We often live our faith lives in a duck kind of way. But this is not the life of faith to which Christ calls us.
During Jesus time, the educational system was rigid. Students would study hoping someday to become a Rabbi, a position of highest respect in Jewish culture. Throughout their whole lives young people would study the Torah, and the rest of the Hebrew scriptures, memorizing the laws of God. At different points, students who were good enough would be allowed to continue, and those who didn’t make the cut would return to learn their family trade.
Finally, in the late teens, those who were still in school would apply to be a disciple of a Rabbi. To just a few, the best of the best of the best, the Rabbi says “pick up my yoke and follow me,” which literally means “Pick up my teachings, and follow me.” Those were the words the students had yearned to hear since childhood. They had made the cut.
And the disciples of a Rabbi would literally follow him around. Everything he did, everywhere he went. Their goal wasn’t just to learn what the Rabbi knew, it was to do what the Rabbi did. They literally wanted to become just like the Rabbi. When I visualize what it must have looked like, with the Rabbi in front and the disciples following immediately behind him, I think of the row of ducks, following one right after the other, each one mimicking the duck ahead of him. Each trying to be like the master who leads.
There is a part of this image that is appealing to me. I’d love to be able to say that I was following in the steps of Jesus. I would love to have the path exactly defined for me…I’d love to have full confidence that my decisions mirror those that Jesus would make. There are parts of me that long to be a duck, following in step behind my Rabbi.
Unfortunately, were I a duck, I think I would be something of an ugly duck. (wait a minute…did I see you nod?) I would be a duck who has difficulty following…I would be a duck who doesn’t feel like I have my personal devotional and prayer life all together. I would be a duck with a short attention span. I would be a duck who can sometimes be a little stubborn…ok, really stubborn. If the goal of my Rabbi was that I follow and mimic, I fear that my Rabbi would be disappointed in me.
Enter Jesus: A different kind of Rabbi. This Rabbi didn’t take applicants. Jesus took a different approach. He went out and sought people already working in a trade; that means that they weren’t the best of the best, or probably even the best. He chose ordinary people and said “drop what you’re doing, and follow me.” And those people who became his disciples may have expected to follow him around in lockstep like other Rabbis and disciples, but Jesus had other ideas.
In verses 14-16 of our Gospel today, Jesus states: “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last.”
Jesus says some startling things in this text
· He is saying: “it’s not about master and servant anymore. I call you friend.”
· He is saying: “It’s not about you applying to me, hoping to measure up, it’s about me choosing you.”
· He is saying: “It’s not about you following me around, trying to mimic my every move. I’m not interested in clones; I’m interested in your faith.”
I have to stop here and make a note that Jesus’ words here do cause us something of a theological problem. Because clearly, Jesus is a master; Jesus is a Rabbi. Clearly, Jesus does want us to “follow him.” In fact, Jesus using the phrase “follow me” is recorded 30 different times in the Gospels. But here, he says “no, I no longer call you servants, I call you friends.” So which is it? Is Jesus master? Is Jesus friend?
The answer is: yes. It is a paradox; where two opposite answers can both be right. Yes, Jesus is master and role model. We should follow him. Yes, Jesus is friend to us. If you’ve ever been in a situation at work where you were in a supervisory role over people who are also your friends, it can cause tension. It is not always easy. Jesus’ words here put us into that tension.
I have to admit that I always struggled just a bit with Jesus saying that he calls me a “friend.” I never completely understood what he meant by that. It’s not as if I’d call Jesus up and we’d head to a movie together, or that he’d come over and we’d order pizza and watch a Twilight Zone marathon.
Jesus isn’t calling us into that kind of a friendship. Rather, Jesus is saying that he came to be a relational God. Jesus is not distant. Jesus is God, but he is a God who is alongside us.
Jesus’ friendship is unconditional. Even thought we don’t deserve it, even though we aren’t the best, much less the best of the best, Jesus seeks us out. Jesus rewrites the rules of what a Rabbi is, of what a Savior is.
We have to admit that as people of God, we expect the “duck” kind of faith where we follow in Jesus’ footsteps exactly. The problem with this is that we can never maintain that path. We are human, we wander. But even when we wander, Jesus continues to call us back to relationship.
Daniel Taylor, in his book Letters to my Children describes an experience he had in the sixth grade. Back in those days, as a part of the phy ed. experience, students were taught how to dance. You might have done this yourself. I did. It was miserable. Taylor writes that the boys would line up at the door of the classroom to choose their partners. Imagine what it was like to be one of the girls waiting to be chosen.
One girl, Mary, was always chosen last. Because of a childhood illness, one of her arms was drawn up and she had a bad leg. She wasn’t pretty, she wasn’t smart and she was overweight. The assistant teacher of Dan’s class happened to attend his church. One day she pulled Dan aside and said “Dan, next time we have dancing, I want you to choose Mary.” Dan couldn’t believe it. Why would anyone pick Mary when there was Linda, Shelley or even Dorreen? Dan’s teacher told him it is what Jesus would have done, and deep inside, he knew she was right, which didn’t make it any easier. All Dan could hope for was that he would be last in line. That way, he could choose Mary, do the right thing and no one would be the wiser. Instead, Dan was first in line.
Dan writes that “the faces of the girls were turned toward me, some smiling. I looked at Mary and saw that she was half-turned to the back of the room. (She knew no one would pick her first.)…Mr. Jenkins said, “Okay, Dan, choose your partner.” I remember feeling very far away. I heard my voice say, “I choose Mary.”
Never has reluctant virtue been so rewarded. Dan writes “I still see her face undimmed in my memory. She lifted her head, and on her face, reddened with pleasure and surprise and embarrassment all at once, was the most genuine look of delight and even pride that I have ever seen, before or since. It was so pure that I had to look away because I knew I didn’t deserve it.
Mary came and took my arm, as we had been instructed, and she walked beside me, bad leg and all, just like a princess…
I never saw her after that year. I don’t know what her life’s been like, or what she’s doing. But I’d like to think she has a fond memory of at least one day in sixth grade. I know I do.”
Lined up in the classroom like ducks in a row, Dan made a choice that set aside the natural social order. He chose the unexpected. He chose the way of Jesus who says “I call you friend.”
My friends, Jesus chose you. Even though you are not the best of the best of the best. He chose you. You don’t have to line up and mimic Jesus to ensure his love for you. You aren’t graded on a curve. Because of Jesus’ friendship you are chosen, just as you are. Because of Jesus’ friendship, you are forgiven.
You and I are not like the Peabody ducks. We will never be perfectly lined up with our master. We will always fall short of the glory of God.
We are all ugly ducks. But it is the grace of God through Jesus Christ that transforms us. Like the famous children’s story which ends with the ugly duckling finally recognizing its true identity, Christ reveals to us our identity as baptized and loved children of God. If you were able to look at yourself through God’s eyes, you would see loved friends.
We have been adopted into a free-flying family. Because of Jesus’ friendship, love and grace, we are set loose and freed to be in relationship with God…it’s a relationship we will never fully understand; It is a paradox; God is simply too big. But it is a relationship that Jesus calls us into nonetheless. Jesus calls us into this relationship out of love and grace.
We follow not just a master, we follow a friend.
Amen.
John 15:9-17
Todd Buegler
May 20 & 21, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, who calls us friend! Amen.
At the classy Peabody Hotels in Memphis and Orlando, hundreds come to lunch every day for one specific reason. It's not that the chef is glamorous or that the deserts are gigantic or that the menu is amazing. That all may be true. But that's not why they come.
No, the diners come to watch ducks. The Peabody Hotel is famous for its schooled entourage of ducks who arrive every day at 11am via elevator from the “Duck Palace,” their home on the roof to the marble fountain in the Grand Lobby. To the sound of a John Phillip Sousa march, these ducks stride down the red carpet single file, keeping rhythm with the music. The ducks spend the afternoon swimming in the hotel fountain. Then at 5pm they walk out again in single file to enter their waiting elevator and return to their rooftop home.
Ducks just swimming in a hotel fountain wouldn’t be that big a deal. But ducks marching single-file through a hotel lobby in a perfectly synchronized strut have been unusual and amusing enough to establish and maintain a million dollar reputation for the Peabody Hotels.
Ducks, for whatever reason, have been symbols of order and repetitive sameness throughout history. It's there in our language. We allude to getting our ducks in a row, and to sitting ducks. Ducks are what roll by in front of us in neat lines at shooting arcades. In their procession through the Peabody Hotel, the ducks' movements are perfectly predictable. Each duck precisely mimics the duck parading in front of it. They march strictly in step, reach their destination, then retreat in the same orderly fashion.
I’m telling you about the Peabody ducks not because it’s an amazing thing to see, which it surely is. I’m telling you about the Peabody ducks because I believe that they are a metaphor. We often live our faith lives in a duck kind of way. But this is not the life of faith to which Christ calls us.
During Jesus time, the educational system was rigid. Students would study hoping someday to become a Rabbi, a position of highest respect in Jewish culture. Throughout their whole lives young people would study the Torah, and the rest of the Hebrew scriptures, memorizing the laws of God. At different points, students who were good enough would be allowed to continue, and those who didn’t make the cut would return to learn their family trade.
Finally, in the late teens, those who were still in school would apply to be a disciple of a Rabbi. To just a few, the best of the best of the best, the Rabbi says “pick up my yoke and follow me,” which literally means “Pick up my teachings, and follow me.” Those were the words the students had yearned to hear since childhood. They had made the cut.
And the disciples of a Rabbi would literally follow him around. Everything he did, everywhere he went. Their goal wasn’t just to learn what the Rabbi knew, it was to do what the Rabbi did. They literally wanted to become just like the Rabbi. When I visualize what it must have looked like, with the Rabbi in front and the disciples following immediately behind him, I think of the row of ducks, following one right after the other, each one mimicking the duck ahead of him. Each trying to be like the master who leads.
There is a part of this image that is appealing to me. I’d love to be able to say that I was following in the steps of Jesus. I would love to have the path exactly defined for me…I’d love to have full confidence that my decisions mirror those that Jesus would make. There are parts of me that long to be a duck, following in step behind my Rabbi.
Unfortunately, were I a duck, I think I would be something of an ugly duck. (wait a minute…did I see you nod?) I would be a duck who has difficulty following…I would be a duck who doesn’t feel like I have my personal devotional and prayer life all together. I would be a duck with a short attention span. I would be a duck who can sometimes be a little stubborn…ok, really stubborn. If the goal of my Rabbi was that I follow and mimic, I fear that my Rabbi would be disappointed in me.
Enter Jesus: A different kind of Rabbi. This Rabbi didn’t take applicants. Jesus took a different approach. He went out and sought people already working in a trade; that means that they weren’t the best of the best, or probably even the best. He chose ordinary people and said “drop what you’re doing, and follow me.” And those people who became his disciples may have expected to follow him around in lockstep like other Rabbis and disciples, but Jesus had other ideas.
In verses 14-16 of our Gospel today, Jesus states: “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last.”
Jesus says some startling things in this text
· He is saying: “it’s not about master and servant anymore. I call you friend.”
· He is saying: “It’s not about you applying to me, hoping to measure up, it’s about me choosing you.”
· He is saying: “It’s not about you following me around, trying to mimic my every move. I’m not interested in clones; I’m interested in your faith.”
I have to stop here and make a note that Jesus’ words here do cause us something of a theological problem. Because clearly, Jesus is a master; Jesus is a Rabbi. Clearly, Jesus does want us to “follow him.” In fact, Jesus using the phrase “follow me” is recorded 30 different times in the Gospels. But here, he says “no, I no longer call you servants, I call you friends.” So which is it? Is Jesus master? Is Jesus friend?
The answer is: yes. It is a paradox; where two opposite answers can both be right. Yes, Jesus is master and role model. We should follow him. Yes, Jesus is friend to us. If you’ve ever been in a situation at work where you were in a supervisory role over people who are also your friends, it can cause tension. It is not always easy. Jesus’ words here put us into that tension.
I have to admit that I always struggled just a bit with Jesus saying that he calls me a “friend.” I never completely understood what he meant by that. It’s not as if I’d call Jesus up and we’d head to a movie together, or that he’d come over and we’d order pizza and watch a Twilight Zone marathon.
Jesus isn’t calling us into that kind of a friendship. Rather, Jesus is saying that he came to be a relational God. Jesus is not distant. Jesus is God, but he is a God who is alongside us.
Jesus’ friendship is unconditional. Even thought we don’t deserve it, even though we aren’t the best, much less the best of the best, Jesus seeks us out. Jesus rewrites the rules of what a Rabbi is, of what a Savior is.
We have to admit that as people of God, we expect the “duck” kind of faith where we follow in Jesus’ footsteps exactly. The problem with this is that we can never maintain that path. We are human, we wander. But even when we wander, Jesus continues to call us back to relationship.
Daniel Taylor, in his book Letters to my Children describes an experience he had in the sixth grade. Back in those days, as a part of the phy ed. experience, students were taught how to dance. You might have done this yourself. I did. It was miserable. Taylor writes that the boys would line up at the door of the classroom to choose their partners. Imagine what it was like to be one of the girls waiting to be chosen.
One girl, Mary, was always chosen last. Because of a childhood illness, one of her arms was drawn up and she had a bad leg. She wasn’t pretty, she wasn’t smart and she was overweight. The assistant teacher of Dan’s class happened to attend his church. One day she pulled Dan aside and said “Dan, next time we have dancing, I want you to choose Mary.” Dan couldn’t believe it. Why would anyone pick Mary when there was Linda, Shelley or even Dorreen? Dan’s teacher told him it is what Jesus would have done, and deep inside, he knew she was right, which didn’t make it any easier. All Dan could hope for was that he would be last in line. That way, he could choose Mary, do the right thing and no one would be the wiser. Instead, Dan was first in line.
Dan writes that “the faces of the girls were turned toward me, some smiling. I looked at Mary and saw that she was half-turned to the back of the room. (She knew no one would pick her first.)…Mr. Jenkins said, “Okay, Dan, choose your partner.” I remember feeling very far away. I heard my voice say, “I choose Mary.”
Never has reluctant virtue been so rewarded. Dan writes “I still see her face undimmed in my memory. She lifted her head, and on her face, reddened with pleasure and surprise and embarrassment all at once, was the most genuine look of delight and even pride that I have ever seen, before or since. It was so pure that I had to look away because I knew I didn’t deserve it.
Mary came and took my arm, as we had been instructed, and she walked beside me, bad leg and all, just like a princess…
I never saw her after that year. I don’t know what her life’s been like, or what she’s doing. But I’d like to think she has a fond memory of at least one day in sixth grade. I know I do.”
Lined up in the classroom like ducks in a row, Dan made a choice that set aside the natural social order. He chose the unexpected. He chose the way of Jesus who says “I call you friend.”
My friends, Jesus chose you. Even though you are not the best of the best of the best. He chose you. You don’t have to line up and mimic Jesus to ensure his love for you. You aren’t graded on a curve. Because of Jesus’ friendship you are chosen, just as you are. Because of Jesus’ friendship, you are forgiven.
You and I are not like the Peabody ducks. We will never be perfectly lined up with our master. We will always fall short of the glory of God.
We are all ugly ducks. But it is the grace of God through Jesus Christ that transforms us. Like the famous children’s story which ends with the ugly duckling finally recognizing its true identity, Christ reveals to us our identity as baptized and loved children of God. If you were able to look at yourself through God’s eyes, you would see loved friends.
We have been adopted into a free-flying family. Because of Jesus’ friendship, love and grace, we are set loose and freed to be in relationship with God…it’s a relationship we will never fully understand; It is a paradox; God is simply too big. But it is a relationship that Jesus calls us into nonetheless. Jesus calls us into this relationship out of love and grace.
We follow not just a master, we follow a friend.
Amen.
Now Reading
Now Reading:
Contemplative Youth Ministry; Practicing the Presence of God
by Mark Yaconelli
Could bias claims chill campaign coverage?
Could bias claims chill campaign coverage?
This is a particularly well thought-out reply to those who argue about the political "spin" in news coverage. I really have come to appreciate Kate Parry, the Reader's Rep for the Star Tribune.
This is a particularly well thought-out reply to those who argue about the political "spin" in news coverage. I really have come to appreciate Kate Parry, the Reader's Rep for the Star Tribune.
Father's Day
Happy Father's Day to all whom this applies. I'm pretty sure that this is the first Father's Day that I've not been traveling for since Nathan was born 5.5 years ago...might actually be my first Father's Day at home in 18 years...I don't remember.
I'm looking forward to time with the boys.
The AWOL team is safely in Salt Lake City. I'm looking forward to spending some time with them in the next 4 days.
I'm looking forward to time with the boys.
The AWOL team is safely in Salt Lake City. I'm looking forward to spending some time with them in the next 4 days.
Friday, March 24, 2006
Jamaica Bound
Tomorrow morning, 4:10am we leave the Lord of Life parking lot for the airport and then on to Montego Bay for Mission Jamaica.
I'll be "unplugged" through April 1.
During that time we'll be doing direct care of children at Westhaven Children's Home in the community of Copse, about 45 minutes up into the mountains of Jamaica.
This is always a powerful experience. It's something I look forward to every year. The children are amazing, the work is amazing...
Please keep us in your prayers as we travel. And pray for the children there.
Confession
I got a great question from someone. I pulled their name and posted the question and my reply.
Q: Pastor Todd,
The reason I am emailing you is because I have a concern with the way Iconfess my sins. I hate to be legalistic, but here is my concern: I see more and more how important it is to fall at the knees of God and confessmy sins. I am quite loyal at admitting that I am a sinner and have fallenshort of the glory of God and ask for His forgiveness. I worship anddwell in His grace.
However, I find it hard to recall the sins that Ihave committed. At the end of the day, I am not real sure what I didwrong. I feel I would grow closer to God by understanding better where itis that I fall short. Then, I could have more directed prayer for myweaknesses.
So, I end up just asking for forgiveness in a very general way. I understand that God desires a pure heart, and I come to Him with a sincere heart asking for forgiveness and I feel that brings Him joy. Again though, it just seems more real to come humbly when I admit my actual sins.I know this is kind of a big topic, but any thoughts you have would be appreciated.
Thank you,
<><,
Reply: Thanks for your note. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. You ask a great question and I wanted to take some time to think, do a little reading and pray before I responded.
I appreciate your concern about confession. If that is an essential part of our relationship with God, and I, like you, do believe it is, then we want to be as genuine, real and complete as we possibly can be. And our concern over that isn’t necessarily the same as “legalism”, but rather a genuine desire to have an honest relationship with Christ. I admire you in your desire to have that.
At the same time, I don’t think you need to concern yourself too much if you are able to have a “complete” laundry list of our sins. Frankly, if we take seriously Luther’s admonition that all sin is the same, and that even our “thinking” about committing sin, then frankly there is no way that any of us can accurately catalog our sinful thoughts and actions.
Beyond that, however, I sometimes think of sin and confession in a different, perhaps more wholistic way: Sin is our actions that break the wishes and commandments of God. But sin is also a condition, a state of being that we are all born into. Because of sin and our sinfulness, we live in a broken relationship with God that ONLY Christ can restore through His actions, and not because we deserve it. (I know that you know this, I’m just formulating my thoughts…sorry…)
When we confess, I think it’s good to confess the things that we have done, and I think it’s ok to move into the “general” when we can’t remember what we’ve done because God remembers.
But I think even more importantly is for us to confess the broken relationship we feel. That broken relationship, which our sinfulness causes, is the root of our human condition and the cause for the “sins” (actions) that we all do. That expression is more about the root of our relationship with God than the individual actions that we do that are “sins.”
Am I making sense in the distinction?
Basically what I’m trying to say is that we confess both:
A) The sins we commit that we remember and those that we don’t and cannot remember.
B) Our sinful nature that causes us to want to be “in charge”, to literally be God of our own lives, and which causes us to do the sins that further break the relationship.
We live in a “chicken and egg” scenario. We sin because we are sinful. We are sinful because we sin. You’re absolutely right that God desires a “pure heart”, but it is only Christ that can make that heart pure. Only Christ can break the cycle, and our confession is less about a what we did and more about admitting our role in the cycle, our dependence on Christ and for Christ to reach through the cycle to us. After all, in Psalm 51:10 the writer confesses “Create in me a clean heart, O Lord, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” This confession is about the heart, not about our sinful activities.
So you are right…direct your prayer, but my advice would be to direct it towards a whole relationship, not just a longer and better list of your sins.
Ok, now I’m starting to ramble. I have no idea if this makes any sense. I would be happy to discuss this further with you by e-mail or “live” if it would be helpful. Thanks for your question though. It was good to think about. I’ll on Mission Jamaica tomorrow through April 1 so won’t be available to reply until I get back.
Take care!
Peace,
Pastor Todd.
Q: Pastor Todd,
The reason I am emailing you is because I have a concern with the way Iconfess my sins. I hate to be legalistic, but here is my concern: I see more and more how important it is to fall at the knees of God and confessmy sins. I am quite loyal at admitting that I am a sinner and have fallenshort of the glory of God and ask for His forgiveness. I worship anddwell in His grace.
However, I find it hard to recall the sins that Ihave committed. At the end of the day, I am not real sure what I didwrong. I feel I would grow closer to God by understanding better where itis that I fall short. Then, I could have more directed prayer for myweaknesses.
So, I end up just asking for forgiveness in a very general way. I understand that God desires a pure heart, and I come to Him with a sincere heart asking for forgiveness and I feel that brings Him joy. Again though, it just seems more real to come humbly when I admit my actual sins.I know this is kind of a big topic, but any thoughts you have would be appreciated.
Thank you,
<><,
Reply: Thanks for your note. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. You ask a great question and I wanted to take some time to think, do a little reading and pray before I responded.
I appreciate your concern about confession. If that is an essential part of our relationship with God, and I, like you, do believe it is, then we want to be as genuine, real and complete as we possibly can be. And our concern over that isn’t necessarily the same as “legalism”, but rather a genuine desire to have an honest relationship with Christ. I admire you in your desire to have that.
At the same time, I don’t think you need to concern yourself too much if you are able to have a “complete” laundry list of our sins. Frankly, if we take seriously Luther’s admonition that all sin is the same, and that even our “thinking” about committing sin, then frankly there is no way that any of us can accurately catalog our sinful thoughts and actions.
Beyond that, however, I sometimes think of sin and confession in a different, perhaps more wholistic way: Sin is our actions that break the wishes and commandments of God. But sin is also a condition, a state of being that we are all born into. Because of sin and our sinfulness, we live in a broken relationship with God that ONLY Christ can restore through His actions, and not because we deserve it. (I know that you know this, I’m just formulating my thoughts…sorry…)
When we confess, I think it’s good to confess the things that we have done, and I think it’s ok to move into the “general” when we can’t remember what we’ve done because God remembers.
But I think even more importantly is for us to confess the broken relationship we feel. That broken relationship, which our sinfulness causes, is the root of our human condition and the cause for the “sins” (actions) that we all do. That expression is more about the root of our relationship with God than the individual actions that we do that are “sins.”
Am I making sense in the distinction?
Basically what I’m trying to say is that we confess both:
A) The sins we commit that we remember and those that we don’t and cannot remember.
B) Our sinful nature that causes us to want to be “in charge”, to literally be God of our own lives, and which causes us to do the sins that further break the relationship.
We live in a “chicken and egg” scenario. We sin because we are sinful. We are sinful because we sin. You’re absolutely right that God desires a “pure heart”, but it is only Christ that can make that heart pure. Only Christ can break the cycle, and our confession is less about a what we did and more about admitting our role in the cycle, our dependence on Christ and for Christ to reach through the cycle to us. After all, in Psalm 51:10 the writer confesses “Create in me a clean heart, O Lord, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” This confession is about the heart, not about our sinful activities.
So you are right…direct your prayer, but my advice would be to direct it towards a whole relationship, not just a longer and better list of your sins.
Ok, now I’m starting to ramble. I have no idea if this makes any sense. I would be happy to discuss this further with you by e-mail or “live” if it would be helpful. Thanks for your question though. It was good to think about. I’ll on Mission Jamaica tomorrow through April 1 so won’t be available to reply until I get back.
Take care!
Peace,
Pastor Todd.
Monday, March 20, 2006
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Prayers for the Journey
(
Photo is of Gov. Pawlenty seeing the Minnesota troops off...)
I have a nephew (actually, a nephew-in-law) who is departing today with the Minnesota National Guard for Iraq.
I am not happy about this.
This has seemed like a distant war. This has seemed like things that happen to someone else.
My nephew-in-law is named Jeff. He is probably 23 years old. He is not distant. He is family.
Please keep him in your prayers.
Todd.
Photo is of Gov. Pawlenty seeing the Minnesota troops off...)I have a nephew (actually, a nephew-in-law) who is departing today with the Minnesota National Guard for Iraq.
I am not happy about this.
- Why is it that the whole situation seems more out of control now than it did after "victory" was declared?
- Why is it that the pace of killing and destruction appears to be in the increase, rather than the decrease?
- Why is it that more men and women are being sent there, instead of less?
- Why are people still invoking 9/11 with regard to Iraq when clearly there is (or at least was) no direct connection?
This has seemed like a distant war. This has seemed like things that happen to someone else.
My nephew-in-law is named Jeff. He is probably 23 years old. He is not distant. He is family.
Please keep him in your prayers.
Todd.
Monday, March 13, 2006
A white day
There is snow today in Minneapolis. Significant snow. Not necessarily the all-encompassing, armageddon-like snow dumping that the weather people were predicting, but we haven't had one of those since the Halloween blizzard 15 or 16 years ago...
But it's the kind of day where you get up and a part of you hopes for the clean, crispness of a "snow day". No school. No work. No travel. You hunker down inside with the occasional foray outside to play in the snow.
No such luck. I'm at work and am at my desk, looking at the snow falling outside.
But it's the kind of day where you get up and a part of you hopes for the clean, crispness of a "snow day". No school. No work. No travel. You hunker down inside with the occasional foray outside to play in the snow.
No such luck. I'm at work and am at my desk, looking at the snow falling outside.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Questioning Authority
I just came across an online CNN report that Sen. Russ Fiengold from Wisconsin is going to introduce a resolution to censure President Bush for intentionally breaking the law in his wiretapping without a warrant.
Now I've generally stayed pretty publically low-key about what is going on in politics, the war, and these other controversies. I have my opinions, but I' m not sure that in my role, being too vocal about them would limit my ability to do work and ministry with those who have different opinions. So I really don't want anyone to think that my particular opinion on this topic is an endorsement of a particular candidate, party, philosophy or anything. However...
The critics of Sen. Fiengold claim that by filing a motion for censure, we are "sending the wrong message" around the world. They claim that it undercuts the work and mission of the troops stationed in harm's way.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Our country was formed based on skepticism of those in authority. We have not only a right, but a duty to wonder, to question and when necessary, to challenge.
Raising these questions does not undercut our troops. Rather, it is exactly why they are overseas: To protect the fundamental rights of people to disagree with their leaders.
I admit to a healthy skepticism about the military presence and the violence in Iraq. But we created this mess, and now it needs to be cleaned up. As my Mother taught me, "clean up your own messes."
But it seems to me that we went into this military action under false pretenses, that the work we have done, while much has been good (and don't get me started about these people who complain that the 'good stories don't get told...yes, we know that schools have been built...the problem isn't about the good, the problems quite simply lay with the bad.), hasn't seemed to solve anything.
But people of good conscience should continue to doubt and to question. And those who are politically on the other side of the table shouldn't work to indict the critics based on whether or not they should speak. That's what you do when your arguments don't hold water.
Now I've generally stayed pretty publically low-key about what is going on in politics, the war, and these other controversies. I have my opinions, but I' m not sure that in my role, being too vocal about them would limit my ability to do work and ministry with those who have different opinions. So I really don't want anyone to think that my particular opinion on this topic is an endorsement of a particular candidate, party, philosophy or anything. However...
The critics of Sen. Fiengold claim that by filing a motion for censure, we are "sending the wrong message" around the world. They claim that it undercuts the work and mission of the troops stationed in harm's way.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Our country was formed based on skepticism of those in authority. We have not only a right, but a duty to wonder, to question and when necessary, to challenge.
Raising these questions does not undercut our troops. Rather, it is exactly why they are overseas: To protect the fundamental rights of people to disagree with their leaders.
I admit to a healthy skepticism about the military presence and the violence in Iraq. But we created this mess, and now it needs to be cleaned up. As my Mother taught me, "clean up your own messes."
But it seems to me that we went into this military action under false pretenses, that the work we have done, while much has been good (and don't get me started about these people who complain that the 'good stories don't get told...yes, we know that schools have been built...the problem isn't about the good, the problems quite simply lay with the bad.), hasn't seemed to solve anything.
But people of good conscience should continue to doubt and to question. And those who are politically on the other side of the table shouldn't work to indict the critics based on whether or not they should speak. That's what you do when your arguments don't hold water.
Unlimited Warranty
“Unlimited Warranty”
Mark 8:31-38
Todd Buegler
March 8, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus, who is the Christ. Amen.
Every day when I leave the house, Nathan and Samuel run up to me with their arms up in the air. “Daddy, pick me up!” Hugs. Kisses, and I go. Often times, however, I’ll discover hours later, and usually after some public meeting, the remains of the boys breakfast embedded on my shoulder…right about here. The highlight of these experiences was when I went to my final approval interview with the Bishop’s Office for ordination last May. After the meeting with the committee of seven, I discovered an almost perfect rendering of Samuel’s face, made up of “Go-gurt”, had been smiling out at the approval committee. To be honest, I think it might have scored points with the committee.
But when a young child comes up to you and throw their arms into the air, it is difficult to resist. The arms up, and the phrase “Daddy!” is a sign of their love, and their complete dependence on you. Children depend on their parents completely. For food, for clothing, for safety, for love, for acceptance, for boundaries, for someone to wrestle with, for someone to watch Saturday morning cartoons with… As parents, it is our job to provide for those who depend on us. Sociologists have said that childhood and adolescence is the process of a young person moving from total dependence, to independence, as they move into adulthood.
Our faith development is somewhat different, however. We do not move from dependence to independence. As we grow in our faith, we move from independence to dependence on God.
In our Gospel tonight, Jesus gives us a description of our relationship with God. Jesus says, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to gain their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. (Mark 8:34-35)
This seems pretty counter intuitive; it goes against our natural instincts. To “gain life” we must “lose it?” Those who “lose our lives will gain it?” Our natural inclination is to say the opposite of Jesus. Our society teaches that our lives are our own. We are independent people who make our own choices, set out on our own paths, and create our own destiny.
In a culture where independence, self-reliance and the ability to “lift oneself up by your own bootstraps” is valued, the idea of losing one’s life, or of “dying to oneself” is foreign. One of our adult small group leaders on our recent sr. high ski retreat told me of a conversation in her group. One young person said that “God is just for those who need God. If things are going pretty well, and if nothing is wrong, you don’t need God.” Wow. This is a brutally honest representation of how many people feel, and of what our culture teaches. “We are self reliant, and when something goes wrong, we can turn to God like some kind of cosmic vending machine.”
Jesus also uses the phrase in our scripture text that we must “deny ourselves and take up the cross, following Him.” What does it mean to deny ourselves? While some might argue that it means to put God and others ahead of ourselves, I believe that it means simply to recognize that God is already ahead of us. God is God and we are not, and the root of human sin is to deny this truth. The fact is, we are not in charge. God is in charge, and we are totally dependent on God. This is a difficult thing for us to swallow. A universal truth is that we want to be in charge of our own lives. We don’t want to acknowledge our dependence on anyone, or anything.
There are several different things that may cause us to deny our dependence on God. For some of us, the urge to feel in control lies in our own self-centeredness. We are simply the most important person in our own lives, and our goal is to satisfy our own wants. For others, the root of our control issue lies in being judgmental. We are so insecure in ourselves that if we keep pointing out others faults, we can continue to feel in control and good about ourselves.
For some, legalism is the key to control. If I work hard enough…run fast enough…perform well enough, I can earn my way to whatever kind of merit falls into my path.
Whatever the cause, each of us in one way or another, at some level, resists denying our own control, and letting God be God; resists letting ourselves be dependent.
I have a friend who lives with a medical condition that his doctor calls “Sudden Death Syndrome.” It is a congenital, degenerative heart condition, and at any given moment, his heart could stop. You’ve heard the occasional story of the athlete whose heart just stops while he runs on the basketball court, and who never knew he had the condition? This is the condition my friend has. He had a defibrillator surgically implanted in his heart. It constantly monitors his heart rate and if there is any irregularity it will deliver an electric shock to the heart in an attempt to return it to normal rhythm. He said that the most disconcerting moment of getting a defibrillator was not the surgery to implant it, it was after the surgery when he had to sign the “limited warranty” on the device.
The defibrillator is slightly smaller than the size of a deck of cards and is implanted just underneath the skin in his chest. He’s shown me the spot, and if you look closely from the right angle, you can actually just make out the shape of the rectangle underneath the skin.
My friend has an interesting “take” on his device. He says that every morning he will stand in front of the mirror while shaving or brushing his teeth. His eyes will be drawn to the small scar and the spot where the device is and he’ll see the rectangle. He told me that “This defibrillator is my daily reminder that I am not in charge. At any moment, something could happen that would take my life away from me, and I am totally in the hands of God. I am not in control. I am totally dependent. Totally dependent.”
My friends, we are all totally dependent on God. Completely. As a child is to a parent, we are all to God, our Father. It is God who gives life. It is God who gives the food we eat…the shelter in which we live…the people who love us…the very air that we breathe. It is by God’s grace that we live. Even when we turn to God when we are in need, the very fact that we can turn to God is a sign of our dependence on God.
And denial of this truth, our attempts at living without God, does not make it less true. Our lives are a gift, and we are dependent on the giver. And God continues to give.
God gives these gifts, His grace, with no strings attached. God gives freely and without reservation, out of a sense of love for us. God’s grace is given even when we are unaware of it. The gift is still given; and when we turn to God, and throw our arms into the air, saying “Abba…Father…Daddy” God’s arms are outstretched to welcome us into his grip. God’s love comes with an unlimited warranty.
God grips you in His grace and loves you unconditionally.
Always.
Amen.
Mark 8:31-38
Todd Buegler
March 8, 2006
Lord of Life
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus, who is the Christ. Amen.
Every day when I leave the house, Nathan and Samuel run up to me with their arms up in the air. “Daddy, pick me up!” Hugs. Kisses, and I go. Often times, however, I’ll discover hours later, and usually after some public meeting, the remains of the boys breakfast embedded on my shoulder…right about here. The highlight of these experiences was when I went to my final approval interview with the Bishop’s Office for ordination last May. After the meeting with the committee of seven, I discovered an almost perfect rendering of Samuel’s face, made up of “Go-gurt”, had been smiling out at the approval committee. To be honest, I think it might have scored points with the committee.
But when a young child comes up to you and throw their arms into the air, it is difficult to resist. The arms up, and the phrase “Daddy!” is a sign of their love, and their complete dependence on you. Children depend on their parents completely. For food, for clothing, for safety, for love, for acceptance, for boundaries, for someone to wrestle with, for someone to watch Saturday morning cartoons with… As parents, it is our job to provide for those who depend on us. Sociologists have said that childhood and adolescence is the process of a young person moving from total dependence, to independence, as they move into adulthood.
Our faith development is somewhat different, however. We do not move from dependence to independence. As we grow in our faith, we move from independence to dependence on God.
In our Gospel tonight, Jesus gives us a description of our relationship with God. Jesus says, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to gain their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. (Mark 8:34-35)
This seems pretty counter intuitive; it goes against our natural instincts. To “gain life” we must “lose it?” Those who “lose our lives will gain it?” Our natural inclination is to say the opposite of Jesus. Our society teaches that our lives are our own. We are independent people who make our own choices, set out on our own paths, and create our own destiny.
In a culture where independence, self-reliance and the ability to “lift oneself up by your own bootstraps” is valued, the idea of losing one’s life, or of “dying to oneself” is foreign. One of our adult small group leaders on our recent sr. high ski retreat told me of a conversation in her group. One young person said that “God is just for those who need God. If things are going pretty well, and if nothing is wrong, you don’t need God.” Wow. This is a brutally honest representation of how many people feel, and of what our culture teaches. “We are self reliant, and when something goes wrong, we can turn to God like some kind of cosmic vending machine.”
Jesus also uses the phrase in our scripture text that we must “deny ourselves and take up the cross, following Him.” What does it mean to deny ourselves? While some might argue that it means to put God and others ahead of ourselves, I believe that it means simply to recognize that God is already ahead of us. God is God and we are not, and the root of human sin is to deny this truth. The fact is, we are not in charge. God is in charge, and we are totally dependent on God. This is a difficult thing for us to swallow. A universal truth is that we want to be in charge of our own lives. We don’t want to acknowledge our dependence on anyone, or anything.
There are several different things that may cause us to deny our dependence on God. For some of us, the urge to feel in control lies in our own self-centeredness. We are simply the most important person in our own lives, and our goal is to satisfy our own wants. For others, the root of our control issue lies in being judgmental. We are so insecure in ourselves that if we keep pointing out others faults, we can continue to feel in control and good about ourselves.
For some, legalism is the key to control. If I work hard enough…run fast enough…perform well enough, I can earn my way to whatever kind of merit falls into my path.
Whatever the cause, each of us in one way or another, at some level, resists denying our own control, and letting God be God; resists letting ourselves be dependent.
I have a friend who lives with a medical condition that his doctor calls “Sudden Death Syndrome.” It is a congenital, degenerative heart condition, and at any given moment, his heart could stop. You’ve heard the occasional story of the athlete whose heart just stops while he runs on the basketball court, and who never knew he had the condition? This is the condition my friend has. He had a defibrillator surgically implanted in his heart. It constantly monitors his heart rate and if there is any irregularity it will deliver an electric shock to the heart in an attempt to return it to normal rhythm. He said that the most disconcerting moment of getting a defibrillator was not the surgery to implant it, it was after the surgery when he had to sign the “limited warranty” on the device.
The defibrillator is slightly smaller than the size of a deck of cards and is implanted just underneath the skin in his chest. He’s shown me the spot, and if you look closely from the right angle, you can actually just make out the shape of the rectangle underneath the skin.
My friend has an interesting “take” on his device. He says that every morning he will stand in front of the mirror while shaving or brushing his teeth. His eyes will be drawn to the small scar and the spot where the device is and he’ll see the rectangle. He told me that “This defibrillator is my daily reminder that I am not in charge. At any moment, something could happen that would take my life away from me, and I am totally in the hands of God. I am not in control. I am totally dependent. Totally dependent.”
My friends, we are all totally dependent on God. Completely. As a child is to a parent, we are all to God, our Father. It is God who gives life. It is God who gives the food we eat…the shelter in which we live…the people who love us…the very air that we breathe. It is by God’s grace that we live. Even when we turn to God when we are in need, the very fact that we can turn to God is a sign of our dependence on God.
And denial of this truth, our attempts at living without God, does not make it less true. Our lives are a gift, and we are dependent on the giver. And God continues to give.
God gives these gifts, His grace, with no strings attached. God gives freely and without reservation, out of a sense of love for us. God’s grace is given even when we are unaware of it. The gift is still given; and when we turn to God, and throw our arms into the air, saying “Abba…Father…Daddy” God’s arms are outstretched to welcome us into his grip. God’s love comes with an unlimited warranty.
God grips you in His grace and loves you unconditionally.
Always.
Amen.
Thursday, January 19, 2006
God Descends
God Descends
John 13:1-15
Todd Buegler
January 19, 2006
Christ Chapel – Gustavus Adolphus College
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, the Rabbi who serves! Amen.
It is an honor to be here with you today. This campus and this chapel were places that were instrumental in my faith and identity formation. Much of who I am today, I can trace to this campus, and this chapel in particular. My parents were both Gusties. My Grandfather was the salutatorian when he graduated from the then 2-year Gustavus Adolphus College in 1921. I spent countless hours sitting up in that sound booth, running the sound system for worship services and events. I often served as the crucifer here in chapel. I was a part of a campus fellowship group that met every other Tuesday night, here in the chapel. As a senior religion major, my first sermon happened from this pulpit. This chapel holds a special place in my heart, and I can trace the roots of who I am now to this place. God uses places and relationships to form identity. It is good to be back.
If the book of John were a movie, our Gospel today would, I believe, use a kind of “slowed down motion” to capture the texture of the last hours of the life of Jesus. You know the kind I mean: In recent years, altering the speed of a scene has become a favorite technique of movie makers to capture the attention of an audience. Think of the slow action sequences in the “Matrix” movies. Of the four gospel writers, John is the only one that goes deeper into the events that occurred in those moments. He is saying, “Wait just a minute, before we go on, I want you to catch the deeper motives running through the heart of Jesus.
You are familiar with the story of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples. The shock value of someone washing another’s feet often causes us to stop examining the story at that point…as in “wow…washing feet…that’s pretty radical…serving others…pretty radical…we should probably do more of that…” The problem is, the washing of feet in Biblical times was not radical at all. It was a common practice when a guest entered a home, as a sign of welcome, of placing the needs of the guest above those of the host, and of course, to rid the feet of the smell that came from walking in sandals upon dusty roads that people shared with donkeys, other animals, and their droppings.
The radical thing isn’t the washing of feet, it was who was washing feet. Jesus, as a Rabbi, held a place of significance in Jewish culture. Only the best of the best of the best became Rabbis. And their disciples were oathbound to not only serve them completely, but to emulate them; to try to do what the Rabbi did, and to become like the Rabbi was. For the Rabbi to take such action was a shock. So there had to be a specific intent in what Jesus was trying to teach his disciples when they gathered at the table that night, and Jesus took off his robe and bent down to wash their feet.
First, consider this, when you are going to wash someone's feet, what physical movement do you have to make in order to get close to his or her feet? You descend.
The first motion of a servant is descent. Henri Nouwen put it this way in a letter to a relative, "…how is it that love is made visible in Jesus? It is made visible in the descending way. God has descended to us human beings to become a human being with us. And once among us, he descended to the total dereliction of one condemned to death…each one of us has to seek out his or her own descending way of love.”
Jesus chose the upper room, gathered with his disciples turned friends around a table for these climactic acts of his ministry. Again, God uses places and relationships to form identity. And two millennia of Christians have had their identity as children of Grace shaped by that group, in that room. There's a very simple but powerful message in Jesus’ actions. He descends to you. He comes to you to give of himself the ultimate gift of love and grace. God descends to you.
The second motion of the servant is to incarnate. (Ok, it’s not really a verb, but I wasn’t an English major either…) Mother Teresa defines incarnation this way: "God's love is infinite—full of tenderness, full of compassion. God loves the world through us—you and me. The way you touch people, the way you give to people, that love for one another. It is his love in action through us…"
As Jesus descended to wash the disciples feet that night, he wanted them to realize that God's love must be made tangible through acts of compassion and mercy.
I spent 10 days this past October in Biloxi, Mississippi, living with 45 other volunteers on a church floor. We dug the mud, destruction and mold out of homes so they could be salvaged and served up to 350 families a day at an emergency relief distribution center. Eddie was an offshore oilrig worker made homeless by the storm, whose Father had been hospitalized in New Orleans, though Eddie did not know if he was alive or dead, and there was no way to find out. Eddie was passing through one night and saw us sitting outside of the church after a long work day and walked up, wondering if he could sleep outside in a tent we used to store supplies. Eddie stayed and volunteered. When we left, Eddie sobbed…which of course, opened up the floodgates for the rest of us. As he hugged each of us goodbye, one of my teammates, Phil, took off his watch, and discreetly slipped it into Eddie’s hand. You see, the watch that Eddie’s father had given him had been lost in the hurricane. Phil’s act was one of pure love and grace. In that moment, I saw Jesus incarnate in these two men.
Again, from places and relationships, God creates identity. 18 years ago when I preached in this pulpit, I never dreamed I would be who I am today. It was my grandfather, my mother, my father, my wife, my children, my friends, my congregation, Chaplain Elvee, Garrett Paul, Kevin Byrne, Dennis Johnson, Craig Johnson, Eddie, Phil and many others who God used to shape my identity by descending into them and becoming incarnate to me. Thanks be to God for using them in my life. Thanks be to God for places like Gustavus, and all the other places in my life that have been significant. And thanks be to God for calling me to be who I am.
Out of this place and others, out of this community and others, God descends to become incarnate to you. You may not know who God is calling you to be. But trust that your identity is being shaped. Thanks be to the God who descends to you, for calling you to be who you are, and to be God’s love incarnate to others.
Amen.
John 13:1-15
Todd Buegler
January 19, 2006
Christ Chapel – Gustavus Adolphus College
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, and from Jesus, the Son of God, the Rabbi who serves! Amen.
It is an honor to be here with you today. This campus and this chapel were places that were instrumental in my faith and identity formation. Much of who I am today, I can trace to this campus, and this chapel in particular. My parents were both Gusties. My Grandfather was the salutatorian when he graduated from the then 2-year Gustavus Adolphus College in 1921. I spent countless hours sitting up in that sound booth, running the sound system for worship services and events. I often served as the crucifer here in chapel. I was a part of a campus fellowship group that met every other Tuesday night, here in the chapel. As a senior religion major, my first sermon happened from this pulpit. This chapel holds a special place in my heart, and I can trace the roots of who I am now to this place. God uses places and relationships to form identity. It is good to be back.
If the book of John were a movie, our Gospel today would, I believe, use a kind of “slowed down motion” to capture the texture of the last hours of the life of Jesus. You know the kind I mean: In recent years, altering the speed of a scene has become a favorite technique of movie makers to capture the attention of an audience. Think of the slow action sequences in the “Matrix” movies. Of the four gospel writers, John is the only one that goes deeper into the events that occurred in those moments. He is saying, “Wait just a minute, before we go on, I want you to catch the deeper motives running through the heart of Jesus.
You are familiar with the story of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples. The shock value of someone washing another’s feet often causes us to stop examining the story at that point…as in “wow…washing feet…that’s pretty radical…serving others…pretty radical…we should probably do more of that…” The problem is, the washing of feet in Biblical times was not radical at all. It was a common practice when a guest entered a home, as a sign of welcome, of placing the needs of the guest above those of the host, and of course, to rid the feet of the smell that came from walking in sandals upon dusty roads that people shared with donkeys, other animals, and their droppings.
The radical thing isn’t the washing of feet, it was who was washing feet. Jesus, as a Rabbi, held a place of significance in Jewish culture. Only the best of the best of the best became Rabbis. And their disciples were oathbound to not only serve them completely, but to emulate them; to try to do what the Rabbi did, and to become like the Rabbi was. For the Rabbi to take such action was a shock. So there had to be a specific intent in what Jesus was trying to teach his disciples when they gathered at the table that night, and Jesus took off his robe and bent down to wash their feet.
First, consider this, when you are going to wash someone's feet, what physical movement do you have to make in order to get close to his or her feet? You descend.
The first motion of a servant is descent. Henri Nouwen put it this way in a letter to a relative, "…how is it that love is made visible in Jesus? It is made visible in the descending way. God has descended to us human beings to become a human being with us. And once among us, he descended to the total dereliction of one condemned to death…each one of us has to seek out his or her own descending way of love.”
Jesus chose the upper room, gathered with his disciples turned friends around a table for these climactic acts of his ministry. Again, God uses places and relationships to form identity. And two millennia of Christians have had their identity as children of Grace shaped by that group, in that room. There's a very simple but powerful message in Jesus’ actions. He descends to you. He comes to you to give of himself the ultimate gift of love and grace. God descends to you.
The second motion of the servant is to incarnate. (Ok, it’s not really a verb, but I wasn’t an English major either…) Mother Teresa defines incarnation this way: "God's love is infinite—full of tenderness, full of compassion. God loves the world through us—you and me. The way you touch people, the way you give to people, that love for one another. It is his love in action through us…"
As Jesus descended to wash the disciples feet that night, he wanted them to realize that God's love must be made tangible through acts of compassion and mercy.
I spent 10 days this past October in Biloxi, Mississippi, living with 45 other volunteers on a church floor. We dug the mud, destruction and mold out of homes so they could be salvaged and served up to 350 families a day at an emergency relief distribution center. Eddie was an offshore oilrig worker made homeless by the storm, whose Father had been hospitalized in New Orleans, though Eddie did not know if he was alive or dead, and there was no way to find out. Eddie was passing through one night and saw us sitting outside of the church after a long work day and walked up, wondering if he could sleep outside in a tent we used to store supplies. Eddie stayed and volunteered. When we left, Eddie sobbed…which of course, opened up the floodgates for the rest of us. As he hugged each of us goodbye, one of my teammates, Phil, took off his watch, and discreetly slipped it into Eddie’s hand. You see, the watch that Eddie’s father had given him had been lost in the hurricane. Phil’s act was one of pure love and grace. In that moment, I saw Jesus incarnate in these two men.
Again, from places and relationships, God creates identity. 18 years ago when I preached in this pulpit, I never dreamed I would be who I am today. It was my grandfather, my mother, my father, my wife, my children, my friends, my congregation, Chaplain Elvee, Garrett Paul, Kevin Byrne, Dennis Johnson, Craig Johnson, Eddie, Phil and many others who God used to shape my identity by descending into them and becoming incarnate to me. Thanks be to God for using them in my life. Thanks be to God for places like Gustavus, and all the other places in my life that have been significant. And thanks be to God for calling me to be who I am.
Out of this place and others, out of this community and others, God descends to become incarnate to you. You may not know who God is calling you to be. But trust that your identity is being shaped. Thanks be to the God who descends to you, for calling you to be who you are, and to be God’s love incarnate to others.
Amen.
Sunday, January 15, 2006
What Do You See?
Peter Geisendorfer-Lindgren, my senior pastor, and one of the best pastors I have ever encountered gave a good sermon this morning. He compared what we see an hear, and how we interpret it, to how we see and hear God.
How do we hear God? How do we see God? This in a world that seems determined to drown out God's voice? No, I'm not one of those "stick your head in the sand" kind of people who wants to shout out culture to hear God. Quite the contrary. You cannot shout out culture. Culture cannot shout out God. Because culture is there, we are forced to hear it. Because God is there, we get to hear it. The key for Christians is to learn to listen and recognize God's voice in the midst of the chaos that is life, and then to have the courage to follow.
I'm going to think about this some more...both the question of "how do we recognize God's voice? How do we know what it is when it is?" and also the issue of courage. It's a difficult world we live in.
How do we hear God? How do we see God? This in a world that seems determined to drown out God's voice? No, I'm not one of those "stick your head in the sand" kind of people who wants to shout out culture to hear God. Quite the contrary. You cannot shout out culture. Culture cannot shout out God. Because culture is there, we are forced to hear it. Because God is there, we get to hear it. The key for Christians is to learn to listen and recognize God's voice in the midst of the chaos that is life, and then to have the courage to follow.
I'm going to think about this some more...both the question of "how do we recognize God's voice? How do we know what it is when it is?" and also the issue of courage. It's a difficult world we live in.
Useless Trivia for Parties
From Tim Lyles:
- "Stewardesses" is the longest word typed with only the left hand and "lollipop" with your right.
- It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.
- Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable.
- No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple.
- "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt".
- Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears
never stop growing. - The sentence: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every letter of the alphabet.
- The words 'racecar,' 'kayak' and 'level' are the same whether they are read left to right or right to left (palindromes).
- There are only four words in the English language which end in "dous":tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
- There are two words in the English language that have all five vowels in order: "abstemious" and "facetious."
- TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.
- All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill
- A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.
- A crocodile cannot stick out its tongue, but who really cares?
- A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.
- A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.
- A snail can sleep for three years.
- Almonds are a member of the peach family.
- An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.
- Babies are born without kneecaps. They don't appear until the child reaches 2 to 6 years of age.
- Butterflies taste with their feet.
- Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds.
- Dogs only have about 10.
- February 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have a full moon.
- In the last 4,000 years, no new animals have been domesticated.
- If the population of China walked past you, 8 abreast, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.
- If you are an average American, in your whole life, you will spend an average of 6 months waiting at red lights.
- Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors.
- On a Canadian two dollar bill, the flag flying over the Parliament building is an American flag.
- Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite!
- Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated.
- The average person's left hand does 56% of the typing.
- The cruise liner, QE2, moves only six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns.
- The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket.
- The winter of 1932 was so cold that Niagara Falls froze completely solid.
- There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.
- There are more chickens than people in the world.
- There's no Betty Rubble in the Flintstones Chewables Vitamins.
- Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
- Winston Churchill was born in a ladies' room during a dance.
- Women blink nearly twice as much as men.
- Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks; otherwise it will digest itself.
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