tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51714026861125503542024-02-20T07:38:02.367-06:00Epiphany and AweMusings and Reflections on life, faith, family, spiritual growth and whatever else seems worth hanging out for others to see.revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-54170835529707832692019-04-04T10:59:00.000-05:002019-04-04T10:59:01.033-05:00<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #1b1b1b; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
There are moments in life for which we seem unprepared, and yet we are nonetheless leaning toward in desperate hope to receive and experience. These moments might be called mystical or spiritual, but whatever they are called they are definitive moments that open our hearts and minds to that which we seek, albeit often in foolish ways. When we are awakened to such a moment it is like standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon or Niagara Falls or some other wonder that causes us to gasp at the beauty and power and magnificence; and the voices of worry and frustration and criticism are silenced long enough that we can hear the soft, yet uncompromised and unmistakable voice of God saying “I love you.” When we experience such a moment, then we are being invited into God’s kingdom—a way of being that transcends time and place, but permeates time and place through joy and love and sacrifice. Some people glimpse this kingdom without knowing what it is and then they wander through a host of different pursuits trying to reproduce the splendor of the moment. It cannot be discovered or found. It is only revealed—and the one to whom it is revealed and for whom the dim eyes of the heart are opened to its truth, for this one it cannot ever be taken away.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Some will immediately comprehend the magnitude of what lies beyond the door that opens to love and rush in with gratitude. Others flounder in attempts to test and tease it out more, trying this and trying that in order to taste the sweet fruit of the Kingdom again. And still others, frightened that love means losing all the little levers and knobs of control they have assembled in life, will resist and fight against the love that exposes us as the vulnerable and helpless creatures that we are. <o:p></o:p></div>
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It is a mystery why some comprehend the Kingdom quickly, while others take a life time to figure it out—if they ever do. It appears that what is offered is so overwhelming that many will attempt to limit the rapture—like the difference between a person who leaps out of an airplane and one who, afraid of heights, chooses to descend slowly and methodically into the rich depths of God’s love. What isn’t a mystery, however, is that the One who offers it is relentless in mercy and love. Any punishment we may experience is self-chosen by virtue of turning away from what is offered as we play god in our own shrinking life.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br style="background-color: white; color: #1b1b1b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1b1b1b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">© 2019 Stephen Carl</span>revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-86567498524067556232018-04-03T16:46:00.001-05:002018-04-03T16:47:27.559-05:00Freedom From and Freedom For<br />
<br />
When prisoners are set free, they often are gleeful and grateful, but directionless. They experience a freedom from prison, from the cage, from the bars behind which they were punished. This is what prisoners desire and for which they live, but once that freedom from the prison is a reality, then what? Sadly, many return to previous patterns of behavior. This is one of the reasons there is a high level of recidivism. The same happens for those who suffer from addictions and begin recovery, there is a relief followed by the temptations that too frequently lead to relapse. There is a perception focused on living without the addictive substance, not a focus on living in the liberty that comes without the addiction. Likewise, at the end of WW2 in Europe, those liberated from the prison camps of the Nazis wandered the roads and towns not knowing what to do, where to go. They were free from, but not free for...<br />
“Freedom for” is purpose and identity and direction. “Freedom for” is meaning in a world bereft of meaning, in a world made up of insignificant meanings, insignificant purposes, insignificant aims and goals.<br />
“Freedom from” is the cross. We are free from the sin and its punishment. We are free from darkness and death and despair and hopelessness. We are free from separation from God.<br />
“Freedom for” is the resurrection. We are free for joy and gratitude and purpose. We are free for love and loving. We are free for living in God’s presence. Therefore we are free for living sacrificially for others.<br />
Freedom from must always be married to freedom for, otherwise it is temporary and fleeting. And freedom for must be married to freedom from, otherwise it is planted in shallow soil and becomes frustrated by the apparent failures to liberate others, neglecting that there are still many crosses in the world.<br />
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© 2018 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-4200571362329370172018-03-24T08:42:00.001-05:002018-03-24T08:42:59.980-05:00<div class="MsoNormal">
Psalm 119 is unique and well-known for a variety of reasons
and a great deal has been written on it. Verse 105 has become a contemporary
song that is sung by many: “Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my
path.” Additionally, Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible (good to
know for trivia questions). It is 176 verses long and contains 22 stanzas with
eight verses each. Not only that, it is an acrostic psalm. As an acrostic Psalm
each of the 22 stanzas is written so that each of the eight verses contained in
a particular stanza begins with the assigned letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Some
acrostic poems spell out a word when the first letter of each section is taken
in order. The acrostic of Psalm 119 isn’t a word, but is simply the Hebrew alphabet
in order. That’s an accomplishment on its own—have you ever tried to write
something that develops by using the alphabet? Add to that the challenge of
several sentences in each section beginning with the same letter. With some
letters in English that would be easy—others less so (Q? Z? Y?). The added
wonder of Psalm 119 is that the content is remarkably thematic. It would be one
thing to write something that emphasizes a particular subject, but quite
another to write it so that it is also acrostic. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The amazing thing about Psalm 119 is that the acrostic
nature of it is supportive of the theme. In other words, the acrostic tool
isn’t only a gimmick or novelty, but it undergirds the message conveyed in the
Psalm. The theme of Psalm 119 is God’s word and the marvelous gift it is to
those who know it. In Psalm 119, God’s word is described as law, word, statute,
ordinance, precept, decree, and promise. The idea is that God’s word leads us, guides
us, provides a path for us to follow, gives us the necessary resources to
navigate life in a way that blesses. The contrast of life without God’s word,
God’s law, God’s decrees, is like trying to cook a delicious casserole without
a recipe, or for an orchestra to play a symphony while all the instruments play
in different keys. In other words, in Psalm 119 there’s a connection between
the theme, this idea, and the use of acrostic. <o:p></o:p></div>
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By way of explanation, how do children learn to read? First
by learning the alphabet. The alphabet is the basic foundation of learning how
to read and reading is essential to learning. Psalm 119 is saying that learning
and knowing and understanding God’s word is the ABC’s of the good life, the
life God created us for and intends for us to enjoy. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Additionally, that it is acrostic makes it easier to
remember, easier to memorize and then eventually to know it by heart. <o:p></o:p></div>
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That’s essentially the best way to know God’s word—by heart.
And it is ultimately the goal too. Think of the things you know by heart,
they’re things that naturally arise from within us. Consider talking. How many
of us think about each word before we say it? Yes, it might be wise to do
so—especially in certain situations where the use of precise words is valuable
and can potentially prevent terrible misunderstandings. What I’m pointing to,
however, is that in most cases we are able to construct sentences and speak
them without cognitively reflecting on each word and the construction of our
sentences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When someone learns a foreign
language it requires a great deal of memorization. At first, the new language
is learned through translation. Eventually, with time and use, the new language
begins to sink deeply into one’s thinking and it requires less translation and
less thought to use. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Apply that experience to knowing God’s word so well that it
rises from within one’s heart without a conscious effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Psalm 119 is a step on the grand staircase to
that space of grace to which the Psalmist points as the destination of
gratitude and glory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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© 2018 Stephen Carl<o:p></o:p></div>
revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-78207929243955243792017-02-24T10:35:00.002-06:002017-02-24T10:35:29.933-06:00<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">Fred Rogers (aka Mr. Rogers), a man who inspired
millions of children through his PBS television program "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood", once said, “The space
between my mouth and a child’s ear is holy ground.” That certainly raises the bar on how adults speak with children!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">Holy Ground—those are also the words
of God to Moses when he stood before the bush that burned, but was not consumed
by fire: remove your sandals, for the ground upon which you stand is holy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">Holy Ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">Sacred Space.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">A Place Set Apart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">What makes a place holy?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or a particular time sacred?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me, the answer to these questions is:
God’s grace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But God does so through the
heart we bring and the words we choose to hear and share.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> God's grace redeems me and causes my heart and head to shift into a posture of gratitude and humility, and my eyes see that everything shines with God's touch. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">In our media-saturated, information-soaked, twittered world, words are flung around casually, carelessly,
hurtfully, insensitively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Words are
powerful and yet we sometimes overuse them or misuse them so much that they
lose their power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Words are sometimes
like weapons used to cut another down and diminish the sacredness God instills, but they can also be used to reveal holy space, to convey love and blessing, to share Good News.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">A cliché we’ve all heard and
perhaps used is “walk the talk”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
other words match your actions with your words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perhaps it’s an impossibility—especially for those who are claimed by
grace but are still weighed down by sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yet it is something to which we should aspire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> N</span>o matter how difficult it may be we are to bridle our
behaviors (and all those feelings that motivate us to act in critical, harsh,
anti-redemptive ways) in order to rise to the life of the Word that was and is
and is yet to be, the Word that transforms even hypocrites into the real estate
of holy ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;">I encourage you to let the space
between your mouth and everyone else around you be holy ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are stewards of our words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can use them carefully or carelessly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And using words as weapons because others do
so, is no excuse for those who confess to be reconciled by the One Who is The Word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-language: EN-US;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">© Stephen Carl</span></span></div>
revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-10175903788588034132017-02-21T19:19:00.001-06:002017-02-21T19:19:59.604-06:00Face to face is a loaded expression. It could be followed by details of a confrontation, or of deep intimacy, or a great deal in between those two. I was considering how many people I've been privileged to be face to face with in a way that never would happen if not for being a pastor. I have been face to face in counseling sessions, in worship, in weddings, in baptisms, in moments of heartache and grief, in moments of truth, in moments of confrontation, and moments of earnest hope. I cannot begin to calculate the number of people I have been face to face with in ritual events, such as healing services or Ash Wednesday services or communion by intinction or in prayer at the side of their hospital bed. Though I have fallen far short, I have always tried to say the person's name and make eye contact. In a flash, in a micro-second, in a timeless moment, I have often felt a deep and mysterious connection--not just between myself and the other person, but also of another who brings us together. It's as if, without expertise or planning, we are taken to a place beyond our capacity to discover, and in that place the heart is laid bare. None of the garbage of our lives, for which we are ashamed and remain guarded, is there. It's not that it is undisclosed, it's more as if it simply doesn't exist.<br />
It is a holy moment that occurs in spite of us. It is in such moments that I have looked into the eyes of people whom I know do not like me, who have been critical of me, who have hurt me, and I am forgiven of all the feelings I have had because of my own fears and insecurities and spiritual immaturity. It's a humbling experience to not feel the razor sharp indignation toward the other, but to experience the power of forgiveness in the most indescribable and incomprehensible way. <br />
It is in such moments that I realize that being a pastor isn't mostly about having answers or being theologically astute or even being a leader. Instead it is about being a child who is loved and given the privilege of letting other children know they are loved too, but not in any way that we can earn or even understand. Rather, it is a love that frees us to explore the meaning of love, even in our messy, broken-down ways.<br />
<br />
© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-77455819720089825502017-02-16T18:55:00.002-06:002017-02-16T19:01:48.360-06:00To speak ABOUT God is to aim a bottle rocket at the sun. It never comes close to leaving the earth's atmosphere, let alone the earth's gravity. Our words about God are weighted with the mass of misunderstanding and ego-centrism. Besides, speaking about God is academic. It addresses more of human conceptions of God, human constructions of God, than it does revelations of God. <br />
Speaking about God is not speaking OF, let alone speaking TO, WITH or FOR God. As for speaking for God, one must be cautious since misspeaking for God is blasphemy; lying and portraying the lies as coming from God's lips. Not a wise thing to put words or the misinterpretation of words into God's mouth. <br />
To speak OF God requires first speaking WITH God. To speak of God should flow from the rich river of fellowship one has with God, fully aware that God is GOD and we are creatures of God. We are created in the image of God and we are loved, but let us not construe this into a chummy notion of a friendship, as if we are on equal terms. <br />
The rich fellowship of being in relationship with God is beyond articulation since words will never explain or capture the truth of being in this relationship. To even say "relationship with God" is to use a pale shadow to illustrate the bright sun. This relationship and the One with Whom we have fellowship defines us. To speak of God is to speak of meaning and the meaning-maker, to express joy and fulfillment and one's beginning and completion. <br />
<br />
To believe and speak about God's disapproval is to step upon the sacred ground of judgment, ground upon which Jesus walked to the cross. To point at anyone and say "sinner" is to elevate oneself above Christ the victor who came not to condemn the world, but to forgive. Casting blame or judgment is to stand exposed to the brilliance of God's love and say that someone is beneath God's favor when God loves the world. Who has such privilege and righteousness?<br />
I do not and I know of no mere mortal who does. For me, my debt to God exceeds any righteous work I can muster. And it is my debt forgiven that fills me with humility and compassion. Any judgmentalism that still stirs in my heart is enemy ground not yet surrendered though the war is over and the great defeat has occurred.<br />
<br />
© 2017 Stephen Carl<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-88354331298226907992017-02-04T10:09:00.003-06:002017-02-04T10:09:41.105-06:00<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">"The
Church of Never Do That"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
members of "The Church of Never Do That"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Never
speak in worship or allow idle chit chat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">We've
posted "The seven last words of church" on our door:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">"We've
never done it that way before"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
children who wiggle are thumped on the head<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">"You
were told to sit still" the parents all said<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Since
church is an exercise of will o'er desire<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Motivated
by images of hell's burning fire.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
purpose of worship was long ago lost<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">On bottom
line decisions of financial cost<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">So the people
who come all dutifully obey<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
tradition of praying the same prayer each time they pray<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
praying is practiced with ne'er a mistake<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">A stutter
would be tragic for heaven's sake!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">And the
order of worship has never changed <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Since
John Calvin approved how it's arranged<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
ushers tuxedoed are stationed and trained<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">To keep
out the coffee so the carpet's unstained<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The hymns
were written in catacombs long ago<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">And sung
sans enthusiasm lest it become a big show<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">New music
or clapping is never allowed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">There's
plenty of room since there's never a crowd<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">But the
pews are assigned, so stuck in a rut<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Each
cushion is shaped like it's member's butt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
argument seems airtight for anyone who can see:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">"If
it was good enough for grandpa, it's good enough for me."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">When the
Bible is read with the Thees and the Thous<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">All feign
engagement with deep furrowed brows<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">And the
preaching is done with an emphasis on sins<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">All
remain silent with no shouts or "Amens"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">New
people they want to sit in the pews<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">To hear
their dull version of the Good News<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">But
strangers are a terror, utterly feared <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Especially
the one with long hair and a beard<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">But just
such a one came every week<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">To find
the lost hearts, his kingdom they seek<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Lost
hearts aplenty he found in the nave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Hibernating
spiritually like bears in a cave<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">So Sunday
after Sunday he'd head down the street<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">To see
who he'd find and who he would meet<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Though
meet them is really not what he would do<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">For their
name, heart and hurts he already knew<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Some
members of "The Church of Never Do That"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Wanted
what he offered but their courage was flat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Too
worried to look religious, too worried to look weird<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">So they
kept their hearts shut to the guy with the beard.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">A meeting
was called and a motion was made<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Where a
political ploy was skillfully played <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">To change
church policy to eliminate...change<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Since
stability is preferred to the new and the strange<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The vote
was unanimous, well...minus one <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">That
long-hair bearded guy some call God's Son<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Some
shouted "Democracy rules! There's nothing more to do"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Isn't
that Gospel? Somewhere in Matthew?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">You may
be a member of "The Church of Never Do That"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">If you'd
defend your preferences in ecclesial combat<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">And use
words like "my church" as if were true <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">That you
atoned and ransomed it with your blood and sinew<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The long
hair bearded man still comes to that church<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Expecting
some may begin (heaven forbid!) a spiritual search <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Beyond
the traditions, the hymns, and their by-law<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Where the
deepest of hungers and the questions still gnaw<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Perhaps
they will look through the stained glass scene<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Of Jesus
declaring the leper was now clean<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Where
outside the window the world buzzes by<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Too busy
to slow down, too frightened to cry<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The empty
expressions and the desperate need<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">From the
diet of death on which they all feed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">If
"The Church of Never Do That" opened wide <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">And the
people in the pews ever ventured outside<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">They
would find something amazing, too powerful to contain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
message so simple, so pure and so plain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The life
and the blessing, the Good News and grace<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
people inside forgot in their unchanging place<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">God
never, no never said "Thou shalt not Change"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Nor never
has God ever left us estranged<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Except
when we grip tightly our fear and our pride<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Strangling
and suffocating, our trust slowly died<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Our
concrete and mortar so carefully maintained<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Our
coffers and endowments are slowly being drained<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">To paint
and repair, replace and update<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">We fret
and we fight as we carry the freight<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Of
deception in believing that we're faithful and true<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">As we
honor our ancestors from 1802.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
buildings we build are not the Church of the One<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">The
church is the people who work till the work is all done<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Telling
each person regardless of race, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">No matter
their language or color of face<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Showing
them kindness and lifting them up<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Sharing
the bread and offering the cup<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">So change
will happen no matter the rules<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">For doing
the same thing forever is only for fools<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Come be
part of "The Church of Never the Same"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">For it’s
filled with the people given a new name<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">They're
grateful and giddy and filled with good news<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Going
beyond the doors, stained glass and the pews.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">They find
its a mystery as they let go<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">When they
love their neighbor they're filled with a glow<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">When the
give up their treasures they are blessed and renewed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Something
that never happens when we fight and we feud.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">And the
long-hair bearded man looks on with a smile <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">As cheeks
are turned twice and we go the extra mile<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">For no
one is judged, since that's losing the game<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Only
loved by the Church of Never the Same</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-language: JA;">© 2017 Stephen Carl</span></div>
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</style>revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-80990852779578964172016-12-13T10:21:00.002-06:002016-12-13T10:22:28.449-06:00I am intrigued by and compelled to write about, try to illustrate or describe, something untouchable and undisclosed, something between or beneath that which is evident. This space or place or truth is just out of reach, but is still possible to grasp, not by our own power or effort, but as a whimsical gift. We brush against it at times and feel it nudge us, whisper to us in a breeze or the drama of colors and movement in a moment never to be repeated. Though it is very close to us, rarely do we see it or know it is there.<br />
A challenge is that language is the way in which we experience life and consciousness. Without language, or the manner in which we explain and express our experience, we are unmoored and unable to know what we are experiencing, even who we are.<br />
Language also, however, limits what we experience by its structure and word-boxes. Language is like a road that is at times well defined and solid, with curbs and guardrail and lines, wide with many lanes; at times it narrows and meanders through neighborhoods of homes that are filled with laughter and light and other neighborhoods with empty houses and broken windows, dark with danger and despair; then at times it is like a gravel or dirt road winding through a forest or off into the countryside or nearly disappearing in a dry and open landscape, perhaps becoming only a single trail threading its way into a wilderness until it fades away altogether and leaves the sojourner standing among a grove of tall trees, light shining through the branches, gentle breeze stirring the leaves, and a whisper of a voice that is strangely familiar as it echoes in the heart; or it leads us over sandy dunes where we hear breaking waves until we step upon the shore and look out over an ocean that stretches beyond the horizon. There we can go no further unless we strap together a few timbered words with poetic twine and let the currents carry us where we cannot know, into mists of imagination past islands of brief substance and then further, further, further to where no words, no boat, no vessel will carry us and we sink into the depths of the wordless from which words arise and into which words disappear and we breathe beneath the water where words cannot be spoken for they mean nothing and yet we now are known as we sought to know.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-2493114034532182152016-12-01T09:21:00.001-06:002016-12-01T09:21:50.302-06:00Advent, we are reminded, is about waiting. Faithful waiting. Keeping hearts and lives chaste in a world of instant gratification and hyper-impatience. Oddly, it isn't surprising that we aren't good at waiting, but we are very good at being distracted. Distraction helps us ignore waiting. There are a lot of theme parks that have discovered that the wait in line is experienced as less long when people are distracted, so various means of entertaining people in line have been developed. It helps, but no one in line forgets what they're really waiting for: the ride. We know this since no one chooses to stay in line when they reach the ride. This same thing isn't true about our lives and world. The distractions we've adopted work so well that we forget that for which we are waiting. In essence, we become addicted to the distractions and choose them over or instead of that for which we are created.<br />
A minor, but real Advent experience would be if on December 25 we woke up and discovered that Christmas had been postponed indefinitely. If by April or June we are still waiting for Christmas then we would qualify as having a hint of understanding about the Biblical experience of Advent of a promise made by God with no set deadline, but also no expiration date.<br />
Of course, Advent for those who call themselves Christian isn't about waiting for the promised Messiah, instead advent for the past two thousand years is really about waiting for the consummation of the kingdom. In the first century there was an expectation that the kingdom was immanent, and as things got worse, especially for the small community of those who were disciples of Jesus. With two thousand years of waiting we are less certain of the immanence. Indeed, we may even may think that if current events and attitudes in our world are any indication, then it would appear we have a long wait ahead of us. The posture toward history and the events which may point toward the timing of the eschaton has shifted. <br />
It used to be that, for Christians, war had to be theologically justified and even then it was a moral stretch to do so. Militant faith was applied to the spiritual world, not one's neighbors or enemies. <br />
It just struck me, however, to consider Advent from a heavenly perspective. I wonder what God thinks of waiting for us to settle down, to show that we really receive love by demonstrating it, not with the lovable, but the unlovable. That's what Jesus challenged anyone who would be his disciple: love those who do not love you in return, since it's no big deal to love those who love you. Heck, who doesn't do that? <br />
Obviously God doesn't have the same experience of Advent as we do. We are bound in time, stuck in the present, with a litter of tragedy in our wake and a questionable future around the corner or over the next rise. God isn't bound in time, therefore waiting isn't an issue. Still, there are passages that indicate God's patience with the chosen people ran out. Just read nearly any of the prophets. And in the Gospels Jesus is recorded as expressing exasperation with the disciples and others who were slow about grasping his kingdom message.<br />
If you're a praying person and furthermore familiar with the Lord's Prayer, then you may recognize the Advent contained therein: "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done" and that's not just an eschatological petition since its followed by "on earth as it is in heaven." In truth, though it is considered a petition, perhaps we might consider it also a promissory statement as well, that perhaps we should move beyond the sound of the words and be a demonstration of the Kingdom ON EARTH as it is demonstrated in heaven. On this side of the pearly gates, the standard practice of repentance is a good place to start. Acknowledging one's own failures in faithfulness is a good Advent activity. Humanity has always been easily duped by its own "better-than-you" aptitude, but it seems lately we are even more eagerly trigger happy with our index finger as we point out blame and accusation. Lord knows we have the same damned issues plaguing humanity for centuries, just a new set of people: racism, sexism, beliefism, ageism, nationalism, greed, fear, etc. <br />
And following repentance, we should have a healthy dose of righteous impatience, but impatience for the correct things, like the garbage we have no problem ignoring while we're pointing out everyone else's faults. When it comes to certain things, patience isn't a virtue we have time for, just as MLK, Jr. advocated in his "Why we can't wait" book. Some things are way past their spoil date and the fear we harbor in others who are different than us is one of them. Yet, MLK demonstrated an INCLUSIVE impatience. He was impatient for everyone to know justice, not only those experiencing the sharp, jagged edge of injustice. <br />
Advent is a season we don't have time for, it seems. Yet it is a timeless season. We reluctantly grant it four weeks, but we fill it with a super-size-me Twelve Days of Christmas. It's all quite ironic since those days are meant to follow Christmas Day, not precede it. We now follow Christmas with a deflating of the season, a collective sigh of relief that all the sugar-coated, hijacked meaning of Christmas is through. <br />
I won't suggest we crater to the strong current of the cultural river, but for me it makes sense to start Advent in August when there's a wasteland of Liturgically ho-hum Sundays. Then quit the wrangling with folk about not singing Christmas carols during the weeks leading up to Christmas. It may be good theology, but there are more important battles to fight.<br />
No matter what, though, let's get inclusively impatient with the real challenges. Let's get active with the kingdom work. Let's quit bickering over the marginal matters and focus on the issues that are genuine. Otherwise, like the Israel of old, the words of the prophets will no longer be simply an inconvenience.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carl<br />
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revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-72849422222491649252016-11-12T10:22:00.001-06:002016-11-12T10:26:34.501-06:00When we step back from the fray of all responsibilities, obligations, distractions, activities, and busy-ness we discover beneath all these engagements there is something that binds our lives together and provides our lives with meaning. This binding agent is stories: family stories, fictional stories, stories of heroes and heroines, stories of saints and sinners, stories of history, stories of love or hope or hardship or comfort or strength.<br />
Can you imagine life without "once upon a time" or "in a kingdom far, far away" or "there once was a" or "he spoke to them in parables" or “did I ever tell you about the time” or “your grandfather and I once were fishing when…” or “my first kiss was with…”?<br />
My boys are always asking me to tell them about some event in my life and they'll even sometimes just ask me to tell them some unknown story from my life that they haven't heard before. I recall my daughter, when she was a youngling often asking me to tell her a made-up story. She was demanding too. She wouldn't settle for any stories that didn't have excellent detail and infused with deep meaning. We are a storied species, as much story as we are cells and sinew, perhaps more.<br />
Stories are powerfully archetypal, they're emotive and sometimes disturbing; they're able to open our minds and hearts to lessons we may prefer to ignore or have difficulty accessing ourselves. They teach us things that cannot be explained any other way than in a story, things that cannot be put into an equation or formula or list or even a statement or rule.<br />
Some stories are make-believe, which is different than untrue. They may not be factual as we might consider fact, but that does not mean they aren't true. Truth has to do with something far more powerful and significant than facts. Facts are important, but truth teaches us about the life for which we yearn, the substance that we seek, the purpose for which we live, the love for which we are willing to die. <br />
We are shaped by the stories of our lives like clay is shaped in the hands of a potter; shaped by the stories we have heard and the ones onto which our souls cling. Sadly, we live in a culture bereft of substantive stories. We live by tweets and posts and blogs and five reasons this or that and fifteen second commercials and thirty minute comedies with problems, crisis and resolution neatly packaged in irreverence and disrespect we've been sold as humor. We live by the news stories of scandals and black and white/good and bad dichotomies without the grays that challenge us. Few of us wrestle with angels like Jacob; few of us are visited by strangers we take in and protect; few of us would know what to do if we saw a valley of dried bones rattle and begin to come to life. <br />
The dreams we have in our sleep are our deep need for stories speaking to us in mystery and metaphor. And they affect us the way stories affect us—following us throughout the day like a shadow. <br />
And so I am thankful, grateful for stories; for the stories I heard from my parents about when they were kids, the stories I heard of my great-grandparents and grandparents, the stories of family secrets whispered, the stories of my mother selling acorns to her neighbors when she was five, the stories of my father working on building homes with his father, the stories of my siblings, the stories of me when I was too young to remember, the stories of my father during the war, the stories of distant peoples and distant lands and distant hopes and dreams, especially the story that I'm living. <br />
What stories define you? What family stories do you remember? What stories will you tell? What stories do you long to hear? Ask someone you barely know to tell you their story and then listen to them. And see what happens to you and to the other and to your stories.<br />
Furthermore, realize you are a storyteller and as such you are empowered to do amazing things by shaping your story as it weaves in and out of the stories of others and the little wiggle of space and once-upon-a-time you are granted.<br />
<br />
© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-3883796650769679722016-11-09T09:53:00.001-06:002016-11-09T09:53:54.584-06:00We live in a terribly harsh world. Yes, there is beauty. Yes, there is good and there are people--perhaps most--who are kind and generous and helpful. Still, there is a lot of heartache and terror. There are times when I feel like my faith and beliefs have equipped me with a squirt gun in order to fight a raging, out-of-control fire. What good can I do? What benefit is there in the gospel when the world burns out of control?<br />
<br />
I walk through Central Park and it seems to be an unreal oasis in the middle of a city of disparity and hurt and anguish. Even in this oasis I see a homeless man sitting on a bench asleep, who has clearly soiled his pants recently, all his worldly possessions gathered on either side of him in plastic bags. I can hear the traffic nearby as cars and trucks and buses and pedestrians hustle and rush toward their own destinations, acknowledging one another only as someone to navigate around, as someone in the way between them and where they're going. The streets are littered with the dirty smudges of discarded gum, now a semi-permanent part of the sidewalks. A baby cries, a man shouts, a woman weeps, a horn honks, brakes squeal. Beneath the streets and buildings there are dark tunnels through which subways clack over the tracks carrying commuters, as they blankly stare through one another or scroll through their smart phone messages or read a book and ignore those around them.<br />
In the buildings there are people, like ants or bees, busy with their work. Producing little of consequence, but distracted from the empty ache in their heart.<br />
Around the world there are human traffickers ruining the lives of men, women, and children. As they do so they are killing their own souls with each dehumanizing act. Elsewhere there are deals being made as laws are being ignored; money being exchanged for political favors; corruption that poisons hope and the future as well as the ecosystem that sustains all life.<br />
There is so much terror that never makes the news, so much suffering, so much bribery and exploitation and violence. My little squirt gun is inept and useless against such relentless fires. I feel impotent and it seems that God is only a flimsy Dixie cup of water I can toss on the inferno.<br />
<br />
And yet, that betrays the size of my heart more than it represents the power of God; that discloses my lack of faith and trust in the omnipotent Creator rather than acknowledging the reality of the world.<br />
<br />
My little squirt gun is not all there is. There are billions of others who have their squirt guns. And we have an unlimited supply of water. And we have hope and persistence and vision and encouragement and examples of the faithful before us. And we have an example to provide for others to be inspired. And behind our puny efforts to make a difference is God, who will not permit one person to pass from this life without knowing the terrifyingly wondrous love God has for us, each of us. That extinguishes all fires in an instant.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carl<br />
<br />revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-43493040707004589942016-10-14T15:56:00.001-05:002016-10-14T15:56:43.471-05:00The longer I stick with the idea that there is a God and that the God that is, is testified to in a good portion of what is called the Old Testament and New Testament, the more I become aware of how most of what I've believed about this God is so lacking and limited. God, as I have experienced, is beyond our language to describe, our hearts to contain, our beliefs to bear full witness to, our minds to conceive. These limitations do more to mislead people than to aid them in discovery. Indeed, any explanation that isn't steeped in mystery is likely to push people away from God, rather than toward God. Scripture bears witness to this God-beyond-explanation--God answers Moses' question about who he should say sent him with "I Am", and Jesus tells Nicodemus that the Spirit cannot be predicted, and there are far more examples that point to the undefinable nature of God.<br />
Most of the theological stages I've passed through have been little more than a wide spot on the spiritual highway, though my own experience and what I've witnessed of others is that we set up house at these barely wide-spots; i.e., we settle in thinking and expecting we are not moving from there or changing our idea of God and who we are to be. Unfortunately, since these are not permanent theological locations, many people who discover the impermanence of these wide-spots simply give up on anything beyond them, give up on seeking anything more, give up on God because their idea of God has been so cemented to a limited idea that they feel betrayed, angry, disillusioned, and disappointed--since the limited view cannot speak to the challenges and griefs we experience.<br />
My experience of settling in is much like I remember when I was a boy and my father would be doing yard work. My father would give me a ride in the wheelbarrow around the yard, twisting this way and that, until he would stop near where he was working and park the wheelbarrow. There I would sit in the wheelbarrow and not get out, hoping for another ride. Eventually, however, needing the wheelbarrow, my father would dump me out. <br />
God allows the circumstances of life to dump me out of the theological and spiritual wheelbarrows I become accustomed to, and no matter how many times I try to crawl back in, it just won't hold me. <br />
It isn't that God isn't seen through these views of God, its just that each view is so limited. As I move further along, I become both frustrated that language is too limited to express God, and grateful in the vast landscape that continues to broaden in truth and love that is inexpressible. I have discovered that so far there's always another wheelbarrow ride as long as I remain curious.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-84741071864507002122016-10-11T08:19:00.002-05:002016-10-11T08:19:31.834-05:00Assumptions are necessary in life. Without them we would be testing and confirming everything and have little time to genuinely live and enjoy each moment. We assume and take for granted the air we breath, the ground upon which we walk, the physical laws that govern our movement and existence. Beyond these we make assumptions about relationships, everything from family support to other drivers on the road. Clearly some assumptions come back to bite us.<br />
There are other assumptions, however, that are erroneous, yet they are so knit into the fabric of our beliefs and consciousness that to question them is for some akin to heresy or overwhelmingly absurd.<br />
One assumption humanity practices is that of our place and position as a creature upon the earth. Take for example Earth Day, recognized on April 22. It began in 1970, not even a blink of the eye in the age of the earth. Something about humanity declaring one day as earth day strikes me as arrogant and audacious. It assumes that we have some inherent right to do with the earth as we choose, to use it and its resources as we choose, regardless of the other creatures that call the earth home or of the earth's wellbeing itself, let alone our own future on the earth that sustains us. I realize that the establishment of Earth Day is about the exact opposite of all of that, but its establishment identifies just how askew our assumptions are regarding our place and role in relationship to the earth.<br />
For those familiar with the Abrahamic faith traditions, the Genesis account, after the wonders of creation, indicates that The Creator spoke to humankind and said: be fruitful and multiply and have dominion over the earth.<br />
Humankind was also given the responsibility of naming everything. This naming and the command to have dominion is a huge responsibility. It has, for many, created the assumption that we can do anything we please, that the earth and all of its teeming life is ours to exploit to our advantage. While the earth may be granted to us for our wellbeing, to have dominion is not the same thing as dominating. Imagine, if you will, the relationship of a King or Queen who have dominion over a country of people. Though they have incredible power and privilege, the purpose of which is to govern and manage the land and people to the benefit of all--not to dominate the land and people, but to be good stewards in order to bring about prosperity and wellbeing for all. Any kingdom or nation that has a despot for a ruler will eventually fall because there is a terrifying mismanagement of the resources of land and people.<br />
<br />
As we make decisions on various energy policies, economic policies, business policies, and politics, may we test our assumptions that we, as one species on this planet, have a right that supersedes all other life, whether plant or animal, let alone the wellbeing of the planet itself. We are stewards, not owners of the earth. We are to have dominion, not domination over the planet.<br />
The assumption of our right to do as we please, because it serves our current purposes, is erroneous and dangerous. To have one Earth Day is quite frankly based on an erroneous assumption about the relationship between humanity and the planet we call home. Now if the earth had one day a year called humanity day, then that would make more sense.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-23483561715514077042016-09-28T09:46:00.002-05:002016-09-28T09:46:32.403-05:00<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #16191f; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are
far more theologians in the world than we might think there are. The
requirements to be a theologian are simply an effort of the head and heart to
make sense of life. Some do so by saying there is a divine essence behind the
curtain of what we can see and know and experience; some say there is no
Creator and what we call spiritual is nothing more than our consciousness
reaching beyond its limitations, imagining the unimaginable in order to bring
order and explain what is beyond the mind to comprehend. No matter which approach or which
perspective, or anywhere along the continuum between the two, there are a lot
of theologians. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #16191f; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even
children are theologians, perhaps the best because of their natural wonder and
acceptance of things that are beyond their capacity to explain rationally.
Children innately are theologians because their hearts are usually still wide
open to trust—unless they have experienced some reason to be distrustful
already, something tragic and terrible, and unfortunately too common. For those
children who are still trusting, they are remarkably profound in their insights
and acceptance of the holy and sacred that sparkles in everything and
everywhere. According to words identified as Jesus’, this child-like faith is
even identified as necessary for entering the kingdom of heaven. Child-like is
different than childish. Childishness has nothing to do with entering the
kingdom. Child-like points to the willingness to accept something rich and
necessary for living life fully, without earning it or even being able to comprehend
or explain it; child-like is the inherent necessity of trusting—like the infant
that is fed at the mother’s breast or the toddler that reaches to the parent
knowing they will be lifted and embraced. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #16191f; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For those
who are identified as theologians—those who have earned degrees or some form of
credential that the world accepts as necessary for being a theologian, then
words and descriptions and explanations are well-honed and crafted. Being a
theologian, however, is not the same thing as being faithful. A theologian can
be fluent in theology and capable of expressing in words truths that are teased
out of ancient and contemporary texts and experience, but faith is the
practice, sometimes unknowingly, of what theology only points toward. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #16191f; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Essentially,
theology is the practice of explaining the inexplicable; creating containers
for that which cannot be contained; describing that which is beyond
description. In essence, it points us toward that which cannot be reached, but
also lets us know that the mystery of that which cannot be reached is that it
does what we cannot do: it reaches out to us and holds us. In this, we
understand in a way that explanations can never explain, just as any definition
of love falls short of the experience of being loved and out of that, loving.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-80748798479913788462016-09-20T11:00:00.001-05:002016-09-20T11:00:29.259-05:00There are mysterious moments when by some power beyond ourselves the ordinary becomes extraordinary, the profane becomes sacred, the common becomes a sacrament through which we glimpse the glimmer and radiance of everything as it and we shine in glory. It may be when holding an infant or watching an act of kindness or walking through a forest or standing at a street corner in the rain with strangers or anywhere we may be, since this glory is not tame or limited by our mood, beliefs, or attitude. This shining glory is always there, we simply do not see it because we have lost our eyes of wonder. What restores our sight is miraculous and generous, but not remote or infrequent. We simply do not seek it with any earnestness or attention. Despite our lacking the eyes to see or the heart to pursue, we are brought to the threshold of the doorway and given a glimpse into the Grand Canyon of splendor. This glimpse is a seed planted in a crevice, a crack in the hard pavement of our consciousness. It begins to grow and scatter more seeds that wedge themselves into the crack and widen the fertile space where joy and love take root and the moments begin to eclipse our awareness and attention until heaven resides in us as much as we reside in it. And then the greatest honor we may receive is thrust upon us: we become doorkeepers of this glory for others who are still blind to it.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-65527044030386925872016-09-15T18:44:00.001-05:002016-09-15T18:45:24.334-05:00Most of us know what its like to stand between two mirrors. When I was a child I had a suspicion that a mirror facing a mirror might be a portal to a magical world. I never found that it is, but it is a sort of echo of images as our reflection curves out of sight, sight, sight…<br />
When I was a kid I used to have moments when I’d ponder the notion of being conscious and why I knew I was conscious, why I knew anything and was aware of knowing, why I knew I was, just was. Being conscious of consciousness is kind of like standing between two mirrors, eventually the idea echoes out of sight.<br />
In college I recall the Philosophy class in which I read about Rene’ Descartes and his “I think, therefore I am” claim—that thinking (or consciousness about thinking) is the basis of knowing that one exists. <br />
There are undoubtedly many facets of consciousness like having a conscience—the ability to know right from wrong and that one has a choice between the two—or feeling guilty when one chooses the wrong or having an understanding of ethics, which arises from the question “how would I feel if I were in this person’s shoes and I was treated that way?” Remember that this is the premise of the story of Pinocchio, that if he was to be a real boy then he needed a conscience. <br />
Ultimately, I think consciousness is the gift that helps me know that I can and do make a difference and the difference I make can be good or not so good and that I can choose; that I am aware that I can, with what little I may have, influence my little sphere in a positive way; that I can take whatever comes my way and not simply react with instinct, but respond with insight. <br />
I like all of the seasons of the Church year, but something about the season of Epiphany, that follows Christmastide, really captures my attention. It is the Eureka! season. Eureka is from a Greek word that means, of course, “I found it!” My consciousness, however, whispers to me that when it comes to the big Epiphanies of life, it’s really not me finding anything, but me being found. That’s a humbling epiphany. And if there's a magic portal, then that's it.<br />
And if the universe has taught me anything, then it can be summed up as: Pay attention!<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carl<br />
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<br />revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-84389711227087899732016-09-05T21:25:00.001-05:002016-09-15T18:45:05.247-05:00To be yourself, genuine and without airs, no need to perform or pretend to be what one isn't--especially the pretending that even you don't realize is pretend, until the ache in your heart becomes too great to bear--to be the real you stripped of all pretense and masks, is far beyond comfortable, far beyond a relief, far beyond serene. It is salvation, deliverance, an atmosphere of pure air to breathe rather than the stuffy air that suffocates one who anxiously desires approval but never really receives it because it isn't you who is approved, it's the role you're playing, the character in the unreal skit of your pseudo-life.<br />
Heck, we learn at a very early age that we must mask ourselves, hide our identity. And we learn to do it so well that we often don't realize that we are unreal. There are signs of it, like the hollow echo in the relationships we establish, or the despair that is like a faint stain we can't remove from our thoughts, or the appetite for something richer and deeper that makes us feel alive. It makes perfect sense to perform for acceptance since if you experience rejection, then it isn't the real you that has been turned away. Whereas if you are to be vulnerable and expose who you are and others turn away, then where do you go from there? Of course, all the while the fake you is out there, the real you is hiding in the dark.<br />
That's why truly being loved for yourself--blessings and blemishes--is a foretaste of heaven. And such vulnerable authenticity in you is a doorway through which others glimpse their freedom too.<br />
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For me, that's the Gospel. Yes, the Gospel is more than that too, but think about all the encounters Jesus had with the folk who were not approved. These stories described in the four Gospel accounts tell how prostitutes, tax collectors, the diseased and disabled, adulterers, Samaritans, and sinners (that's all inclusive) all were offered and some experienced a liberation from the burden of their disapproval. They were freed through the generosity of being loved as they were, not as they were expected to be. Their social context didn't necessarily change, but their hearts experienced a transformation. In many cases there understandably was an overwhelming gratitude. Think about Zacheus, or the leper, or the man born blind, or the prostitute, or Mary Magdalene, or the Samaritan woman at the well, and all the others whose hearts he freed from the tiny cages. The irony of this is how often the church requires people to be untrue to who God created them to be, in order to fit some ideal fabricated out of self-righteousness.<br />
We can tie our hearts and bodies into Gordian knots trying to be who we think will be approved. It's a lousy way to live, trying to receive the awards of approval. It's a violent way to live--for ourselves and anyone we require to participate in the game, if they want our approval. On occasion we get glimpses of who we are when we feel joy and contentment, but these too quickly disappear. They are hints, nudges, whispers, whiffs of the aroma of peace and love.<br />
At some point, by some mysterious power, some people loosen their grip and let go of the charade, drop the act, and in the process are released by an incredible love that goes far beyond the field of competitive approval. This deep love is a gift that gives us ourselves again.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-43638476903887087982016-09-01T08:49:00.001-05:002016-09-01T19:27:21.640-05:00At the back edge of the yard where I grew up there was a creek. It was a magical thing for me. Now, as I think of it, I cannot imagine not having such a ribbon of glory as a child. It was there that I discovered snails and crawdads and minnows and turtles and snakes. The greatest gift from that creek, however, was wonder. It has been a treasure I have carried with me for the past several decades. <br />
One of the activities I recall in this creek was the industrious effort of constructing dams. These were always made with natural and readily available resources: rocks, mud, silt, moss. The design of these dams improved through the years as experience, combined with increased cognitive powers were gained. The motive behind dam building was whimsical. Sometimes it arose out of the excess energy of childhood that needed something to do along with the brain's innate need for the reward of completing a task, of having accomplished some goal--no matter how pointless. At other times the dam building was for the purpose of creating a deeper reservoir in which to wade, splash, and play; perhaps also to trap larger fish or other assorted creek abiding critters. <br />
The dams never lasted long. With the first rainfall the creek would swell and the power and force of tiny raindrops collected into hundreds of thousands of gallons of water would wash away the work. The loss of each dam was part of the wonder as I came to recognize the strength of accumulation. <br />
Sometimes there is a dam in my heart and mind as I consider the terrible things happening in our world. It is a tiny dam that arises from fear and reaction to threat. It holds back the waters of hope, forgiveness, and generosity in a punitive effort. As I pray for peace to rain down, for the weather system to shift and flood the world with reconciliation, my tiny dam is overwhelmed and washed away. It is a foolish little dam that is as capricious as the rock and mud and moss dams I built as a child. <br />
You and I are rain-makers and each act of kindness, each insult returned with forgiveness, each threat overcome with compassion is a drop of rain falling from heaven, the accumulation of which is far more powerful than the tiny dams behind which fear becomes a reservoir of violence and hatred. It is no less a wonder to behold the accumulated force of generosity and compassion than to be a child on the banks of a creek after a storm watching the water wash away that which cannot last. <br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-69785798791930175382016-08-30T09:44:00.000-05:002016-08-30T09:44:26.237-05:00I call myself Christian, but what is the difference between me and an atheist, or an agnostic, or someone of another belief system? Am I saying that what defines me is my Christianity, my beliefs, or is my identity shaped by grace--the inexplicable, unfathomable, incomprehensible, overwhelming, life-changing and unearnable gift that isn't contained in any belief system? This grace is articulated by the Christian belief system, but other belief systems, acknowledge it as well, often as a shadowy mystery that cannot be contained in an explanation. It is pointed to by the billions of lives who say they aren't religious, but who hunger for God's love.<br />
My point is that when those who are Christian describe themselves as "believers" and others as "unbelievers" they are pointing to a belief system as the defining difference. It is often said as if there is some insider privilege.<br />
Frankly, to separate people on the basis of believers and unbelievers strikes me as ridiculous, as if the belief system is what matters. And if the belief system is what matters then we are operating by religious works rather than grace. That is the opposite of the humility that grace endows. If we are to divide people between believers and unbelievers I prefer to speak of "those who know God loves them despite all that is unlovable" and "those who do not yet know God loves them unconditionally." This difference is entirely about something that has been revealed to us. It isn't about something that puts us in a better position with God since God loves "the world." My religious knowledge (belief system) is valuable to me, but it only points to the gift, it isn't the gift. <br />
And in seeing the difference as between "knowing" and "not knowing" God's love, my living is focused on being loved in such a way that my life points to the unconditional love God has for others, not in converting them to a belief system.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-24382257930897285322016-08-28T22:56:00.003-05:002016-08-28T22:56:36.876-05:00I have come to view spiritual growth as catching up consciously with what God does for us in an instant. Those who have days and months and years to embrace and appropriate and acclimate themselves to the gift we are given by God are simply catching up to a reality that we are unable to see or recognize as we are still steeped in the swill of the world.<br />
Spiritual growth is the process of shedding all the baggage we think we need, but in truth we don't. God equips us fully in an instant and the journey of the spiritual life is about discovering all that our hearts need and seek is already given to us.<br />
Long ago I remember the revelation that as followers of Christ we have both arrived and are on our way into God's kingdom, that it is simultaneously true that we are there spiritually and we are on our way there spiritually. The notion of spiritual growth being a process of discovering what we have already received is simply a different view of this truth.<br />
The erroneous notion about spiritual growth is that wherever we may be at any given time is all that we are, much like the temporal and spatial realities we experience as we are on a trip from one location to another. The difference, however, is that what cannot be experienced in time and space is the reality spiritually, because the physics of time and space are not limitations.<br />
Another erroneous notion regarding our experience of spiritual growth is that wherever we may be at any particular moment is the furthest there is, that each stage of spiritual growth becomes the destination, when it should only be a way point.<br />
The trouble this creates is stagnation and legalism--even for those who have grown beyond legalism, for they see the grays in black and white as they judge those who see in black and white.<br />
The truth of spiritual growth is embraced most fully by the understanding that we have all we need, but we haven't a clue how rich it is. Each step we take reveals in greater glory the gift we already have received.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-56909883597752812702016-08-23T18:09:00.000-05:002016-08-23T18:09:18.511-05:00<div>
There is something peculiar and ironic about becoming and being a Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ, one who acknowledges God's love for all of us. On the one hand, one's experience is often of warm fellowship, communion, and deep comfort that you are claimed and belong and are secure in God's mercy and deliverance. On the other hand, however, what happens if one persists in being a disciple, is that eventually one is metaphorically set out in the middle of a desert with a tiny canteen and a granola bar and a scrap of paper with the words "trust me" written on it in God's hand writing. After a time of wandering in different directions, the canteen is dry, the granola bar long gone, and the words on the scrap of paper fade or you lose the scrap altogether. The next part of the story isn't particularly pretty. There are a lot of puddles of scummy water you use to fill your canteen and all you find to eat is discarded chicken bones with most of the meat already gnawed off, first by people, then by whatever rodents might be fortunate to find them. Of course, the desert isn't really a desert, but a nice home in the suburbs, and the scummy puddles and gnawed chicken bones may actually be icy alcoholic beverages served poolside or ultra-purified artesian spring water, and six course meals by candlelight. That's because the challenge of trusting God absolutely can be a terribly difficult one to discern and recognize. We are much more likely to come to trust when we have no alternatives or options. Though this option is effective and often necessary, it is not easy to be stripped of all alternative safety nets--especially because we have so many that we can't even inventory. The truth is, when we have whatever we may feel we need to feel secure (job, income, friends, family, money, insurance, health, the fellowship of the faith community, and a host of other good things), then articulating trust is as easy as ignoring the fact that we aren't really trusting.</div>
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Of course, one of the subtle lessons is that God's love and grace are not dependent on my ability to trust. What I have discovered, however, is that the more I trust (code for releasing my false securities), the richer my experience of God's grace becomes and the less insecure I feel.</div>
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© 2016 Stephen Carl</div>
revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-590983478077155062016-07-22T07:47:00.001-05:002016-07-22T07:47:42.786-05:00It's odd that after serving in churches for 37 years, 31 as an ordained pastor with a bachelor's degree in religion and a Master of Divinity degree from a well-known seminary, doctoral work in Community Pastoral Counseling, training and certification in several specialized ministries, having preached thousands of sermons, led hundreds of Bible studies, read so many theological books that I probably should participate in a 12 step program for theoholics...after all of that and more, I've found myself asking over and over again the simple questions: "God, what do you want me to learn in what I'm facing right now? What can I take from these moments/this experience that will bring me deeper into your will? That's what I ask myself. Sometimes I'll feel the Spirit nudge me to ask someone else: How's your spiritual life? What's God doing in your life? Where do you feel God's blessing and where is God pushing you to grow? What are you hearing from Jesus? How do you experience/encounter God?<br />
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These questions may be hard for some to conceive. They are not intended to be intrusive or offensive, but intended to stir up the thought of one's relationship with God. It's a question asked FOR God--almost as if God is saying to the person "hey, I'd like you to know me better and open your heart to me more. I love you and want you to know it. I broke the mold after you, you're one of a kind, created in order for your heart's wings to spread fully and catch the wind of the Spirit and soar. Let's work on that together. I'm on your side. Always have been, always will be. And while I have your attention, I'd like your help in connecting with some of my other favorites. You are perfectly situated and prepared to help me with that. As you build trust and rapport with friends, family, colleagues, associates, neighbors--frankly anyone--I'd like you to tell about our relationship--yours and mine--and raise the idea that whoever you are talking with can have an amazing relationship with me too. Don't worry, I've already been at work in anyone's heart that you may speak to. I don't expect you to introduce the idea, just tend the garden a little, maybe water it, spread some fertilizer on it.<br />
Before you do any of that though, your first priority is to lean more and more into me. Let me support you when you feel weak or strong, let me feed and nourish you when you feel hungry and malnourished, let me encourage you when you feel discouraged and whooped, let me be your shield when you feel overwhelmed and defeated. Whatever the problem, don't worry, I'm already aware of it and I'm just waiting for you to ask for help.<br />
Asking another about the state of their relationship with God may seem intrusive, but that's a defensive response, it's fear dictating the future, it's the ego scared of letting go control. Some may think "that's private!" but it may be so private that they don't even know it. Some may think "well, aren't you the spiritual giant" but that's being offensive in order to take the attention off of what they're afraid to admit.<br />
There are a lot of ways to avoid growing spiritually (code for having a relationship with God--since we can't grow spiritually apart from that), but that shouldn't put off those who know the richness and necessity of growing spiritually from seeking ways to assist others in their growth. Why would anyone refuse another starving person from knowing where a never-ending, free banquet is served?<br />
So first, you need to enjoy the rich, spiritually nutritious spread God has provided, build up your strength and confidence. The deeper into God you grow the more gracious you'll be with others because the further you go the more you recognize that it's not you, it's God. And that's the blossom of humility, which produces the fruit of gratitude. If you keep it up (and you should, even when it seems nothing is happening) eventually you won't be able to contain the joy. Remember David, the shepherd boy/king who wrote "my cup overflows"? That's what he was talking about. For hearts that are willing, I just keep pouring the love and joy and grace in. It sloshes and spills and overflows and puddles, but it's never a mess.<br />
So go ahead. Give it a try. Invite me in. Let's sit and talk. No pressure. No guilt. Nothing to sign in blood. My Son signed that contract already. That's why I'm hoping to hear from you.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-88709122584285757452016-07-08T13:49:00.003-05:002016-07-08T13:49:57.384-05:00Many people have those epic family stories that they love to recite and retell. Events, moments, experiences and encounters that are humorous or insightful or character-shaping or turning points or "ah-ha!" moments.<br />
One of my family favorites occurred when I was too young to remember, perhaps even before I was born. My older brother and sister had been outside playing and had inadvertently gotten into a patch of poison ivy. My parents, O Wise Ones that they are, acted with lightening speed and brought my brother and sister in, had them strip out of their clothes and bathe. Crisis averted!<br />
An hour or so later, however, my sister was fine, but my brother was itchy and scratching himself--it was a mystery why one wasn't affected, but the other was--until my parents discovered my brother had simply redressed in the clothes he'd had on earlier.<br />
Perhaps that's amusing, but we all do it--not with poison ivy, but with our preferred sins--we are guilty of some kind of brokenness, some kind of ego-laced attitude, some kind of sinkhole selfishness and in our spiritually lucid moments we, by the grace of God, strip ourselves of the sin-soaked outfit we've been parading around in and we are baptized in the cleansing mercy we are offered. We cannot remain emotionally and spiritually naked, by virtue of our vulnerabilities and the nature of our human relationships and so we are reclothed. Some of us are reclothed in a wardrobe of righteousness, some take on some armor to keep ourselves (pseudo) safe. Most, if not all of us, however, eventually slip back into those exposed clothes we'd stripped out of and we find ourselves itchy and scratchy again.<br />
The apostle Paul admits that he does what he does not want to do and what he wants to do, he doesn't. <br />
For me, this is where I discover the rich nature of grace. If I am able to manage my own righteousness then grace is simply cutting me some slack, but if sin is so pervasive that I cannot strip and re-dress on my own, then grace is that gift I most desperately need and for which I am most joyfully grateful.<br />
Unquestionably, the latter is the case.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-4951171670477282882016-07-07T08:53:00.001-05:002016-07-07T08:53:43.786-05:00I learned to swim at my hometown YMCA pool. I don't have many detailed memories of those lessons, but I can still imagine the big room and pool, I can still hear the echoing sounds of the water and voices, I can still remember the smell of chlorine, I can still feel the sensation of water on my body and it running off my face as I would surface.<br />
I advanced quickly through the various stages of swim classes, reaching the last level a couple of years before most my age. Consequently, I was a small guy compared to my peers in the class. I think the level was called The Sharks, but I may be wrong. I remember one of the requirements in the last level was to swim as far as I could underwater, holding my breath. One pool length was expected, but if you could do more, then it was encouraged. I recall the anxious anticipation of diving in, thrusting my body as far forward as possible while making myself as hydrodynamic as I could in order to increase the distance of my initial jump. And then as I felt myself slow to a point I intuitively knew I could swim faster than, I began swimming. Remarkably I came to the end quicker than I expected, so I turned and pushed against the pool wall with all the strength my legs could muster, then began swimming back to the deep end. Again, remarkably, I made it to the end where I had started. Now I was beginning to feel my lungs demanding a new breath of fresh air, but I turned around and pushed against the wall again and began swimming toward the shallow end. As I swam this length I began releasing the spent breath I'd been holding. I made it about two thirds of the way before rising to the surface and gasping for air. <br />
I didn't expect to go nearly as far as I did and I was excited for my accomplishment.<br />
My experience in learning to swim has opened me to many discoveries about the world, about challenges, about overcoming obstacles and fears, but mostly discoveries about myself. I've learned that it's easiest to stay in the shallow waters where it's safe and familiar and non-threatening. I've also learned that the best lessons and most fulfilling experiences are in the deeper waters.<br />
It is in the deep waters I have been filled with awe by the glory of creation, the wonders of the cosmos, the simplicity and complexity of life, the love and joy of The Creator, and the spectacular symphony of nature. It is also in the deep waters that I have been tested and I've found my own boundaries--some of which I have, by necessity, enlarged; others I have had to humbly accept. The deep waters present us with more gifts than we will ever be able to unwrap. It is in the deep waters that we are most at risk, but it is also there that we are baptized. <br />
I've learned that there's always a new depth. Whenever I become familiar and comfortable with a particular depth, it's then that I begin to be drawn to something even deeper, more mysterious and more of a blessing--despite what I may be put through to reach it. <br />
I have discovered that my faith opens me to the presence of God in these depths. Rather than forbidding me from the deep waters, God has knit into my heart an adventure, one for which God is the treasure I find in the depths. <br />
Just like all the early swim classes, The Minnows, The Guppies, The Pollywogs, or whatever, all the experiences I've had through life have been necessary in preparing me for the deeper waters. Consequently, I have patience for those not yet swimming in the depths. I am not better than they. Each stage of life is necessary. The only misfortune is when someone reaches a certain point and prefers treading water to swimming further out and diving further down. Sadder still are those who deem the ones swimming further out and diving deeper as wrong in doing so--perhaps they're trying to justify their own fear of the deeper waters by stigmatizing those who swim further than they.<br />
I have come far enough to know that I have not yet come far enough, to know that there is more yet to discover, more yet to explore, more yet to be tested and strengthened by, more of God's deep love in which to swim. And the remarkable thing is that as I am able to look back to shallower waters and remember how spectacular it was to swim there at the time, yet now it looks so small and confining, I know that I will yet look upon where I am today with the same notion from deeper waters still.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carl<br />
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revsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5171402686112550354.post-53376880802856160392016-07-04T12:11:00.004-05:002016-07-04T12:11:45.881-05:00As a young pastor in Austin, back in 1985, a dude wandered into the church I was serving and eventually was directed to my office. He and I sat for a while and talked when he began explaining to me his theory of the end of the world. For him it was immanent. He had made his way to Texas from Seattle, WA where he claimed that street people were required to have a barcode tattooed somewhere on them in order to receive government help—of course, at the time, the use of barcodes was in its infancy and therefore suspect and perceived as one step closer to Big Brother, at least to this guy. He claimed the barcode tattoo was the sign of the beast, mentioned in the book of Revelation and that this was just the beginning, that soon everyone would need to be tattooed to buy stuff. I didn’t have any class in seminary that mentioned that ministry would be like this, but I honored the man by agreeing that if that was the case it would be alarming. In the end he asked for bus fare, which I gladly provided. <br />
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Since the life of Jesus Christ there have been well over 155 documented “end-of-the-world” predictions. The majority of these have taken place in the last few hundred years as cultures began to bump up against each other and explorations and new discoveries increased. Furthermore as technological advances increased there have been more predictions that we would soon see our demise. There have been 60 predictions during my lifetime of 55 years—more than one a year. <br />
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Why are there so many end-of-the-world predictions and such a fascinations with them? Novels and movies are based on apocalyptic themes that are well received. <br />
Why? Answering that question is worthy of extensive research, but I think it essentially is because <br />
1. change is frightening and the effects of change are feared<br />
2. It’s easier to prepare for a known end than to navigate the unknown landscape created by change<br />
3. Change often requires people to release false beliefs about themselves, others, and the cosmos—in other words, admit they were wrong about something they earnestly believed; as well as accept that persons of authority in their lives are wrong. <br />
4. End-time believers tend to cluster with other end-time believers, further reinforcing their belief of the end, while excusing them from the difficult work of being with people different from themselves<br />
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There’s a lot more to it than that, but as we ride the roller coaster of human history and we are whipped and jerked and jostled by the dramatic shifts occurring around us—whether technological, social, or political—it is helpful to realize that “the-sky-is-falling” scenarios are a dime a dozen. <br />
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Does this mean we disregard the effects of change or cast away any concern? Certainly not, but we should also be sober in our interpretation of them. There is a lot of money and power tied up in causing people to panic, but who profits from these predictions? Certainly not those who believe the predictions and freak out. <br />
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It’s been 31 years since the fellow showed up in my office and in that time I’ve never seen a barcode tattooed on someone’s body that was required by the government.<br />
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© 2016 Stephen Carlrevsrchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03739117374313192829noreply@blogger.com0